Chitra Varga

Integrity, it has been said, is choosing courage over corruption; and, that choice has to be an integral part of our culture…and, conscience! “ ಹೆಬ್ಬೆಟ್ ರಾಮಕ್ಕ ” (‘ Hebbet Ramakka’ , which translates loosely to ‘Thumb Ramakka’ ) is a 2018 Kannada  film; it was critically and commercially a mixed bag. The political drama though won a few laurels including the national award. Kalleshi (Devaraj), a small-time government contractor, struggles to make both ends meet because of rampant corruption. The fella grovels abjectly before authority to get his bills paid. His wife, Ramakka (Tara) is a diligent homemaker and the backbone of the family, which has two school-going children. One day opportunity comes knocking Kalleshi’s way; he props up his illiterate wife as a ruling party candidate for the local election and gets her appointed as the president. His obvious plan is to serve as a proxy for naive Ramakka and to become a crony, power broker. How does the plan pan out then...