Rajan–Nagendra were an Indian musical duo who were prominent composers of film music in Kannada and Telugu cinema from the late 1950s to the early 1990s. Rajan, along with his brother Nagendra, created a niche for themselves for nearly four decades. The duo scored music for about 375 films, over 200 of them in Kannada and the remainder in other languages like Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Tulu, Hindi and Sinhala. They composed innumerable hits, hundreds of melodious tunes in their career spanning four decades. They also hold the record for the longest active musical pair in the industry.
Hombisilu is a 1978 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film directed by Geethapriya. It is based on the novel of the same name by Usha Navarathnaram. The film starred Vishnuvardhan, Aarathi and Leelavathi. Vishnuvardhan was awarded with Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in this film. The film was a musical blockbuster with all the songs composed by Rajan–Nagendra considered evergreen hits.
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. 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. In the course of her career, she became known for portrayal of the roles 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.
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.
Auto Raja is a 1980 Indian Kannada-language romance film directed by Vijay, based on a screenplay by M. D. Sundar. The film was produced by Parvathamma Rajkumar's sister husband C. Jayaram under the banner of Sapthaswara Movie Makers. The film stars Shankar Nag and Gayathri in lead roles, while Dwarakeesh, Balakrishna and Leelavathi appear in other supporting roles. The film features original songs composed by the music duo Rajan–Nagendra. The cinematography of the film was handled by S. V. Srikanth. It is considered as one of the best commercial films in Kannada cinema and received cult status. The film was significant in heightening the stardom of Shankar Nag. The film was remade in 1981 in Telugu as Taxi Driver starring Krishnam Raju and in 1982 in Tamil with the same name starring Vijayakanth.
Bangarada Jinke is a 1980 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by T. S. Nagabharana and produced by B. S. Somasundar and T. S. Narasimhan under the banner of Kavitha Komal Productions. It stars Vishnuvardhan, Bharathi, Aarathi, Leelavathi, Pramila Joshai and Sundar Raj.
Habba (transl. Festival) is a 1999 Indian Kannada-language drama film written and directed by D. Rajendra Babu. The film has an ensemble cast including Vishnuvardhan, Ambareesh, Devaraj, Jayapradha, Urvashi, Shashikumar, Ramkumar, Vijayalakshmi, Kasthuri and Charulatha. The movie was produced by Bharathi Devi for Chinni Chitra productions. The movie became a blockbuster and ran for more than 25 weeks. The film was remade in Telugu in 2002 as Chandravamsam starring Krishna. The movie was loosely based on the Pandavas's exile episode in the Virata Parva of Mahabharata.
Jimmy Gallu is a 1982 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed by K. S. L. Swamy and produced by Shashirekha. The story is written by Venugopal Kasaragod. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Sripriya, Lokesh and Hema Choudhary. The film was widely appreciated for its songs and story upon release. The songs composed by Vijaya Bhaskar were huge hits. The film was remade in Telugu as Muddayi and in Hindi as Mulzim.
Kalla Kulla is a 1975 Indian Kannada-language comedy drama film, directed by K. S. R. Das and produced by Shastry Associates. The story is written by M. D. Sundar. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Dwarakish, Bhavani and Jayalakshmi. The film was widely appreciated for its songs and story upon release. The songs composed by Rajan–Nagendra were huge hits. The movie was dubbed in Hindi as Chor Ka Bhai Chor. H.R. Bhargava was the associate director of this movie. The director remade the movie in Telugu in 1976 as Kallanum Kullanum.
Naa Mechida Huduga is a 1972 Kannada romantic drama film directed and scripted by R. N. Jayagopal. It is based on the story Divorce In Indian Style written by P. S. Vaidyanathan.
Kathanayaka is a 1986 Indian Kannada-language action drama film written and directed by P. Vasu, and produced by P. Vimal Kumar and R. Vijayalakshmi under Sri Gajalakshmi Combines. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Sumalatha, Vajramuni and Seema in the lead roles. The film has musical score by M. Ranga Rao.
Bhagya Jyothi is a 1975 Indian Kannada film, directed by K. S. L. Swamy and produced by Gopal-Lakshman. The movie, based on a novel by Mangala Satyan is a mirror to society's take on the caste system. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Bharathi Vishnuvardhan and Shubha in the lead roles. The film has musical score by Vijaya Bhaskar. The Sanskrit song 'Divya Gagana Vanavasini' sung by P.B. Srinivas and Vani Jairam and picturized for a sequence from the Kalidasa play 'Vikramorvasheeyam' is a major highlight of the film. This was Bharathi Vishnuvardhan's 100th film.
Makkala Bhagya is a 1976 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by K. S. L. Swamy (Ravi) and produced by K. Vittal Kumar and K. V. Honnappa. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Bharathi Vishnuvardhan, K. S. Ashwath and Dwarakish in the lead roles. The film has musical score by Vijaya Bhaskar. It is a remake of the Tamil movie Kuzhandaiyum Deivamum, which itself was an adaptation of the 1953 British film Twice Upon a Time and the 1961 movie The Parent Trap – both based on the Erich Kästner's 1949 German novel Lottie and Lisa.
Bangarada Gudi is a 1976 Indian Kannada film, directed by K. S. R. Das and produced by C. H. Prakash Rao. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Manjula, Ambareesh and Padmapriya in the lead roles. The film has musical score by G. K. Venkatesh. The director remade the movie in Telugu in 1979 as Bangaru Gudi.
Nagarahole is a 1977 Indian Kannada-language children's film written by H. V. Subba Rao, with screenplay and direction by S. V. Rajendra Singh Babu, starring Vishnuvardhan, Bharathi and Ambareesh. The film was dubbed in Malayalam as Kaadu Njangalude Veedu and in Hindi as Bahadur Bachhe. Director Babu had revealed that the base plotline was inspired by the books of Enid Blyton. He had also revealed that the movie was dubbed in 11 languages including Russian, Japanese & French.
Sirithanakke Saval is a 1978 Indian Kannada film, directed by T. R. Ramanna and produced by C. D. Murthy. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Manjula Vijayakumar, K. S. Ashwath and Sampath in the lead roles. The film has musical score by Vijaya Bhaskar. The film was a remake of the 1971 Tamil film Savaale Samali.
Vasantha Lakshmi is a 1978 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by A. V. Seshagiri Rao and produced by K. Vittala Kumar, K. V. Honnappa and K. V. Gurunath. The film stars Srinath, Aarathi, Vishnuvardhan and Manjula. The film has musical score by Vijaya Bhaskar. The movie is a remake of the 1974 Tamil movie Engamma Sapatham.
Amarnath is a 1978 Indian Kannada film, directed by K. Mani Murugan and produced by N. K. Narayan, V. K. Ramesh and P. B. Walke. The film stars Ambareesh, Sundar Krishna Urs, Dheerendra Gopal and K. S. Ashwath in lead roles. The film had musical score by Vijaya Bhaskar.
Madhura Sangama is a 1978 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by T. P. Venugopal, starring Anant Nag, Radha Saluja and Ashok. The film has musical score by Rajan–Nagendra. One of the early multi-starrers of Kannada cinema. The movie had extended cameo appearances by a galaxy of stars in the Kumara Rama ballet.
Simha Jodi is a 1980 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by Joe Simon and produced by A. R. Raju. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Manjula, Halam and Roopadevi in lead roles. Actress Roopadevi made her Kannada debut in this movie in which she played Vishnuvardhan's sister.
