Work on Vishnu memorial to begin in Sept

Work on the much-delayed Vishnuvardhan memorial will start in September, Bharati, wife of the late actor, said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters after receiving papers on behalf of the Vishnuvardhan Memorial Trust from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, pertaining to the transfer of two acres of land next to Abhiman Studio, Bharati said the memorial would be a fitting tribute to the versatile actor.

Initially, it was planned to construct the memorial on the Abhiman Studio premises where Vishnuvardhan’s samadhi is located. However, Abhiman Studio is embroiled in a dispute over land ownership. The studio was established by the late actor Balakrishna, but a dispute has arisen among the members of his family over the ownership of the land.

Siddaramaiah said the government had already allotted Rs five crore for the construction of the memorial. “Construction will start in the adjacent land. We hope the dispute among Balakrishna’s family members will be resolved soon. Once it is done, the two premises would be merged,” Bharati said.