Singanalluru Puttaswamaiah Muthuraj, better known by his stage name Dr. Rajkumar, was an Indian actor and singer who worked in Kannada cinema. Regarded as one of the greatest actors in the history of Indian cinema and a versatile actor, he is considered a cultural icon and holds a matinée idol status in the Kannada diaspora, among whom he is popularly called as Nata Saarvabhouma, Bangarada Manushya, Vara Nata, Gaana Gandharva, Rasikara Raja, Kannada Kanteerava and Rajanna/Annavru. He was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 1983 and Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1995. He is the only lead actor to win National Award for singing. His 35 movies have been remade 58 times in 9 languages by 34 actors making him the first actor whose movies were remade more than fifty times and the first actor whose movies were remade in nine languages. On the occasion of the "Centenary of Indian Cinema" in April 2013, Forbes included his performance in Bangaarada Manushya on its list of "25 Greatest Acting Performances of Indian Cinema". Upon his death, The New York Times had described him as one of India's most popular movie stars.
Kannada cinema, also known as Sandalwood, or Chandanavana, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Kannada language widely spoken in the state of Karnataka. The 1934 film Sati Sulochana directed by Y. V. Rao was the first talkie film in the Kannada language. It was also the first film starring Subbaiah Naidu and Tripuramba, and was the first motion picture screened in the erstwhile Mysore Kingdom. The film was produced by Chamanlal Doongaji, who in 1932 founded South India Movietone in Bangalore.
Sampath Kumar, known by his stage name Vishnuvardhan, was an Indian actor predominantly in Kannada cinema. He is regarded as one of the popular cultural icon of Karnataka. Vishnuvardhan is often referred to as Sahasa Simha and The Angry Young Man of Kannada Cinema. He appeared in more than 220 films all together in Kannada, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu. He was called The Phoenix of Indian Cinema. He made his debut in the 1972 National Award winning film, Vamsha Vriksha, in a supporting role. The same year he played the lead role in Puttanna Kanagal's Naagarahaavu which was his breakthrough and he had won Filmfare Special Jury Award. He won Karnataka State Film Awards & Filmfare Awards South for best performance.
Bangaarada Manushya is a 1972 Indian Kannada language film based on T. K. Rama Rao's novel of same name. Ramarao was known for his crime and detective novels, but this film was a social drama. It was directed by S. Siddalingaiah under the banner Srinidhi Productions. Prior to this, Siddalingaiah had worked with Rajkumar in Mayor Muthanna. It stars Rajkumar and Bharathi. The film was screened for over two years at the States Theatre in Bangalore and was screened for sixty weeks in Chamundeshwari theatre in Mysore, the film Completed one year in many centres and twenty five weeks in every major and minor centre. The movie saw a 25 weeks run when it was re-released in 1988.
Adavi Ramudu is a 1977 Indian Telugu-language action film produced by Satyanarayana and Suryanarayana under their banner of Satya Chitra. It was directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. The film stars N. T. Rama Rao, Jaya Prada and Jayasudha in lead roles along with Nagabhushanam, Satyanarayana, Gummadi and Jaggayya in other supporting roles. The film was based on Vijay's 1973 film Gandhada Gudi. The film focuses on the need to preserve the flora and fauna at a time when the CITES treaty was signed with an aim to reduce the economic incentive to poach endangered species.
Singanalluru Puttaswamaiah Muthuraj, better known by his stage name Dr. Rajkumar, was an Indian actor, singer and producer who worked in Kannada cinema. Through his over five-decade long career of over 200 films, he was regarded one of the most pivotal and influential figures of the Kannada film industry. His films were praised for acting as a bridge between the popular and art films because of the theme of the story and their treatment. He debuted as a child actor in the 1942 Kannada film Bhakta Prahlada. His first role as an adult came in Sri Srinivasa Kalyana (1952) and as a lead, two years later, in Bedara Kannappa, which gave him stardom. He debuted as a singer with the track Om Namaha Shivaya from the 1956 film Ohileshwara. In 1960, he made his debut as a producer by producing Ranadheera Kanteerava. According to Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen in the book Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema, Ranadheera Kanteerava was the first "big hit" in Kannada cinema. In a film career spanning fifty years, Rajkumar received eleven Karnataka State Film Awards, including nine Best Actor and two Best Singer awards, eight Filmfare Awards South, and one National Film Award. Along with Vishnuvardhan and Ambareesh, he is counted in Kannada cinema's "triumvirate" as its most celebrated actor.
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.
Kalpana, born Sharat Lata, was an Indian actress who appeared in Kannada films. She was affectionately referred to as Minugu Taare among the film fraternity. She was widely recognised as one of the greatest actresses of Kannada cinema who enjoyed both fan following and critical acclaim. She made her screen debut as a lead actress in the 1963 release Saaku Magalu directed by veteran B. R. Panthulu. During a career that spanned from the early 1960s to the late 1970s, Kalpana appeared in numerous commercially successful as well as critically appreciated films, many of which featured her alongside actor Rajkumar. She worked in a few Tamil, Tulu, Malayalam and Telugu films as well. Many of her successful films were female-centric, giving ample scope for her performance.
Advani Lakshmi Devi is a retired Indian actress known for her work in Kannada cinema. She has played a variety of roles such as heroine, vamp, mother, grandmother in hundreds of Kannada movies over the last 50 years. Her role in films Gandhada Gudi (1973) and Sri Srinivasa Kalyana (1974) as mother is much remembered. She is the mother of veteran actress Roopadevi who acted in many Kannada movies with Rajkumar such as Haalu Jenu (1982), Samayada Gombe (1984) and Yarivanu (1984). Rajkumar holds the distinction of having played hero and son's role with her. Rajkumar] holds the distinction of having played the hero to both Roopadevi and her mother Advani Lakshmi Devi. Lakshmi Devi recently honoured with Rajkumar lifetime achievement award 2016 by the state government of Karnataka.
Nanjundi Kalyana is a 1989 Indian Kannada-language romantic comedy film, directed by M. S. Rajashekar, starring newcomers Raghavendra Rajkumar and Malashri, with Girija Lokesh and Sundar Krishna Urs as the lead cast. The film was a major blockbuster of the year and was one among the biggest grossing Kannada films of 1989. The movie saw a theatrical run of 90 weeks.
B. Vijaya Reddy, better known as Vijay Reddy or Vijay, was an Indian film director who worked primarily in Kannada cinema with over 50 movies to his credit. His debut directorial venture was Rangamahal Rahasya (1970). He was known for his collaborations with leading Kannada actor Rajkumar for movies like Gandhada Gudi (1973), Mayura (1975), Naa Ninna Mareyalare (1976) and Sanaadi Appanna (1977) which are considered among the classic movies of Kannada cinema.
Dr.Parvathamma Rajkumar was an Indian film producer and distributor. She was the wife of veteran Kannada actor Dr. Rajkumar. She produced successful films featuring Rajkumar and their sons Shiva Rajkumar, Puneeth Rajkumar and Raghavendra Rajkumar under the production house named "Poornima Enterprises". Actresses who found fame in her productions include Malashri, Prema, Rakshita, Sudha Rani and Ramya. She was awarded a doctorate from Bangalore University.
This is a list of winners of the Karnataka State's Dr. Rajkumar Award. Rajkumar was one of Kannada cinema's most successful actors. In his memory and honor, this award is presented annually during the Karnataka State Awards function.
Abba Aa Hudugi is a 1959 Indian Kannada-language film written, directed and produced by H. L. N. Sinha based on his own play of the same name. It stars Rajashankar in his debut role, Rajkumar in an extended cameo along with Narasimharaju, Mynavathi and Pandari Bai. It is considered a landmark film in Kannada cinema. Critics have noted that the theme of the movie is loosely based on William Shakespeare 's The Taming of the Shrew. The film was dubbed in Tamil with the title Mangaikku Maangalyame Pradhaanam and was released in 1960. Dialogues were written by S. A. Subbaraman. Jeevan composed the music; while Puratchidasan wrote the lyrics. In short, this film also marked the only Kannada film for Malayalam actress Sukumari.
Shankar Guru is a 1978 Indian Kannada-language action thriller film directed by V. Somashekhar, written by Chi. Udayashankar and produced by Parvathamma Rajkumar under the banner of Sri Vajreshwari Combines. It stars Rajkumar in the lead role alongside Jayamala, Padmapriya, Kanchana, Balakrishna, Vajramuni, Thoogudeepa Srinivas and Uma Shivakumar in supporting roles. Rajkumar appears in a triple role in the film — as a father and his two sons separated in childhood.
Sose Tanda Soubhagya is a 1977 Kannada film written by P. B. Duttaragi, directed by A. V. Sheshagiri Rao, starring Vishnuvardhan and Manjula. It is the first CinemaScope movie made in Kannada.
Simha Gharjane is a 1983 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by S. A. Chandrasekhar and produced by A. R. Raju. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Vijayashanti, Kalyan Kumar and Sharada. The film has musical score by Chellapilla Satyam.
Gandhada Gudi Part 2 is a 1994 Indian Kannada-language adventure film directed by Vijay and produced by M. P. Shankar. A sequel to Gandhada Gudi (1973), the film stars Shiva Rajkumar, Tiger Prabhakar, Rajeshwari and Charan Raj. Actor Rajkumar, who featured in the prequel as the main lead, made a brief appearance in the film. The film's soundtrack was composed by Rajan–Nagendra. Opening to lacklustre reviews the film underperformed at the box office ending up as an average grosser.
Killing Veerappan is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language biographical crime film directed by Ram Gopal Varma, who co-wrote the film with K. Balaji. The film is based on the events leading to Operation Cocoon to capture or kill Indian bandit Veerappan. Featuring Shiva Rajkumar in the central role touted to be based on N. K. Senthamarai Kannan, the then Superintendent of police, with the Indian Special Task Force, and the spy who masterminded Operation Cocoon.
Puneeth Rajkumar was an Indian actor known for his work in Kannada films. As a six-month-old infant, he made a cameo appearance in V. Somashekar's Premada Kanike (1976) and followed it with Sanaadi Appanna (1977) when he was a year old. Most of his earlier films had his father Rajkumar playing his reel father as well. Films like Thayige Thakka Maga, Vasantha Geetha and Bhagyavantha followed up which also showcased his singing skills. For the N. Lakshminarayan film Bettada Hoovu he was awarded the National Film Award for Best Child Artist. He ended his childhood appearances with the action film Parashuram.
