Jnanpith awardee and renowned Kannada writer UR Ananthamurthy (81), passed away in a Bangalore hospital on Friday. Ananthamurthy, who was admitted about 10 days ago, was suffering from multi-organ failure. A Padma Bhushan award winner, Ananthamurthy was a finalist for the Man Booker Prize in 2013. He hit the limelight with his novel, "Samskara", which he wrote in 1965.