Veerapandiya Kattabomman is a 1959 Indian Tamil-language historical war film produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan, Padmini, S. Varalakshmi, and Ragini, with V. K. Ramasamy and Javar Seetharaman in supporting roles. Its soundtrack and score were composed by G. Ramanathan.
Sri Idagunji Mahaganapati Yakshagana Mandali, Keremane (R)(Kannada: ಇಡಗುಂಜಿ ಮಹಾಗಣಪತಿ ಯಕ್ಷಗಾನ ಮಂಡಳಿ)or simply the Keremane Yakshagana Troupe is a Yakshagana troupe based in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka, India. It was started by Keremane Shivarama Hegde in 1934. He is an exponent of this art form and is the first Yakshagana artist to win the Rashtrapati Award, an award handed out by the President of India to people who excel in various fields. The troupe has survived three generations, with his children Shambu Hegde, Mahabala Hegde and Gajanana Hegde and his grand son Shivananda Hegde also being exponents of Yakshagana. Keremane Shivananda Hegde is the current director of the troupe and the institution.
Bharathi Vishnuvardhan, also known mononymously as Bharathi, is an Indian actress known primarily for her work in Kannada cinema and television serials. She began her career in 1966, as a lead actress, with the Kannada movie Love in Bangalore though Dudde Doddappa was her first release. In a career spanning over 50 years, Bharathi has appeared in 150 films. Apart from 100 films in Kannada, she has also acted in a handful of Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films. Through the course of her career, she became known for her portrayal of roles of mythological and historical characters, and also that of a student, a romantic and a rural belle. Her role in Sri Krishnadevaraya (1970) as Chennambike won her the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actress. In 2017, she was honoured with the Padma Shri by the Government of India. She has the distinction of having paired with Dr.Rajkumar as a lead actress in all the 26 movies she acted with him and is also paired with him the most no. of times in those movies where he played multiple roles.
Mylai Ponnuswamy Sivagnanam, popularly known as Ma.Po.Si., was an Indian politician, freedom fighter, and the founder of the political party Tamil Arasu Kazhagam. He wrote more than 100 books.
Chindodi Leela was an Indian stage and film actress, politician, and writer from Karnataka.
Sakthi T. K. Krishnasamy was a veteran Indian Tamil dramas author and director, celebrated screenwriter and lyricist in Tamil films from the 1940s through the 1970s. He mostly wrote stories, screenplay and dialogue for films starring M. G. Ramachandran and Sivaji Ganesan. He has authored historical, mythological and social Tamil films spanning over 3 decades. He was considered a pioneer of Tamil Stage Dramas in its early years and also as one of the acclaimed and best film script writers of Tamil Cinema, and was hailed as such by popular screenwriters and political leaders like C. N. Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi publicly. His most acclaimed works are Veerapandiya Kattabomman and Karnan.
School Master is a 1958 Indian Kannada-language film produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. The film stars Panthulu himself in the lead role along with Dikki Madhava Rao, M. V. Rajamma, Udaykumar, Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan and B. Saroja Devi in important roles. This was the first Kannada film to complete a silver jubilee. The film had its children's dance drama in Gevacolor, taken by cinematographer W. R. Subba Rao. It was later remade in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi in spite of it being dubbed in Tamil and Telugu as Engal Kudumbam Perisu and Badi Pantulu respectively.
Vidyasagar, known by his stage name Rajesh, was an Indian actor who appeared in Kannada films. Known as 'Kala Thapaswi', Rajesh was an ardent fan of literature. He appeared in many films as the lead in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later on gravitated to strong character roles. He is the father of film actress Aasha Rani who acted in Rathasapthami with Shivrajkumar and the father-in-law of popular Kannada and Tamil actor Arjun Sarja.
Leena Sequeira, known mononymously as Leelavathi, was an Indian actress, producer and philanthropist who worked predominantly in Kannada and Tamil films, in addition to few Telugu, Malayalam and Tulu films. After having her stint at the theatre, Leelavathi made her film debut in a small role in Nagakannika (1949). She went on to act in more than 600 films throughout her career spanning over five decades.
Kappalottiya Thamizhan is a 1961 Indian Tamil-language historical drama film produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan and Savitri. It is based on the 1944 book of the same name by M. P. Sivagnanam, a biography of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai who founded the Swadeshi Stream Navigation Company to break the monopoly of the British over maritime trade out of India.
Rattihalli Nagendra Rao was an Indian theatre actor, film actor and director in South Indian cinema. Following his career in theatre, Rao turned to film a where he became an actor, director, producer, screenwriter and occasional composer. He is considered one of the most influential personalities in the history of South Indian cinema.
Kitturu Chennamma is a 1961 Indian Kannada-language historical drama film directed and produced by B. R. Panthulu. It stars B. Saroja Devi as Kittur Chennamma, an Indian freedom fighter who led an armed rebellion against the British East India Company in 1824, and died in captivity in 1829. Dr. Rajkumar played the role of Raja Mallasarja whereas Raja Shankar played the role of his son.
Sri Krishnadevaraya is a 1970 Indian historical drama film in the Kannada language, produced and directed by B. R. Panthulu. It stars Rajkumar as Krishnadevaraya, an emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire in the 16th century. R. Nagendra Rao, B. R. Panthulu, Narasimharaju and N. Bharathi appear in pivotal roles. The film was Rajkumar's first in color.
M. V. Rajamma was an Indian actress, producer and playback singer of films mostly in Kannada, Tamil and Telugu languages from the 1930s through 1970s. She has the distinction of having acted as both heroine and mother to stalwart South Indian actors such as Dr. Rajkumar, Sivaji Ganesan, MGR and NTR. Karnataka Government established M. V. Rajamma Award in her honor.
Hunsur Krishnamurthy was an Indian playwright, film director, producer, actor, screenwriter and lyricist in Kannada cinema.
R. Nagarathnamma (1926–2012) was an Indian theatre personality and the founder of Stree Nataka Mandali, an all-women theatre group based in Bengaluru. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, she was honored by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.
The South Indian film industry produced colour films since the 1940s. The earliest colour films in India were also produced in South India.
C. R. Parthiban was an Indian actor who worked mainly in Tamil cinema and theatre. He was best known for his performance as Jackson Durai in Veerapandiya Kattabomman (1959).
Dikki Madhava Rao was an Indian actor and singer known for his work as a character actor in Kannada-language films. He spent much of his early years as a stage actor in the 1920s and 1930s before appearing in Kannada films. He gained popularity with his role as the antagonist Kanyakumari Dikshit "Dikki" in the 1936 film Samsara Nauka. Subsequently, the name stuck to him as prefix.
Halebeedu Ramachandra Shastry, was an Indian actor and dubbing artist known for his work in Kannada cinema. In his career spanning more than 40 years, Shastry played a variety of supporting roles. He is noted for his performances in Bedara Kannappa (1954), Rayara Sose (1957), Bhoodana (1962), Sri Srinivasa Kalyana (1974) and Upasane (1974). Shastry's last movie was Pavana Ganga.
