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.
Auto Raja is a 1980 Indian Kannada-language romance film directed by Vijay, based on a screenplay by M. D. Sundar. The film was produced by C. Jayaram under the banner of Sapthaswara Movie Makers. The film stars Shankar Nag and Gayathri in lead roles, while Dwarakeesh, Balakrishna and Leelavathi appear in other supporting roles. The film features original songs composed by the music duo Rajan–Nagendra. The cinematography of the film was handled by S. V. Srikanth. This film is considered as the one of the best romance films in Kannada cinema and has a cult status. The film was significant in heightening the stardom of Shankar Nag. The film was remade in 1981 in Telugu as Taxi Driver starring Krishnam Raju and in 1982 in Tamil with the same name starring Vijayakanth.
Naa Ninna Bidalaare is a 1979 Indian Kannada-language horror film directed by Vijay and produced by C. Jayaram. The film stars Anant Nag and Lakshmi. The film was remade in Hindi as Mangalsutra, with Anant Nag reprising his role while Rekha appeared in the role played by Lakshmi. Na Ninna Bidalaare is regarded as one of best horror films of all time in the Kannada film industry. Na Ninna Bidalaare is the first movie where Anant Nag and Lakshmi acted together, later the pair become one of the finest onscreen couples in Indian cinema.
Bayalu Daari is a 1976 Indian Kannada-language film directed and produced by the Dorai–Bhagavan duo. It is based on the novel of the same name by Bharathi Sutha. The film starred Anant Nag, Kalpana and K. S. Ashwath. The film was a musical blockbuster with all songs composed by Rajan–Nagendra considered evergreen hits. Bayalu Daari was the first commercial success for Anant Nag, who had earlier done art films and established him as a leading star in the Kannada cinema with a chocolate hero image. This film was one of the last big hits of Kalpana. Ilayaraja was the guitar player for this movie.
Benkiya Bale is a 1983 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by the Dorai–Bhagavan duo. It is based on the novel of the same name by T. R. Subba Rao. The film stars Anant Nag, Lakshmi, K. S. Ashwath and Thoogudeepa Srinivas.
Chandanada Gombe is a 1979 Indian Kannada-language film directed by Dorai–Bhagavan, and is based on the novel of the same name written by T. R. Subba Rao. The film stars Anant Nag, Lakshmi and Lokesh. It was a musical blockbuster with all the songs composed by Rajan–Nagendra considered evergreen hits. Chandanada Gombe repeated the success of the earlier movie Na Ninna Bidalaare where Anant Nag and Lakshmi acted together for the first time. The success of the movie made Anant Nag and Lakshmi as a household name across Karnataka. The film was remade in Telugu as Ramapuramlo Seetha starring Sujatha in the title role.
Eradu Kanasu is a 1974 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film directed by the duo Dorai–Bhagavan, and is based on the novel of the same name by Vani. The film stars Rajkumar, Kalpana and Manjula.
Gaali Maathu is a 1981 Indian Kannada-language drama film, directed and produced by the Dorai–Bhagavan duo. It is based on the novel of the same name by Ta. Ra. Su. The film stars Jai Jagadish, Lakshmi, Hema Choudhary and Kokila Mohan.
Ibbani Karagithu is a 1983 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed by K. V. Jayaram and produced by Mohan. It is based on the novel of the same name by Saisuthe. The film stars Ananth Nag, Lakshmi, Lokesh and Deepa.
Ondu Cinema Kathe is a 1992 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by Phani Ramachandra and written by Shyamasundara Kulkarni. The film stars Ananth Nag, Anjana, Abhilasha and Mukhyamantri Chandru. The music was composed by Rajan–Nagendra and the dialogues were written by Chi. Udayashankar.
Ramapurada Ravana is a 1984 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by Rajachandra and produced by C. Jayaram and G. Radhakrishna. The film stars Anant Nag, Aarathi, Geetha and Thoogudeepa Srinivas. The film has musical score by Rajan–Nagendra. The film was remade in Tamil as Naam Iruvar.
Preethi Madu Thamashe Nodu is a 1979 Indian Kannada-language romantic comedy film, directed by C. V. Rajendran and produced by Dwarakish. The film stars Srinath, Shankar Nag, Dwarakish and Manjula and Padmapriya. The film has musical score by Rajan–Nagendra. It is a remake of the 1964 Tamil film Kadhalikka Neramillai.
Muniyana Madari is a 1981 Indian Kannada-language film, directed and produced by S. K. Bhagavan. The film stars Shankar Nag, Jai Jagadish, Kokila Mohan and Jayamala. The film has musical score by Rajan–Nagendra.
Jeevakke Jeeva is a 1981 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by K. S. R. Das and produced by S. V. Srikanth. The film stars Anant Nag, Shankar Nag, Saritha and Dwarakish. The film has musical score by Rajan–Nagendra.
Nanna Devaru is a 1982 Kannada-language film, directed by B. Mallesh and produced by K. S. Ashok. The story was written by R. Selvaraj. The film stars Ananth Nag, Sujatha, Tiger Prabhakar and K. S. Ashwath. Actress Jayanthi appeared in a brief cameo role. The film's score and songs were composed by Rajan–Nagendra, whilst the cinematography was by B. C. Gowrishankar. Rajkumar makes an entry during a wedding scene and blesses Ananth Nag and Sujatha.
Olavu Moodidaga is a 1984 Kannada-language film directed by B. Mallesh and produced by Mohan Sharma. The story was written by M. D. Sundar. The film stars Anant Nag, Lakshmi, Ramakrishna and Leelavathi.
Bidugadeya Bedi is a 1985 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by Dorai–Bhagavan, based on the novel of the same name by Ta Ra Su. The film stars Anant Nag and Lakshmi.
Manasella Neene is a 2002 Indian Kannada-language romance film directed by Mugur Sundar, a popular choreographer marking his debut in film direction. The film stars his youngest son Nagendra Prasad and Gayathri Raguram with Ananth Nag and Srinath in supporting roles. This film is the remake of the Telugu film Manasantha Nuvve (2001).
Muddu Manase is a 2015 Indian Kannada romance drama film directed by Ananth Shain. It stars Aru Gowda, Nithya Ram and Aishwarya Nag in lead roles, the former two of whom made their debuts with the film. Achyuth Kumar, Padmaja Rao and Padmini Prakash feature in supporting roles. The film tells the story of a love triangle around Suresh (Gowda), and how he goes about dealing with his old lover as he falls in love with another girl in different circumstances and time. The title of the film which translates to "sweet mind", was taken from a track of the 2002 Kannada film Majestic.
Ayushman Bhava is a 2019 Indian Kannada-language action drama film directed by P. Vasu and produced by B. S. Dwarakish and Yogish Dwarakish Bunggale, co-produced by Alankar Pandian. The film stars Shiva Rajkumar, Ananth Nag, Rachita Ram, and Prabhu along with Nidhi Subbaiah in a special appearance. The music was composed by Gurukiran. The cinematography and editing were handled by PKH Das and Gowtham Raju respectively.
