Actor Salim Kumar was hospitalized on ventilator support in Kerala

Salim Kumar Photo Credit: VIPIN CHANDRAN

National award winning actor Salim Kumar has been hospitalized and remains on ventilator support.

He was taken to Amrita Hospital in Kochi after he complained of discomfort on Saturday morning. Hospital officials declined to release details of his condition beyond confirming that he is on ventilator support.

Mr Kumar, who won both the National and State Best Actor awards in 2010 for his moving performance in Salim Ahmed’s critically acclaimed Adaminte Makan Abu, has a medical history marred by recurring bouts of illness.

A well-known supporter of the Congress, he campaigned extensively for the United Democratic Front (UDF) in the last Assembly elections. His campaign for Chief Minister VD Satheesan, who won from the actor’s home constituency of North Paravur, sparked controversy and a public spat with the CPI(M) and its supporters.

Mr Kumar’s speech mocking the development – or rather the lack of it – during former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s tenure did not sit well with CPI(M) supporters who launched a scathing campaign against him on social media. The National Platform for the Rights of the Disabled (NPRD) also filed an official complaint with the Election Commission, which claimed that his statements aggravated mental conditions and stigmatized patients who suffer from them.

Undeterred, Mr. Kumar continued to campaign for the UDF across the state despite his visibly frail health. His last public appearance was in North Paravur at a reception given to Mr. Satheesan after his elevation as Chief Minister. Mr Kumar improved on Mr Satheesan’s campaign call to go into political exile if he failed to bring the UDF back to power, joking that a man willing to go into exile had been crowned instead.

Incidentally, Mr. Kumar is a staunch supporter of Mr. Satheesan and has been campaigning for him continuously since his first successful election contest in North Paravur in 2001.

Published – June 6, 2026 12:54 PM IST