Ustad Bismillah Khan, often referred to by the title Ustad, was an Indian musician credited with popularizing the shehnai, a reeded woodwind instrument. His virtuosity made him a leading Hindustani classical music artist, indelibly linking his name with the woodwind instrument. While the shehnai had importance as a folk instrument played primarily by musicians schooled in traditional ceremonies, Khan elevated its status and brought it to the concert stage.
Jaya Prada Nahata is an Indian actress and politician known for her works majorly in Telugu cinema and Hindi cinema as well as in Tamil films in late '70s, '80s and early '90s. Jayaprada is the recipient of three Filmfare Awards South and has starred in many Telugu and Hindi films along with several Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Bengali and Marathi films. She left the film industry at the peak of her career, as she joined the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in 1994 and entered politics. She was a Member of Parliament (MP) from Rampur, Uttar Pradesh from 2004 to 2014.
Gurusala Krishnadas Venkatesh was an Indian film score composer who primarily worked in Kannada cinema during the 1960s, 1970s and until the late-1980s. He also composed music for Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil films. He produced numerous master pieces of Kannada film music and also brought in Western background score into Kannada films and scored music for all Bond movies of Rajkumar in the 1960s to 1970s.
Bahaddur Gandu is a 1976 Indian Kannada-language swashbuckler film directed by A. V. Sheshagiri Rao, starring Rajkumar, Jayanthi, Aarathi and Vajramuni. The movie saw a theatrical run of 19 weeks. The story was penned by the celebrated playwright H. V. Subba Rao based on William Shakespeare's play The Taming of the Shrew.
Bhagyavantha is a 1981 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed and written by B. S. Ranga. The film featured Master Lohit, Aarathi and Jai Jagadish in pivotal roles. Veteran actor Rajkumar and Thoogudeepa Srinivas made brief appearances in the film.
Gandhada Gudi is a 1973 Indian Kannada-language action drama film directed by Vijay and produced by M. P. Shankar. Rajkumar in his 150th film portrays an honest forest officer Kumar while Vishnuvardhan plays the antagonist, Anand, though his character is redeemed at the end of the film. Kalpana, M. P. Shankar, Narasimharaju and Balakrishna performed other important roles.
B. Vijaya Reddy, better known as Vijay Reddy or Vijay, was an Indian film director who worked primarily in Kannada films, besides few Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films. He had directed over 50 films and also produced a few. 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.
Doorada Betta is a 1973 Kannada-language film directed by Siddalingaiah. The film starred Rajkumar and Bharathi Vishnuvardhan. It had Balakrishna, K. S. Ashwath and Sampath playing supporting roles. The film, along with Mooruvare Vajragalu (1973), was Rajkumar's last movie in black-and-white. However, this movie had a few sequences shot in colour. This was also the last film where Rajkumar and Bharathi were seen together. This was also Rajkumar's last collaboration with Siddalingaiah. The film is seen as a landmark in the career of Siddalingaiah. The movie saw a theatrical run of 25 weeks.
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.
Pandit S. Ballesh Bhajantri is a popular Indian classical Hindustani shehnai player. He is a disciple of shehnai player Ustad Bismillah Khan, he is benares gharana shehnai player and a patiala gharana hindustani vocalist, ghazal singer, Indian playback singer and musician, Ballesh is credited with popularizing the shehnai, a reeded woodwind instrument. He is also a Prasar Bharati's All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan artist.
Bhagyavantharu is a 1977 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed by H. R. Bhargava, making his debut. The film features Rajkumar and B. Saroja Devi in lead roles supported by an ensemble cast including Ashok, Balakrishna, Dwarakish and Ramakrishna. The film was produced by Dwarakish. The dialogues and lyrics were written by Chi. Udaya Shankar. The film's original score and soundtrack were composed by Rajan–Nagendra. Puneeth Rajkumar made a brief appearance in one of the songs of this film. The movie is a remake of 1974 Tamil movie Dheerga Sumangali.
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.
Olavu Geluvu is a 1977 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by H. R. Bhargava and produced by S. A. Srinivas. The film stars Rajkumar, Lakshmi, Balakrishna and Sampath. The film has musical score by G. K. Venkatesh.
Kaamana Billu (transl. Rainbow) is a 1983 Indian Kannada language film directed by Chi. Dattaraj. It stars Rajkumar, Anant Nag and Saritha. The film is based on the novel Mrigathrushna by Ashwini. It was the first time that popular actor Anant Nag costarred with Rajkumar the stalwart of Kannada cinema. This climax of the movie was unique with the hero choosing to marry a specially-abled girl. Malathi Holla who would later go on to become an international para-athlete was chosen to play the role.
Premada Kanike is a 1976 Indian Kannada-language crime thriller film directed by V. Somashekhar and written by the duo Salim–Javed. It was produced by Jayadevi under the banner of Jayadevi films. The film starred Rajkumar, Aarathi and Jayamala in lead roles with Vajramuni and Rajashankar in supporting roles. The plot follows a teacher hired by rich man to home-school his daughter. En route, she witnesses a murder and discovers that the murderer is the father of her student.
Shankar Guru is a 1978 Indian Kannada-language action thriller film directed by V. Somashekhar and produced by Parvathamma Rajkumar under Dakshayini Combines. It stars Dr. Rajkumar in triple role, alongside Jayamala, Padmapriya, Kanchana, Balakrishna, Vajramuni, Thoogudeepa Srinivas and Uma Shivakumar. The music was composed by Upendra Kumar, while the cinematography and editing were handled by R. Madhusudan and P. Bhaktavatsalam.
Huliya Haalina Mevu is a 1979 Indian Kannada-language epic historical drama film directed by Vijay, based on a novel of the same name by Bharathisutha starring Rajkumar as Chengumani, the commander-in-chief of the 18th-century Kingdom of Coorg. Jayachitra and Jayapradha feature in pivotal roles. The movie was dubbed in Telugu as Prachanda Bheri. This was also Rajkumar's first cinemascope movie.
Sri Krishna Rukmini Satyabhama is a 1971 Kannada-language Hindu mythological film written and directed by K. S. L. Swamy under his home banner Raghunandan movies. The film stars Rajkumar, B. Saroja Devi, Aarathi and Bharathi. The music was composed by R. Sudarsanam.
Havina Hede is a 1981 Indian Kannada-language action film directed by V. Somashekhar and produced by Parvathamma Rajkumar. The film featured Rajkumar and Sulakshana playing the pivotal roles. The film was written by M. D. Sundar and had lyrics and dialogues written by Chi. Udaya Shankar.
Bhagyada Bagilu is a 1968 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by K. S. L. Swamy (Ravi) and produced by B. H. Jayanna. The film stars Rajkumar, Balakrishna, Dwarakish, with K. S. Ashwath in a guest appearance. The film has musical score by Vijaya Bhaskar. This was Rajkumar's 100th film as an actor.
