Upendra is an Indian actor, filmmaker, producer, screenwriter and politician who worked primarily in Kannada films. He has also worked in a few Telugu films. He is one of the best director and first Indian movie director to be listed in the IMDb list of top 50 best director of world since 2017. Upendra was known for his thematic representation of Indian politics and society in his films. In 2017, He joined the political party Karnataka Pragnyavanta Janata Paksha, before quitting the party in 2018 due to internal differences and formed another party named Uttama Prajaakeeya Party (UPP), which was based on principles of citizen-centric administration. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Angkor University in 2015.
Sadananda Sagar, better known by his stage name Vajramuni, was an Indian actor who appeared in Kannada films. He portrayed negative characters during most of his career and was considered one of Kannada cinema's finest actors. Over his career, he came to be known for his "thundering voice and sterling performance[s]" that earned him the epithets, Nata Bhairava and Nata Bhayankara.
Singeetam Srinivasa Rao, commonly known as Singeetam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, composer, and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the most versatile directors of India. He is credited with having revolutionised the South Indian cinema with experimental films. He has directed about sixty films in Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Hindi, and English languages across multiple genres. He has garnered two National Film Awards, five Nandi Awards, three Karnataka State Film Awards, and three Filmfare Awards South. In 2011, Rao was honored with Life Achievement Award from the Film Federation of India.
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.
Upendra Kumar was an Indian composer who predominantly worked in Kannada and Odia films. He was known for his strong association with Rajkumar and his family and scored some of his career best compositions for the films featuring Rajkumar and his sons. He had scored for 210 films including Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Tulu films.
Topiwala is a 2013 Kannada political satire film starring Upendra and Bhavana in the lead roles. The film was written by Upendra and directed by M. G. Srinivas. Kanakapura Sreenivas and K. P. Srikanth jointly produced this venture under R.S. Productions banner. V. Harikrishna composed the music. The film was released on 15 March 2013 in 150 theaters.
Daari Tappida Maga is a 1975 Indian Kannada-language film produced and directed by Peketi Sivaram. The film stars Rajkumar, Kalpana, Aarathi, Manjula and Jayamala with K. S. Ashwath, M. V. Rajamma and Vajramuni in supporting roles and Thoogudeepa Srinivas in a cameo along with Rajkumar's second son Raghavendra in a small role in his second on screen appearance as a child artist after Sri Srinivasa Kalyana (1974). Rajkumar appeared in dual roles in the film. The music was composed by G. K. Venkatesh. The film was a commercial success and saw a theatrical run of over 175 days in multiple centres. The movie was re-released on 22 November 2019. The movie was dubbed in Malayalam in 1976 as Kollakkaran. It was later remade in Malayalam in 1980 as Manushya Mrugam.
Mysore Srinivas, known by his stage name Thoogudeepa Srinivas was an Indian actor who appeared in Kannada films and is remembered for his portrayal of negative-shaded characters. He is the father of actor, Darshan and film director Dinakar.
Simply Kailawesome is a Kannada short film directed by M. G. Srinivas. The film was made on playwright T. P. Kailasam and revolves around conversations between Kailasam and female protagonists from four of his plays. While MG Srinivas played T. P. Kailasam, Chaya Singh played all the four female characters: Paatu from Tollugatti, Eeke from Gandaskathri, Venkamma from Home Rule and Sule from the play Sule. It is inspired by the classic play Typical Arathi, written by A S Murthy. The film opened to rave reviews from critics and gained instant recognition when it was selected by the Jury of the Prestigious Platinum Remi Award at the 44th Annual WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival.
Godfather is the soundtrack album of the 2012 Kannada drama film of the same name, directed by cinematographer-turned-director Sethu Sriram, starring actor Upendra in a triple role. The soundtrack album consists of eight songs composed by Academy Award-winning composer A. R. Rahman, and lyrics penned by K. Kalyan, Devappa Hassan and Kaviraj. The background score of the film is composed by Rajesh Ramanath. Rahman retained most of the tracks from the original version, which also featured musical score by him. The audio was launched in a grand manner at Chancery Hotel, Bengaluru on 13 June 2012. The album received positive critical reception upon release.
Bhagyada Lakshmi Baramma is a 1986 Indian Kannada-language comedy film. The title of the film was borrowed from a devaranama written by 12th century Haridasa Purandara Dasa. This film was written and directed Singeetham Srinivasa Rao who also composed and scored the film's soundtrack. The film stars Rajkumar, Madhavi and K. S. Ashwath in the pivotal roles.
Sipayi Ramu is 1972 Indian Kannada language film directed by Y. R. Swamy, based on the novel Barale Innu Yamune? by Nuggehalli Pankaja. It stars Rajkumar, Leelavathi and Aarathi. The supporting cast includes K. S. Ashwath, Shivaram, Vajramuni and Thoogudeepa Srinivas. At the 1971-72 Karnataka State Film Awards, the film was awarded the Third Best Film and Best Actress (Leelavathi).
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 Dakshayini 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.
Sri Srinivasa Kalyana, is 1974 Kannada-language Hindu mythological film directed by Vijay. The film which is based on lord Venkateswara, stars Rajkumar, B. Saroja Devi and Manjula. It also featured the first screen appearances of future actors and Rajkumar's sons, Shiva Rajkumar and Raghavendra Rajkumar. The movie was dubbed in Tamil as Ezhumalaiyan Dharisanam and in Telugu as Sri Tirupatikshetra Mahatyam (1977).
Srinivasa Kalyana is a 2017 Kannada language romantic comedy-philosophical film written and directed by M. G. Srinivas, who also appears in the lead role, along with Sujay Shastry, Kavitha Gowda, Nikhila Suman, Achyuth Kumar and HG Dattatreya playing supporting roles. The movie was released on 24 February 2017 opened to positive reviews.
Priyanka Jawalkar is an Indian actress and model who primarily works in Telugu films. She made her acting debut with Kala Varam Aaye (2017). She then appeared in Taxiwala (2018) and Thimmarusu (2021). Jawalkar received Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress – Telugu nomination for her performance in Gamanam (2021).
Birbal Trilogy Case 1: Finding Vajramuni or simply known as Birbal is a 2019 Indian Kannada-language crime thriller film written and directed by M. G. Srinivas. The film is the first installment of the Birbal Trilogy. It also marked the third character-based trilogy in Kannada cinema, after CID 999 and Sangliyana. It is also the first installment in a cinematic universe followed by Ghost in which M. G. Srinivas reprises his role.
Old Monk is a 2022 Indian Kannada-language romantic comedy film written and directed by M. G. Srinivas. The film features MG Srinivas, Aditi Prabhudeva in lead role. The film's title was inspired from the popular alcohol beverage brand, but it also means "Hale Sanyasi" in Kannada. Veteran actor Rajesh, made a special cameo appearance in the film. The film was released on February 25, 2022 simultaneously in the Kannada and Telugu languages.
Ghost is a 2023 Indian Kannada-language action heist thriller film directed by M. G. Srinivas and produced by Sandesh Nagaraj under Sandesh Production. The film stars Shiva Rajkumar, Jayaram, Anupam Kher, Prashant Narayanan, Satya Prakash, and Archana Jois. It is the second installment of a cinematic universe following Birbal Trilogy Case 1: Finding Vajramuni in which M. G. Srinivas had appeared as Mahesh Das. In the film, an anonymous gangster called "Big Daddy" hijacks a prison to steal hidden gold bars recovered during a CBI raid, but ACP Chengappa arrives to stop Big Daddy from executing his plans.
