Kannada films on a song

Kannada films on a song
Deccan Herald

The Kannada film industry is at its peak of success. Filmmakers are no more griping about subsidies, entertainment tax and awards.

The Kannada film industry is at its peak of success. Filmmakers are no more griping about subsidies, entertainment tax and awards. Even when Information Minister B Shivaram recently announced that no entertainment tax would be levied on re-make films, there wasn’t a word of discontent.

Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce president Gangaraju, says 2005 has been one of the most successful years for the Kannada film industry—for re-make and original films. With only eight per cent success rate for Kannada movies just two years ago, this year—with 63 films being released so far—has seen at least six films passing the enviable 100-days mark. What is the recipe of this success? A new crop of directors and their unconventional methods of filmmaking, of course.

“Filmmakers today are hiring technicians like choreographers and fighters from Tamil Nadu to keep up with the standards of Bollywood and Kollywood films,” says Gangaraju.

Another proof of the success of Kannada films is actors claiming a remuneration of over Rs 1 crore for a film — Upendra and Puneet Raj Kumar are on this list.

With a handful of films lined up for debutant directors and heroes, sources in the industry say these films, too, are expected to do well.

What’s more, historical films have made a comeback, with actor Rajkumar producing a costume film titled Kumara Rama with Shivaraj Kumar in the lead. Even Bollywood is not known to take such risks these days.

Filmmaker Rajendra Singh Babu, with his very own three soon-to-be-released films, also attributes this success to new young actors. “Technology has advanced, the content is good and there is a lot of energy in the youngsters, so why shouldn’t Kannada films give a good yield?” he asks.

He said with the production cost of a film crossing Rs 200 crore, the turnover expected these days was as good as the investment. “We cannot run away from good bouncers, because even we are known to bat centuries,” he jests.

Music that forms an integral part of Indian cinema has also had a good season this year. Music director Gurukiran’s Jogi, Namma Basava and the yet-to-be-released Shubham with catchy numbers have set many a foot tapping.

“Many of the functions in colleges that I visit these days are hosting cultural events with Kannada songs. This in itself speaks volumes, because we never knew of educational institutions taking to Kannada film music before,” he added.