Karnataka pays tribute to Dr Vishnuvardhan

B S Yediyurappa, Chief Minister of Karnataka [ Images ]

With the death of Dr Vishnuvardhan, Karnataka has lost one of its greatest sons.

He was an actor of excellence and a great human being. The state government has decided to grant Rs 10 crores to build a memorial for him. We will consult his family to see how this mission can be accomplished.

S V Rajendra Singh Babu, award-winning director

I have lost a friend with whom I had had a great association for more than four decades. He was one of the most talented actors in the country, who was not recognised for his brilliance and talent adequately by the central government.

I have directed several great films with him like Bandhana, Muththina Haara and Nagarahole and produced films like Krishna Nee Begane Baaro and Karna. They were superhits.

We have lost two legends now, Dr Raj Kumar and Dr Vishnuvardhan. I think an era has ended.

Rebel Star Ambareesh, actor and former member of Parliament

With the death of Vishnu [ Images ], I have lost one of my greatest friends. He was my guiding force for 35 years.

We shared many great moments and he has always cared for me.

If there was one person who could command over me, it would be Vishnuvardhan.

He was one of the greatest artists in the Kannada film industry.

Dwarakish, actor and producer

I would say my films were zero without Dr Vishnuvardhan. Success beckoned only when Dr Vishnuvardhan acted in them.

I have produced many of his films and even acted with him. He is perhaps one of the greatest actors on the Indian screen, who had lakhs of fans.

The overwhelming reaction of his fans on his death was expected, as he had touched their hearts deeply through his magical performances.

Prema, actress

I was his great fan as a child. When I became an actress, I was lucky enough to act with him early in my career. I have acted with him in many films, including the big hit Yajamaana.

We got close while acting in the film, and he taught me the importance of yoga. I would seek advice from him many times too.

I respect him as a great human being.

S Narayan, actor and director

I have lost my big strength and support with the death of Dr Vishnu sir. I delivered my biggest hits with him in Suryavamsha, Simhadhriya Simha, Sirivantha and Veerappa Nayaka. He was terrific in front of the camera and would add a lot of strength to the characters he played.

Raghavendra, assistant director

He showed us what love and affection meant to us. Through his superb performances on screen, he will be eternally remembered. He was not only a great actor but also a great human being.

R G Vijayasarathy in Bangalore

Watch Iniya for Balaji

Balaji returns with a refined performance in the Kannada movie Iniya, an average presentation from a promising director like Mahesh whose first film, Mussanje Maathu was a finely knitted sentimental yarn backed by good performances from Sudeep and Ramya, and a scintillating music.

As for Iniya, the movie is handicapped by a faulty characterisation. Even the music does not match the brilliance of Mussanje Maathu. Iniya suffers mainly because of a weak script by Mahesh who has forced some sequences to give a sentimental angle to the film. The so called mother's sentiment falls flat as many sequences fail to strike a chord with the audience. Mahesh has tried to include some unrelated comedy sequences and fights too which do not gel with the story line. To make things worse, the film drags, testing your patience several times.

Mahesh should also be taken to task for propogating a regressive idea through this film which is totally anti-feministic. The male chuvanistic angle is given a platform through this film. There are lot of punch dialogues which question the integrity and commitment of a woman towards love and at the same time hailing the view point of a male who stands by his love.

The characterisation of the heroine suffers mainly because she has been presented as a woman who changes tracks through her whims and fancies. Even the portrayal of many woman characters in the film as gullible and submissive is questionable.

The story is about Balu, who belongs to a joint family headed by a patriarch. Janaki who is friend of Balu's cousin arrives in the house at the time of her friend's marriage. After some initial misunderstandings, Balu and Janaki start loving each other. Balu saves Janaki from a gang of rowdies during his visit to the city. On the day of marriage Balu is arrested because he had attacked a big business man's son. Once Balu is implicated in the crime, his mother is thrown out of the house by her scheming relatives. Whether Balu saves his love after his release forms the rest of the story.

To be fair to Mahesh there are some sequences in the film which create some interest. Especially the sequence after the death of Balu's mother and some comedy oriented sequences in the first half.

Balaji has really carried the film on his shoulders with a good performance. He comes out well in the action sequences. It is a pity that Pooja Gandhi was offered such a role with grey shades. Her characterisation too is weak. Sanketh Kashi is good in one sequence while nothing special can be said about the rest of the cast. Even seasoned performers like Oorvashi and Jai Jagadish have been wasted in the film.

Music by Sreedhar is above average. Compositions like Yaarannu, Mudhdhaadha I Naguvige shine. Sundaranatha Suvarna's camera work is good too.

Overall Iniya is worth a watch Balaji.

Two Kannada biggies heading for a showdown

August seems to be a funny month as far as the release of Kannada films are concerned. The first and third week saw no release while the second week had one release -- the much awaited Raaj, the Showman starring Puneet Raj Kumar and Priyanka Kothari. But in the last week, two big films are competing with each other.

Cheluvina Chilipili by S Narayan is the remake of the Telugu film Koththa Bangaru Lokam produced by Dil Raju.

Cheluvina Chilipili starring Narayan's son Pankaaj and debutant actress Roopika is being released amidst big hype not normally associated with his films. Narayan has ensured huge publicity drive by putting up vinyl hoardings all over the major cities.

For Pankaaj this is the second film after his debut Chaithradha Chandrama opposite the sensational Amoolya.

"Pankaaj has improved a lot. He looks better and has done well in songs and emotional sequences," said Narayan, director and father.

He is also delighted to introduce 17-year-old Roopika, a child artist earlier, as the leading lady. "She is such a fast learner that I consider her as the most promising young actress of today. She is perhaps the only actress who I have not criticised on the sets," remarked Narayan.

Incidentally, the audio of the film has become a hit thanks to the music by Mickey J Meyers. Some of the tunes of the original film have been used in the Kannada film, which Narayan is not apologetic about. And for the first time in his film, he has shot two songs -- one abroad and another in Rajahmundry.

Sudeep to direct Bollywood film

Sudeep is all set to work in his third Bollywood movie. This time, he will be directing a movie, a remake of his yet to be released 'Just Maath Maathalli'.
Sources say, he has already narrated the story to Shahid Kapur and Riteish Deshmukh and that both the actors were thrilled to be part of the project. The rest of the team is yet to be finalised and Sudeep will start on the project once the Kannada version is released.
Meanwhile, the actor is getting ready for a journey to Germany for the last schedule of 'Just Maath Mathalli'. The shooting would be concluded by this month end and Sudeep is planning to release the film in October.

'Raaj, the Showman will be a top commercial entertainer'

Prem, the director of Raaj the Showman is the highest paid director in Kannada having struck gold with three of his four films made so far.

His first film Kariya ran for 500 days and made Darshan a very big star. His second film Excuse Me ran for nearly 35 weeks in Bangalore's Kapali theatre. The third film Jogi with Shivaraj Kumar was a blockbuster.

Despite the debacle he faced in his fourth film, he was selected by producer Suresh Gowda and Sreenivasa Murthy to direct Raaj, the Showman with Puneet Raj Kumar and Priyanka Kothari in the lead.

Prem, who has been shuttling between Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore for the past one month for the post production work of Raaj, speaks exclusively to R G Vijayasarathy about his film and reveals many things that were not disclosed till now.

Vijith debuts with ‘Ragavan’

Paranthaman, a former assistant of Selvaraghavan makes his directorial debut with ‘Ragavan’. The film revolves around the quest for true love and the hardships one has to undergo to attain it.

The director himself writes the story and screenplay. Debutant Vijith, a software engineer, plays the male lead while Radhika Malhotra, a relative of Kollywood siren Namitha, is the heroine.

The story of the film is about how an innocent young man falls in love with a girl who loves somebody else.
Gangai Amaran returns to film music with a few melodies in this film. Manoj K. Jayan plays a very important role in the film.

Shruthi adopts blind girl

Child Welfare Development Board Shruthi has adopted a blind girl called Vinutha on the occasion of the 7th birthday of her daughter Gowri.

Yes, the actress adopted the blind Vinutha and signed papers at and agreed to take care of that child. Shruthi signed the necessary papers at Ramanashree Ashram in J P Nagar and also donated a sum of Rs. 10,800 to the ashram. Shruthi said she wants to raise Vinutha like her daughter.

Shruthi is all set to take charge as the chairperson of Women and Child Development Board. The first task she is planning to do on assuming the position is to construct 5000 houses to "devadasis". She also wants to start an ashram called ‘Madilu’ for children in distress.

Shivarajkumar in remake films again?

One actor who was firm and adamant in not acting in remake films has been Shivarajkumar. The actor, who was criticised for acting in too many remakes some years back, had later announced that he won't be acting in remake films any more. After 'Kodandarama' a remake of 'Thenkasipattanam' in Malayalam, Shivarajkumar never tried his hand at remakes.

Now, if rumours are to be believed, the actor will be acting in two films. According to reports, Malayalam director Prasthanth Mambully is in talks with Shivarajkumar to remake his 'Bhagwan', starring Mohanlal, in Kannada. The Malayalam film went into record books as it was shot in a single day.

Meanwhile, the actor is all set to act in a film called 'Muttu Nammappa' to be directed by most controversial director Ravi Srivatsa. If the film's ads are to be believed, the film is a remake of Hollywood hit 'Pursuit of Happiness' starring Will Smith and his son in lead roles. But Ravi Srivatsa says that the rumours are baseless and the film is not at all a remake but the film is inspired from 'Pursuit of Happiness'.

Kannada star Puneet Raj Kumar to dance with dad's heroines

Kannada actor Puneet Raj Kumar's forthcoming film 'Raaj - The Showman' is set to have an interesting dance sequence where he will shake a leg with yesteryears heroines who had worked with his father, the late Rajkumar.

According to sources close to the project, the dance sequence would feature actress-turned-MP Jayaprada, Jayamala, who is now president of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce, multilingual actress Ambika, Roopa Devi and Bharathi Vishnuvardhan.

The song is likely to be shot from Jan 4 in Bangalore, the sources added.

Director Prem, who is known for having delivered three superhits in a row, confirmed that a song featuring Puneet and the actresses who had acted opposite Kannada acting legend Rajkumar would indeed be shot.

He said Jayaprada would be part of the song in 'Raaj - The Showman', but refused to reveal the names of the other heroines.

'The song was to have been shot early. But because Jayaprada madam was busy canvassing for the Samajawadi Party in several northern states, we had to postpone the song shooting,' said Prem.

'Raaj - The Showman' is said to be one of the costliest Kannada films and Puneet would be seen in different get-ups in the movie. According to informed sources, the film's budget is estimated to be anywhere between Rs.80 million and Rs.100 million.

Bollywood actress Nisha Kothari is the lead actress of the film, which has been shot extensively in Mysore, Bangalore and Kodagu. Two songs of the film have been picturised in scenic locales in Europe.

The film's music has been composed by Hari Krishna and its audio release is set to be held in Dubai.

Kannada film to be shot in South Africa, Iceland

The much-awaited Kannada film 'Raaj, The Showman', which has popular actor Puneet Rajkumar in the lead, will now be shot in South Africa and Iceland as well.

The movie's 35-member team will move to South Africa June 7 to start shooting a song titled 'Hey Paro' in Durban and Johannesburg among other places.

The audio of the film, composed by Hari Krishna, has been released to a good response and only two songs are left to be canned. Made by hugely successful director Prem, 'Raaj, The Showman' is likely to be released July 31.


The film was launched April 24, 2008, but the shooting schedule saw many halts. First, heroine Priyanka Kothari, earlier known as Nisha Kothari, fractured her leg. Then she got busy with Bollywood filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma's upcoming film 'Rann'.

The unit had planned to shoot two songs in Canada earlier in May but that got cancelled because of the swine flu outbreak.

'We are shooting for 12 days in South Africa for the 'Hey Paro' song. The song has become a huge hit in audio circles and the expectations among fans have skyrocketed,' said producer Sreenivasa Murthy, who has earlier produced the 2007 blockbuster 'Gaja'. He revealed that 20 South African dancers would be included for the song's shoot.

Murthy added that the unit would then proceed to Iceland for shooting one more song.

Director Prem said the film would be digitally graded and it would be technically at par with big budget Hindi flicks.

'We want to showcase the abundance of technical talent in the Kannada film industry through the film. The film has been made with rich production values, but I can assure you that the film's script possesses a lot of strength to attract all sections of audience,' Prem said.

The main highlight of 'Raaj, The Showman' is a song that features Puneet Rajkumar dancing with five leading ladies who had worked with his father, legendary Kannada actor Rajkumar.

The film has also been in the news because this is the first time director Prem and Puneet Rajkumar are working together.

Resul Pookutty wins Oscar award

Noted Keralite sound engineer Resul Pookutty has bagged the Best Editing award at the Oscars for Danny Boyle's much-acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire, which also won the Best Adapted Screenplay award, the Best Cinematography award and the Best Film award. Resul Pookutty is the first Keralite to win an Oscar award. The 81st Academy Awards ceremony was held at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, California.

Hailing from Vilakkupaara village near Anchal, Kollam, Resul Pookutty has been in the top of headline after he won an Oscar nomination for his work in Slumdog Millionaire, a film in the Oscar race with ten nominations, including three for music director A.R. Rahman.

A graduate of Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, Resul Pookutty has been in the music industry for 13 years now with a filmography of more than ten blockbusters. He started his career with Rajat Kapoor's little-known Private Detective in 1997 and came into the limelight with his work in Black (2005).

Interestingly, Black was a film without songs, but the sound got everyone talking. His next venture, Gandhi My Father, was a challenging experience in his career since the film demanded extreme attention on the variations in Gandhi's voice from his youth to old age. However, his hard work paid off when he got an opportunity to work with one of his favourite directors Danny Boyle in Slumdog Millionaire. His other noted films include Saawariya (2007), Ghajini (2008).

Nikita: Dr. Vishnu’s heroine

Nikita is the lucky actress who will be the leading lady in Aptha Rakshaka, Dr. Vishnu’s 200th film. Aptha Rakshaka is a sequel to Apthamithra, a remake of the famous Malayalam film Manichithrathazhu.

Aptha Rakshaka will be directed by P. Vasu and produced by Krishnakumar. The pooja was held at Krishnakumar’s residence on February 19th in which Vasu and the other crew members participated. The film will start rolling from March 10 and it is heard that Lakshmi Gopalaswami will play an important role. Apparently, Lakshmi will also appear in Dr. Vishnuvardhan’s upcoming Nam Yejamanru with Avinash, Sreenivasa Murthy, Ramesh Bhat, Shobharaj also playing important roles.

Vamshi, Nikita’s first release in Kannada, was a huge hit and she is presently working on two big-budget films: Dubai Babu with Upendra and Darshan’s new film.

Ravichandran to re-shoot Manjina Hani

Crazy star Ravichandran had completed the shooting of his forthcoming film Manjina Hani but it is heard that he is re-shooting the entire film again. The film even had gone to the post production table when Ravichandran had second thoughts. Apparently, he believes that the film does not have enough commercial elements in it to pull audiences into theatres.

So he rapidly re-wrote the script, adding the extra commercial and entertainment elements he thought necessary and made plans for the re-shoot. Interestingly, hehas repaid the investment of the producer and now, he is the producer.

The latest news is that Manjina Hani will be re-shot in March with the addition of a few more artists. The songs will also be re-shot.

Shivaraj Kumar's 100th movie Jogayya

Hat-trick hero Shivaraj Kumar has titled his 100th movie as Jogayya. Director Prem is turning producer through the movie. He will be director as well as the producer for the movie. Prem's wife actress Rakshita is said to be acting opposite Shivaraj Kumar.

According to sources, Shivaraj's fans have to wait for the film for long, because he has several movies, which are still at the beginning stage. Only after completing all the movies, Jogayya will go to set.

Presently, Prem is very busy with Puneet Rajkumar starrer movie Raj. If everything goes well, the movie will hit the screens in the last month of April. Shivaraj Kumar is also busy with Cheluveye Ninna Nodalu. After completing these movies, They will plan for the shooting of Jogayya.

Jogi is an unforgettable movie in the career of Shivaraj Kumar. The super hit movie has created records in Kannada Film Industry. For this reason, Shivaraj Kumar has already discussed with Prem about his 100th movie. Both of them have agreed to the title Jogayya.

Shivanna entered the Kannada movies through the movie Anand in 1986. After that many of his movies like Rathsaptami, Manamechchida Hudugi, Om, Nammoor Mandar Hoove, Janumada Jodi AK 47 and Jogi have created new records in the industry. His 50th movie AK 47 was super hit.

Chetan-Chaitanya team is back

It’s been a long time since Aa Dinagalu was released and director Chaitanya was on a self imposed exile after it. He has been busy writing the script for his next film Suryakanthi and has finally announced his latest venture. Chaitanya’s new film will feature Chetan, who was the hero of Aa Dinagalu also. It was Chetan’s debut film; his second film Birugali released just a week ago.

The script for Aa Dinagalu was by Agni Sridhar who later wrote the script of Slum Bala featuring Vijay. Suryakanthi will have Venu as cinematographer and Ilayaraja, who scored the music for Aa Dinagalu, will be the music director.

B.G. Manjunath, who had earlier co-produced A by Upendra, is the producer of this new film

Raj team donates ambulance

In an act of kindness and care, the team of Raj - The Showman donated an ambulance to the Parappana Agrahara Jail. Jailer K.C. Vishawanth received the key of the Maruthi van from the Raj team at the Press Club, Bangalore.

Puneeth Rajkumar is the hero of Raj produced by Suresh Gowda and Srinivasa Murthy; Prem is the director. Raj is constantly in the news because of the presence of Puneeth who holds the record for giving 10 consecutive hits since his debut in 2002. Also, the film features a song in which Puneeth dances with five of his father Rajkumar’s heroines. The song was shot recently in Bangalore with Puneeth and actresses Jayaprada, Jayanthi, Dr. Jayamala, Bharathi Vishnuvardhana and Urvashi participating in it.

Yana Gupta returns to Sandalwood

Yana Gupta returns to Sandalwood
Yana Gupta, the Czech model-actress who debuted in Hindi films with the sizzling item song 'Babuji' is making a comeback to Sandalwood. She entered Kannada films four years ago with an item song 'Bin laden Nanna Mava Bill Clinton Nanna Bava' in Jogi which had Shivarajkumar and Jennifer Kotwal in the lead roles.

Now Yana will appear in a dance number in Jothegara featuring Prem Kumar and Ramya in the lead roles. The song was shot in Bangkok recently. Before her career in Bollywood, Yana modeled for international clients like Calvin Klein and Victoria's Secret. She was named the new face for Lakme Cosmetics in 2001. Yana is famous in the South for her item number in Anniyan (Tamil).

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Diganth busy

Diganth, the handsome hunk of Gaalipata fame, is very busy these days. He has just returned from US after shooting for his film E Preethi. Although Diganth signed E Preethi at almost the same time as Gaalipata, the film was delayed due to visa problems and the team was allowed entry to the States only recently.

Diganth has also finished two movies, Bisile and Housefull. His latest release was Mast Majaa Maadi which is running successfully. Bisile and Housefull are directed by newcomers and Diganth says that he chose the films exactly for that reason. Newcomer directors are full of fresh ideas and they are less pretentious, he feels.

Diganth, apart from doing small budget films, also gets offers from big banners. He has his hands full till the end of August. Yograj Bhatt, who directed Diganth in the super hit Mungaru Male and Gaalipata, approached him for another film but unfortunately, the actor is so busy that he couldn’t give dates.

Shivamani to hit theatres on 16th

Shivamani featuring Sri Murali and Sharmila Mandre will hit theatres on 16th January, a day after the release of Ganesh’s Circus. The cast and crew of Shivamani conducted a press meet recently to give information about the film just ahead of its release.

Hero Sri Murali requested every one to watch the film without any preconceived notions. He also requested them not to believe the rumours that are floating around. Shivamani is not only an action film, it is also a well-made film to suit the tastes of different audiences.

Sharmila Mandre, the heroine, said she has already watched the film and it has shaped up very well.

Director Amarnath said that he has used technology to its best in the film which has helped in spicing up the song and dance sequences. Ajay Pai, one of the producers of the film who was present during the press meet, appreciated the performance of all the artists. He said that the first 10 minutes and the last 10 minutes of the film hold much importance and should not be missed.

Gagan Chukki starts shooting

Gagan Chukki gives a message to youth that life is more important than love. The film started rolling at the famous Gaganchukki waterfalls recently. Debutant Govindaraju, who has worked with noted directors Cheran and Bharathi Shanker, is directing the film.

The film tells a triangular love story and Akul, Bhavana Rao and Sanjitha play the lead roles. Akul has so far done only comedy roles and this is his first serious film. His earlier films Banni, Aathmeeya and Paramesha Panwala featured him in comic characters and Akul is keen to prove his mettle in a serious role.

The director says this film has no relation to the Gaganchukki waterfalls except for the name. Gagan is the name of the hero and Chukki is the name of the heroine. The crew shot for five days at the Gaganchukki waterfalls and producer Nitish was very happy after seeing the rushes.

Lakshmi in Nam Yejamanru

Dancer, model and actress Lakshmi Gopalaswami is a well-known face in the Southern film world, but Sandalwood did not see her in many movies. This beauty is now looking forward to the release of her Kannada film Nam Yejamanru with Dr. Vishnuvardhan in the lead role and Malayalee actress Navya Nair in an important role.

Lakshmi, who is more active in Malayalam, chose to act in Nam Yejamnru for two reasons. One, the film is directed by Nagabharana, one of the noted directors in Kannada Cinema and next, Lakshmi’s role in the film is that of a dancer. Dancing is something that Lakshmi is very passionate about and she cherishes every role which gives her an opportunity to dance.

Lakshmi has acted in a Hindi Film Dhuaan which was premiered at the Goa Film Festival recently. She is very happy that the film got good responses from the audience. She says that Subhash Ghai, who saw the film, was very impressed with her performance.

Circus to be remade?

Circus will hit the theatres only on January 15th, but the film has already caught the eyes of producers in other languages. The latest buzz in Sandalwood is that producer-director Dayal Padmanabhan’s biggie Circus is getting offers to be remade into Tamil and Telugu. It is heard that Soundarya Rajinikanth is one among the producers who has shown interest in the film and that she will be watching Circus on its opening day at the 4 Frames theatre in Chennai.

Apparently, Dayal Padanabhan does not want to sell the rights of the film. Instead, sources say that Dayal wants to co-produce the film with Soundarya, who has a tieup with Warner Brothers.

While none of this news are confirmed and is still in the rumour list, there is no doubt that Circus will definitely be a film to watch out for this weekend and Ganesh is said to have done a wonderful job. The film is shot mainly on a train and is termed to be an entirely different film of its genre.

KFCC to celebrate 75 years of Kannada Cinema

It was on March 3, 1934 that Kannada Cinema took its first step. Now in 2009, this bustling film industry is completing 75 years of its existence. To celebrate this feat, the KFCC has organized a 3 day mega event in Bangalore on March 1, 2 and 3 with a budget of Rs. 10 crores.

KFCC President Dr. Jayamala has come up with novel ideas to make the event memorable. Talks are on to honour 75 reputed film personalities in the event. Also, 75 books on prominent film personalities will be published as part of the celebrations. The event will also feature entertainment programmes like dance, music and other stage shows.

Music director Hamsalekha is composing the title song for this event and Crazy star V. Ravichandran is preparing the logo.

Prabhu in Kannada

Prabhu, son of Sivaji Ganesan and noted Tamil actor is acting in his first Kannada film Boss which features challenging star Darshan and Navya Nair in the lead roles. Prabhu, who arrived at Bangalore this morning, was taken to Mysore by producer Ramesh Yadav. Prabhu will spend 10 days in Mysore to shoot for the film.

Prabhu debuted with Sangili in 1982 and later delivered several hits during the 80’s and 90’s. One of the major films of his career was Chinna Thambi which broke all box office records in 1991. He has also acted in many films alongside Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan and his father Sivaji Ganesan.

Birugali cleared with U/A

Choreographer-turned-director Harsha’s second film Birugali has been cleared by the Censor Board with 'U/A' certificate. The Censor Board refused to give a clean 'U' to Birugali due to the excessive violence portrayed. Aa Dinagalu fame Chetan is sporting a new look as hero in Birugali which has lots of action sequences. He has reportedly worked hard in the gym to look fit.

Birugali's story, screenplay and dialogues are by director Harsha. His first film as a director was Geleya. Chetan’s first film was Aa Dinagalu in which he played the role of a calm and composed guy. But in Birugali Chetan plays an action hero.

Arjun has scored the music while H.C. Venu is the cameraman. Other members of the cast include Sithara Vaidhya, Karishma, Thara, Kishore, Giri, Mico Nagaraj, Paramesh and Pratap. Birugali is all set to release by the end of January.

Ramesh’s Laddu treat

Ramesh Aravind knows how to use the media to publicise his films and he definitely knows how to thank them too. This actor-cum- director is known for his stylish romantic comedies and is busy directing the latest one, Venkata in Sankata. Being Ramesh’s film, the media has been giving good coverage toVenkata's progress and Ramesh decided to thank them.

So, on the auspicious day of ‘Vaikunta Ekadashi’ Ramesh Aravind sent dozens of laddus in decorated boxes to his media friends thanking them for the publicity they are giving for his film Venkata in Sankata.

Venkata in Sankata is a comedy film about a cop who yearns for promotion. He has three wives and he struggles to meet all their needs. The film is expected to be a light hearted comedy like his previous films Rama Shama Bhama and Satyavan Savithri.

Ramesh’s Laddu treat

Ramesh Aravind knows how to use the media to publicise his films and he definitely knows how to thank them too. This actor-cum- director is known for his stylish romantic comedies and is busy directing the latest one, Venkata in Sankata. Being Ramesh’s film, the media has been giving good coverage toVenkata's progress and Ramesh decided to thank them.

So, on the auspicious day of ‘Vaikunta Ekadashi’ Ramesh Aravind sent dozens of laddus in decorated boxes to his media friends thanking them for the publicity they are giving for his film Venkata in Sankata.

Venkata in Sankata is a comedy film about a cop who yearns for promotion. He has three wives and he struggles to meet all their needs. The film is expected to be a light hearted comedy like his previous films Rama Shama Bhama and Satyavan Savithri.

Rajamanikyam in Kannada

Malayalam superstar Mammootty's Rajamanikyam (2005) directed by Anwar Rasheed was the biggest hit produced in the history of Malayalam cinema! It collected almost eight crores in just 60 days and around four crores from the three metros alone. With this out-and-out comedy thriller, Mammootty broke all myths and rumours that he cannot dance or do comedy roles; he proved his ability to handle humorous roles marvellously and dance superbly.

Rajamanikyam is now being remade in Kannada as Nane Bere, Enna Style Bere by Malayalee director Dinesh Babu, who has directed many super hit Kannada films including Gargasa. Kannada superstar Vishnuvardhan will play the lead role; young star Rajesh and Lekshmi Hedge will appear in important roles.

Rajamanikyam is the story of a buffalo dealer Bellary Raja alias Rajamanikyam (Mammootty) who tries to unite his warring siblings. The film begins in a village in South Kerala bordering Tamil Nadu, abode of a wealthy man, Raja Rathnam Pillai (Saikumar). Following the demise of his first wife, Raja Rathnam marries Muthu Lakshmi Ammal. But he is unaware that his new wife already has a son, Muthu. On the night of the wedding, Muthu knocks at the door of Raja Rathnam and asks for his mother. But Muthu Lakshmi denies the fact that Muthu is her own son.

When Raja Rathnam comes to know the truth, he adopts Muthu without the knowledge of Muthu Lakshmi and renames him Rajamanikyam. Later, when Raja Rathnam's son kills a child in the village, Rajamanikyam takes the blame and leaves the village. After several years, Raja Rathnam's two grown-up children, Rajaselvam (Manoj K. Jayan) and Rani Rathnam (Sindhu Menon), start fighting for their father's wealth. Rajaselvam, aided by his childhood buddy Simon Nadar (Renjith), sets up a plan to frame his own father in a murder case. As a result, Raja Rathnam is arrested but dies of a heart attack on the way to prison.

After his death, the two siblings call the family lawyer to read out Raja Rathnam's will in public. But to their utmost surprise, they find that all their father's assets have been given to Rajamanikyam, a buffalo dealer in Bellary. They fail to realize Bellary Raja is none other than Rajamanikyam. How Rajamanikyam returns to his home town to unite the warring siblings forms the rest of the story.

Puneeth, Umashri Bags Best Award

Puneeth Rajkumar has been selected as the best actor of the year for the film Milana. Umashri has bagged the best actress award for the film Gulabie Talkies. Sadhu Kokila has won the best music director award for the film Inthi Ninna Preethiya film

Dr Vishnu Gets Rajkumar Award

Dr Vishnuvardhan has been awarded Dr. Rajkumar Award for the year 2007-08. Senior and reputed director Renuka Sharma has be awarded with Lt. Puttanna Kanagal Award

Shivaji Prabhu In Boss Kannada Film

For the first time Shivaji Prabhu is acting in Kannada film Boss starring Dharshan, Navya Nair, Rekha in lead. Shivaji Prabhu son of Shivaji Ganeshan arrived to Bangalore at 9 AM. Producer Ramesh Yadav received him at the airport. They reached shooting spot at Mysore and shooting began at 2 PM with Dharshan, Sumitra at the sets. Shivaji Prabh will be acting for 10 days for the final schedule of Boss film.

legendary actor Dr. Sivaji Ganesan has acted in Kannada film School Master directed by B R Pantalu

Nam Yejamaanaru on Jan 30th

Dr. Vishnuvardhan starrer Nam Yejamaanaru directed by Nagabharana is all set to be released on January 30, says the film's producer Rajashekhar. Though the film's shooting had finished last August, there has been considerable delay in the release of this hugely expected film. Rajashekhar says that the delay in the graphics work had resulted in the late release of the film.

“The graphics work took a longer time and we had to spend considerable time, energy to get it done. But now everything connected to the film has been completed and first copy of the film will be coming out in a few days. We are sure to hit the theatres on January 30' says a confident Rajashekhar.

Rajashekhar promised Dr. Vishnuvardhan fans that the film has turned out as a racy film with entertainment values and an intelligent handling of a different type of subject. He said Dr. Vishnu and Navya Nair have done a great job in performances. Lakshmi Gopalaswamy, Anant Nag, Ramesh Bhat are also in the cast. Hamsalekha’s has provided the music for the film and the songs have become popular, said Rajashekhar.

Bhagyadha Balegaara - Navya Nair Heroine

Gaja heroine Navya Nair is the heroine of Bhaagyadha Balegaara starring Shivaraj Kumar and directed by Sai Prakash. The film is produced by Ramesh Kashyap who had earlier produced last year's hit Nanda Nanditha. The shooting of this film is now being held in Channapatna. Navya Nair had finished her work in Boss starring Darshan in Mysore and immediately thereafter left to Tumkur to join the shooting of Bhaagyadha Balegaara.

Earlier the producers were thinking of casting Kamalini Mukherjee as the heroine and even discussions had taken place. But now comes the news that Navya Nair has been signed and she has been participating in the shooting.

Meanwhile, Navya Nair's second Kannada film "Nam Yejamaanaru' starring Dr. Vishnuvardhan and directed by Nagabharana will be releasing on January 30.

Ganesh strikes gold in 'Circus'

After a lacklustre 2008, 'Golden' Ganesh is back to his best. In a role tailor-made for him, though not the romantic one he is familiar with, the Kannada superstar does an excellent job in 'Circus'.

Produced and directed by Dayal Padmanabhan, who essays an important role in the film as well, 'Circus' makes for engrossing watch. The taut script, written by Yograj Bhatt, combines Ganesh's trademark romantic flavour with good suspense and thrills.

The plot of the story is very simple. Dhanush (Ganesh) is the leader of a gang of five pranksters, who often land in trouble. One fine day, one of them write to the Railway authorities stating that on such and such a day, a bomb will explode in the Gandhadagudi Express, just to mar the reputation of the train. Later, realising the folly in mentioning the address of one of them in the letter, they go to the railway station to retrieve the letter from the RMS bogey.

They soon find that terrorists have made all arrangements to blast the train on the same day. Dhanush succeeds in foiling the nefarious designs of the terrorists in the end. The last 30-minutes of the film has many thrilling moments and Ganesh does a neat, convincing job.

In between, there is time enough for a beautiful romance between Dhanush and Priya (debutante Archana Gupta).They sing and dance to three peppy songs from Emil. Archana is cute and gorgeous, but looks weak in histrionics. In fact, the unnecessary romance proves to be a distraction and dulls the suspense.

Senior actors such as Gurudatt, Dharma and Avinash Bharadwaj come and go without making an impact.

The production values of the film are very good, especially, Shekhar Chandrudu's cinematography.