Puneeth Rajkumar (born 17 March 1975), colloquially known as Appu, is an Indian film actor, playback singer, anchor and producer who works primarily in Kannada cinema. He has been a lead actor in 28 films; as a child, he appeared in many films. His performances in "Vasantha Geetha" (1980), "Bhagyavantha" (1981), "Chalisuva Modagalu" (1982), "Eradu Nakshatragalu" (1983), Bhakta Prahaladha, Yarivanu and "Bettada Hoovu" (1985) were praised. He won the National Film Award for Best Child Artist for his role of Ramu in "Bettada Hoovu". He also won Karnataka State Award Best Child artist for "Chalisuva Modagalu" and "Yeradu Nakshatragalu". Puneeth's first lead role was in 2002's "Appu".