Chitra Varga

“Spying,” as the Russian President Vladimir Putin said somewhat stalely, “ has always gone on since ancient times .” There is something about ‘spying’ and its not-so-distant cousin, ‘voyeurism’ that gives an adrenalin rush to the common man. Perhaps the spooky secrecy that shrouds espionage― besides its association with death and danger― is irresistibly charming. The onscreen portrayal of suave, sophisticated spies too adds to the romanticism of intelligence work . “ ಕುಳ್ಳ ಏಜೆಂಟ್ ೦೦೦ ” (“ Kulla Agent 000”, which literally means, ‘Short Agent 000’ ) is a 1972 Kannada film, which is part spy parody and part spy thriller. The commercially successful movie― an escapade in the Austin Powers’ mold on comical content sans the innuendos― found favour in pop culture too. Kulla (Dwarakish), a puny, pocket-sized bloke aspires to be a secret service agent. He tries to make up for his lack of height by showing up for a recruitment interview wearing stilts under his long trousers. The comical ...