Veteran Telugu actor Fish Venkat, known for his comic roles in numerous films, remains hospitalised in the ICU and urgently requires a kidney transplant. Last week, hopes were raised after reports claimed that actor Prabhas’ assistant had reached out to the family to offer financial help. However, in a recent interview, Venkat’s family clarified that the call was a hoax.“Nothing like that happened,” says family memberSpeaking to Suman TV, a family member said, “Actually, nothing like that happened. We have been answering every call we get to see if anyone can help us. Some unknown person called us pretending to be Prabhas Anna’s assistant. We found out after that it was a fake call. He doesn’t even know something like this is happening. We have not received any financial help yet.”This revelation comes just days after Venkat’s daughter Sravanthi told One India that someone claiming to be from Prabhas’ team had called with an offer of support. “Daddy isn’t well at all. He is very serious and in the ICU. He needs a kidney transplant. It will cost us at least Rs 50 lakh. Prabhas’ assistant called us and offered financial assistance. They asked us to inform them when his transplant happens to cover the cost,” she had said.
Vishwak Sen donates Rs 2 lakh for medical expensesWhile the call from Prabhas’ supposed team turned out to be fake, actor Vishwak Sen has stepped forward to help. In a video shared by Sasi TV, the family confirmed receiving Rs 2 lakh from the Gangs of Godavari actor.“Vishwak Sen is the first hero from the film industry to know about Fish Venkat’s health and donate Rs 2 lakh. This is going to help us a lot, so thank you. We urge everyone, from small artists to big heroes, to help Fish Venkat Anna with his health issue,” the family said in the video.Support from Pawan Kalyan and Mopidevi Venkata Ramana earlier this yearActor-politician and current Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Pawan Kalyan, had donated Rs 2 lakh to Fish Venkat earlier this year when the news of his illness first came to light. Politician Mopidevi Venkata Ramana Rao had also extended help, contributing Rs 1 lakh to the actor’s treatment.However, the family says more support is urgently needed. “We are in dire need of money for the kidney transplant now. Nobody knows he is in such a dire situation now, though it seems like not even Chiranjeevi. None of the associations also reached out to help either,” a family member said.
