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 among 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.
Sharatchandra Lohithaswa, known popularly as Sharath Lohithaswa, is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Kannada cinema alongside some Tamil and Telugu films. He has had a successful career in theatre, where he continues to work, and television. After working as a lecturer for a brief period, Sharath took to acting as a full-time profession and worked on stage following the footsteps of his father Lohithaswa. He began working in films in 1995 and has today established himself as a character actor.
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.
Sanju Weds Geetha is a 2011 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film directed by Nagashekar and produced by Pramod Narayan and Murali Mohan. The film stars Srinagar Kitty and Ramya in the lead roles. Jassie Gift composed the soundtrack, while Sadhu Kokila composed the background score.
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.
Bulbul is a 2013 Indian Kannada-language romantic comedy film directed by M. D. Shridhar. It is a partial remake of the Telugu film Darling with the scenes in the flashback inspired from 50 First Dates. The film stars Darshan, Ambareesh and debutant Rachita Ram. The music for the film was composed by V. Harikrishna with lyrics penned by Kaviraj.
Preethi Prema Pranaya is a 2003 Indian Kannada-language drama film written and directed by Kavitha Lankesh. The film features an ensemble cast of Anant Nag, Bharathi Vishnuvardhan, Sudharani, Prakash Raj, Bhavana, Anu Prabhakar and Sunil Raoh. It was produced by "Indo - Hollywood" films, consisting of five producers, namely Mano Murthy, Ram Prasad, Dr. Renuka and Somashekar. The music was composed by Mano Murthy.
Simhadriya Simha is a 2002 Indian Kannada-language action drama film directed by S. Narayan. The film stars Vishnuvardhan, Meena and Bhanupriya. The music of the film was composed by Deva. The film was a remake of the 1994 Tamil film Nattamai. Vishnuvardhan played triple role in this movie.
Maharaja is a 2005 Kannada-language family drama film directed by Om Sai Prakash featuring Sudeep and Nikita Thukral in the lead roles. The film features background score and soundtrack composed by S. A. Rajkumar and lyrics by K. Kalyan and V. Nagendra Prasad. The film released on 14 January 2005.
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.
Ranna is a 2015 Indian Kannada-language action comedy film directed by Nanda Kishore. The film features an ensemble cast including Kichcha Sudeepa, Prakash Raj, Rachita Ram, Haripriya, Madhoo, Devaraj, Avinash, Sharath Lohitashwa, and Sadhu Kokila. It is an official remake of the 2013 Telugu film Attarintiki Daredi.
Ring Road is a 2015 Indian Kannada crime drama film directed by Priya Belliappa and produced by Ranjini Ravindra Das. It stars Altmash Shakreen in the lead role. The supporting cast features Nikita Thukral, Duniya Vijay, Avinash, Malavika Avinash, Patre Ajith, Shrunga B. V. and Sagar Puranik. The film is based loosely on the infamous murder of software engineer Girish by his fiancée Shubha in Bangalore in 2003. The film was produced by an all-women crew, a first in Kannada-language cinema.
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.
Nagarahole is a 1977 Indian Kannada-language children's adventure film written by H. V. Subba Rao, with screenplay and direction by Rajendra Singh Babu, starring Vishnuvardhan, Bharathi and Ambareesh. The film was dubbed in Malayalam as Kaadu Njangalude Veedu, in Tamil as Yaanai Engal Thozhan and in Hindi as Bahadur Bachhe. Director Babu revealed that the base plotline was inspired by the books of Enid Blyton.
Kiragoorina Gayyaligalutransl. Rowdy women of Kiragooru) is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed by Sumana Kittur, based on a novel of the same name written by Poornachandra Tejaswi. It stars Shwetha Srivatsav, Sukrutha Wagle, Karunya Ram, Sonu, and Manasa Joshi in the lead roles. The supporting cast features Achyuth Kumar, Kishore, Sharath Lohitashwa
Santheyalli Nintha Kabira is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language epic biopic-drama film adapted from Bhisham Sahni's Hindi play Kabira Khada Bazaar Mein. The film is directed Indra Babu of Kabbadi fame. Original story by Bhisham Sahni was adapted and the screenplay is written in Kannada by Indra Babu and Gopal Wajpeyi. Starring Shiva Rajkumar as the protagonist Kabir, the film is about the life of the mystic 15th-century poet. It also stars Sanusha and Sarath Kumar in other pivotal roles. The film was launched on the Ugadi festival day of 2015 and is slated to release on 29 July 2016.
Dada is Back is a 2017 Indian Kannada crime film directed by Santhosh produced by Ajay Raj Urs and Dr Shankar under the Apple Films & Dayanand Sounds production The film stars Arun Kumar, Ajay Raj Urs, Shravya along with the Tamil actor R. Parthiepan, making his debut in Kannada cinema. The film's score and soundtrack are composed by Anoop Seelin whilst the cinematography is by Nagesh Acharya.
Aniruddha Jatkar, mononymously known as Anirudh is an Indian film and television actor who primarily works in Kannada cinema. He is the son-in-law of the Kannada film actors Vishnuvardhan and Bharathi Vishnuvardhan. He has also worked in Marathi and Tamil films. He is known for his role in the Kannada TV series Jothe Jotheyali.
Bazaar (transl. Market) is an Indian Kannada action crime film directed by Suni and produced by Thimmegowda under Bharathi Film Productions banner. The film stars Dhanveer Gowda, a debutant and Aditi Prabhudeva in the lead roles along with Sadhu Kokila, Sharath Lohitashwa and Aruna Balaraj in the supporting roles. The film's plot deals with the gambling process involved in the pigeon racing. The film is shot in the real locations across Bengaluru, Mysore and Tumkur where the pigeon races are actually held.
