Gemini Ganesan, Tamil hero of yesterday died in Chennai on Tuesday morning. He was 84. Kamal Hassan recalls, "My first interaction with Gemini Ganesan was when I was 3 years old. I posed in his arms as a child actor. Years later we came together for a photo session. I was touched that somebody of his stature agreed to my tomfoolery when I carried him in my arms this time. He was a very jovial and cheerful person. Only he could have managed to keep his 3 wives and their children (& daughters and a son) together and happy. You just had to see his joyful family to know that he was an exceptional man. Even though his brother Shivaji Ganesan was my hero, my idol, I was closer to Gemini. I did ten films with him. In the original version of Chachi 420 (Abbai Shanmukhi), he was in the role played by Amrish Puri. He was a great soul, a great man who will be sorely missed."