Bhubaneswar: Popular Odia film director, choreographer and writer SK Muralidharan was found dead in a hotel room in Bhubaneswar on Monday.

Muralidharan was known for his contributions to the Odia film industry. He made his debut in Ollywood as a choreographer with ‘Paradeshi Chadhei’ in 1990.

He later made his directorial debut in 2008 with ‘Chaati Chiri Dele Tu’. As a choreographer, he worked on several popular Odia films, including ‘Mani Nageswari’ (1995), ‘Stree’ (1998), ‘Sathire’ (2004), ‘I Love You’ (2005), ‘Dhanare Rakhibu Sapatha Mora’ (2008), ‘Abhimanyu’ (2009), ‘Rangila Toka’ (2012), ‘Love Master’ (2012), ‘Akhire Akhire’ (2014) and ‘Pilata Bigidigala’ (2015).

He also choreographed for the Telugu film ‘Om Sairam’ in 2012.

As a director, Muralidharan went on to helm the Odia film ‘Just Mohabbat’ in 2017, featuring Akash Dasnayak and Archita Sahu in the lead roles.

According to sources, Muralidharan's body was recovered from the hotel room under mysterious circumstances. The exact cause and circumstances of his death are yet to be ascertained.

Preliminary information suggest Muralidharan was staying at a hotel in Bhubaneswar when he suddenly complained of feeling unwell. He reportedly asked his associate for food, but shortly afterwards became unconscious and died.

Police recovered the body and took it to Capital Hospital, where an autopsy is scheduled to be conducted. Police said the exact circumstances surrounding his death would become clear after the investigation and post-mortem examination.