DIVINE REINCARNATION FOR DHARMIC REINSTITUTION

“Whenever righteousness declines and unrighteousness abounds...I manifest myself (on earth) to protect the virtuous and to annihilate the vile, and to reestablish dharma...” is a profusely profound passage, an inspiring one too, from the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, the theological and philosophical text of Sri Krishna's dialogue with Arjuna, the Pandava prince.
Hindu scriptures enlist ten (Agni and Garuda Purana), twenty two (Bhagavata Purana) or more avatars of God Vishnu, the sustainer of the universe among the Trinity. Vishnu manifests as a living being on earth to destroy wickedness whenever it becomes widespread and causes a cosmic crisis.

"ದಶಾವತಾರ" ('Dashavathara', that is, 'Ten Avatars') is a 1960 Kannada film. The mythological drama is a timeless, priceless classic...a sublimely entertaining and spiritually enlightening masterpiece. It stands testament to the wealth of our cultural and aesthetic heritage.

Director PG Mohan choice of cast and crew is OUTSTANDING. He has flawlessly envisioned artistic content and embodied technical elements into the film. His dramatic translation of genius GV Iyer's screenplay is on the money; Mohan and Devendranath's editing is the exclamation point.

GV Iyer has harmoniously strung together the tales of all ten avatars, a daunting task, and made it look effortless in his script. The camerwork of B Dorairaj is blemishless too! The special effects are contemporary for the day and age of the film's release.

The great GK Venkatesh's background score is scintillating. One of the tracks, 'Vaidehi Enadalu'– composed to GV Iyer's deep, touching lyrics and recorded with PB Srinivas' smooth, soothing voice– is a true gem... perhaps the best ever original song produced for a Kannada film!

The flick features a galaxy of stars– all have rendered MASTERFUL performances. Rajashankar has portrayed Sri Vishnu and His avatars brilliantly. Doyens Dr. Rajkumar (as Jaya, Hiranyakashipu, Ravana and Shishupala) and Udaykumar (as Kamsa and Anjaneya) are at their theatrical best. The rest of the cast, comprised of veterans like Narasimharaju, KS Ashwath, HR Shastry, HK Shastry and others, has supported exceedingly well.

This mythological movie is the Mount Everest of creative genius...a magnum opus!!

I rate it: 10 on 10! Wish I could give it more!

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