Sampath Kumar, known by his stage name Vishnuvardhan, was an Indian actor who worked predominantly in Kannada cinema besides also having sporadically appeared in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Malayalam language films. Vishnuvardhan has a prolific career spanning over four decades, during which he has acted in more than 220 films. A popular cultural icon of Karnataka, and holds the status of a matinée idol amongst the Kannada diaspora. He is popularly called as Sahasa Simha, Dada and The Angry Young Man of Kannada Cinema. Vishnuvardhan's contributions to Kannada cinema have been praised by his contemporaries in the Indian film industry. The Government of Karnataka honoured him with the Rajyothsava Prashasthi in 1990 and the Dr. Rajkumar Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 for his contributions to Kannada cinema. He was called The Phoenix of Indian Cinema. In 2008, a poll conducted by CNN-IBN listed Vishnuvardhan as the most popular star in the Kannada film industry.
Vamshi is an Indian Kannada-language action drama film starring Puneeth Rajkumar and Nikita Thukral. It is directed by Prakash and produced by Parvathamma Rajkumar. The film was released on 2 October 2008.
Aaptharakshaka is a 2010 Kannada horror film directed by P. Vasu and written by V. R. Bhaskar. The film stars Vishnuvardhan in his 200th Kannada film and posthumous film, along with an ensemble cast including Vimala Raman, Sandhya, Bhavana Ramanna, Avinash, Lakshmi Gopalaswamy, and Komal Kumar. The film is a sequel to the 2004 Kannada blockbuster film Apthamitra also directed by P. Vasu.
Mylari is a 2010 Kannada film that has Shiva Rajkumar and Sadha in the lead and is directed by R. Chandru of Taj Mahal (movie) fame.
Paramathma is a 2011 Indian Kannada-language romantic comedy film written, directed and co-produced by Yogaraj Bhat. It stars Puneeth Rajkumar and Deepa Sannidhi in the lead roles and was released on 6 October 2011, on the eve of Vijayadashami. Halfway through its production, the film's TV rights was procured for a record ₹3.5 crore. Even before the release, the film grossed a record amount of over ₹25 Cr included broadcasting and distribution rights. Since release, the movie has garnered a cult status for its metaphorical narration and out-of-the box storytelling.
Olave Mandara is a 2011 Indian Kannada road movie written and directed by Jayatheertha, and starring debutantes Srikanth and Aakanksha Mansukhani in the lead roles. The supporting cast features Rangayana Raghu, Veena Sundar, Nassar and Sadhu Kokila.
Prince is a 2011 Indian Kannada-language action film starring Darshan, Nikita Thukral, and Jennifer Kotwal in the lead roles. The film has been directed and written by Om Prakash Rao and produced by Sandesh Nagaraj under Sandesh Combines. The music was composed by V. Harikrishna. The movie is a remake of the 2006 Telugu film Shock.
The Dr. Vishnuvardhan Award, instituted in 2011 for the 2008–09 Karnataka State Film Awards is an award given by the government of Karnataka to long-serving film personalities in Kannada cinema. The award previously called Lifetime Contribution to Kannada Cinema Award, was named Dr. Vishnuvardhan Award in honour of Vishnuvardhan, one of Kannada cinema's actors, after his demise in 2009. The award carries a purse of ₹200,000 and a gold-plated plaque.
Vishnuvardhana is a 2011 Indian Kannada language comedy thriller film directed by Pon Kumaran in his directorial debut and produced by Dwarakish. It stars Sudeepa, Bhavana Menon, Priyamani and Sonu Sood. The music was composed by V. Harikrishna.
Kadamba is a 2004 Indian Kannada-language action drama film starring Vishnuvardhan, Bhanupriya and Naveen Krishna. The film is directed and written by director Suresh Krissna, making his debut in Kannada cinema and features soundtrack by Deva. The film is inspired by the 1974 Tamil movie Thanga Pathakkam.
Kotigobba is a 2001 Indian Kannada-language action film starring Vishnuvardhan, Priyanka Upendra and Ashish Vidyarthi. The film was a remake of Rajinikanth's 1995 Tamil film Baashha which itself was inspired from the 1991 Hindi movie Hum. This movie was directed by Naganna and features soundtrack from Deva who also composed the music for the Tamil version. Vishnuvardhan was nominated for Filmfare Best Actor category.
Bahaddur is a 2014 Indian Kannada-language masala film directed by Chethan Kumar and produced by R. Srinivas. The film stars Dhruva Sarja and Radhika Pandit in the lead roles. The supporting cast features P. Ravi Shankar, Achyuth Kumar, Jai Jagadish, and Srinivasa Murthy. It was released on 3 October 2014, in 7.1 surround sound, the first in Kannada cinema. The 2016 Telugu movie Srirastu Subhamastu was reported to have been heavily inspired by the core plot of this movie.
Mr. and Mrs. Ramachari is a 2014 Indian Kannada romantic drama film written and directed by Santhosh Ananddram and produced by the duo Jayanna and Bhogendra under the banner Jayanna Combines. It stars Yash and Radhika Pandit in the lead roles. The supporting cast features Srinath, Achyuth Kumar and Malavika Avinash. The story revolves around two characters: a tearaway and hot-headed youngster, Ramachari, who is a diehard fan of Vishnuvardhan, and his love interest, the sophisticated Divya.
Mungaru Male 2 is a 2016 Indian Kannada romantic drama film co-written and directed by Shashank. It stars Ganesh, Neha Shetty and Ravichandran with Shilpa Manjunath, Aindrita Ray, P. Ravi Shankar and Sadhu Kokila in supporting roles. It is not a sequel to the film Mungaru Male (2006). The film found its theatrical release worldwide on 9 September 2016, while in Karnataka, the release was pushed to 10 September 2016 because of the Cauvery water dispute. It was a commercial success at the box office by collecting over ₹20 crore in its lifetime theatrical run.
Akanksha Puri is an Indian actress and model, who prominently works in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada films. Along with few television shows. She is best known for her role as Goddess Parvati in Vighnaharta Ganesh. Puri was a contestant on the reality TV show Bigg Boss OTT Hindi - Season 2 and entered the show in June, 2023 with 12 other contestants
Maduveya Mamatheya Kareyole is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language romantic comedy film written directed by Kaviraj in his directorial debut. It stars Suraj Gowda and Amulya in the lead roles whilst Anant Nag and Achyuth Kumar feature in supporting roles. The plot revolves around the families of the two friends who, intending to convert their friendship into a relationship, are elated when their children fall in love with each other and eventually marry upon encountering certain familial disputes.
Kotigobba 2 in Kannada Mudinja Ivana Pudi in Tamil is a 2016 Indian action film directed by K. S. Ravikumar and produced by Rockline Venkatesh and M. Babu in Kannada and Tamil languages. The film features Sudeepa, Nithya Menen and P. Ravi Shankar in the lead roles, while Nassar, Mukesh Tiwari and Sharath Lohitashwa and Prakash Raj appear in supporting roles. Despite the title, the film is not a direct sequel to the 2001 film Kotigobba.
Happy Birthday is a 2016 Indian Kannada language romantic action film written, directed and co-produced by Mahesh Sukhadhare. It stars Sachin, making his debut, and Samskruthy Shenoy in the lead roles along with guest appearances by actors Ambareesh and Srinagar Kitty. The music of the film is composed by V. Harikrishna whilst the cinematography is by Suresh Jayakrishna.
Tagaru (transl. Goat) is a 2018 Indian Kannada-language action crime film directed by Duniya Soori and produced by K. P. Srikanth. The film features Shiva Rajkumar, Bhavana and Manvitha Kamath, Dhananjaya, Vasishta N. Simha and Devaraj, while Shivakumara Swami, Jayanth Kaikini and Charan Raj makes a guest appearance. The soundtrack and background score were composed by Charan Raj, while the cinematography and editing were handled by Mahendra Simha and Deepu. S. Kumar.
Lift Kodla is a 2010 Indian Kannada-language comedy drama film directed by Ashok Kashyap and starring Jaggesh and Komal. It is a remake of the Telugu-language film Mee Sreyobhilashi (2007), which itself is based on the Japanese film Ikinai (1998). The film deals with the topic of suicides and was released a day after television actors Indudhar and Hema committed suicide. The film was a box office success and ran for more than four weeks in theatres.
