Popular South Indian actor Bala, best known among Tamil cinema fans for starring in Ajith Kumar's 2013 blockbuster Veeram, was hospitalized in Kochi due to liver-related illness on Tuesday, March 27. The actor is the brother of blockbuster Tamil filmmaker Siva and was rushed to the hospital after he suffered from a severe cough and abdominal pain. According to reports, Bala had been advised to undergo liver transplant after he visited the hospital a week ago to consult with the doctors. Bala's brother and filmmaker Siva too has arrived at Amrita Hospital where the actor has been admitted and a photo of him alongside Unni Mukundan and others has also come out on social media.
Soon after Bala was admitted to the hospital, film producer NM Badusha informed on Facebook that he along with Unni Mukundan and a few other friends paid a visit to the ailing actor. He wrote, "Unni Mukundan, me, Vishnu Mohan, Swaraj and Vipin came to Amrita Hospital today and visited actor Bala. He has spoken to everyone. There are no other issues currently. The doctor will inform me with more details later." Likewise, Malayalam actress Abhirami Suresh took to Instagram and brushed away the wrong news being doing the rounds about Bala's health requesting fans to not indulge in spreading false rumors.
Bala's last big screen appearance was in the Malayalam film, Shefeekkinte Santhosham, directed by Anup Pandalam, released in 2022. Having made his acting debut as the lead in the 2003 Tamil film Anbu, the actor later appeared in Kadhal Kisu Kisu, Manjal Veyil, Karthi's Thambi and also appearing as one among 'Thala' Ajith’s four younger brothers in Veeram, while also starring in Malayalam ventures like Mammootty's Big B, Mohanlal's Pulimurugan and Lucifer, Prithviraj's Puthiya Mukham and Ennu Ninte Moideen, to name a notable few. As for Bala's brother Siva, the filmmaker is currently filming the highly-anticipated Suriya 42 starring Suriya and Bollywood sensation Disha Patani in the lead roles, which will be coming out in as many as 10 languages.