Chitra Varga

The American President Franklin D. Roosevelt said prudently…and profoundly too: “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Easier said than done, for often fear is the fallout of the unknown.   “ ಅನ್ವೇಷಣೆ ” ( ‘Anveshane’, which means: ’Quest ’ ) is a 1983 Kannada movie, which takes a peek at fear-induced behavior. The plot of the neo-noir art film is about how folks cope with uncertainty. Critically acclaimed, the flick won a few awards too. Shyam (Anant Nag), a travel agent, is in blissful wedlock with Revathi (Smita Patil), a school teacher. They are blessed with two little, adorable girls in their tweens. The typical middle-class family lives in a housing complex with several other tenants. Some of the neighbors are prying nosy-parkers. Few men in the colony are goofy busybodies; others are perverts having roving eyes. The womenfolk are loud and garrulous; and, annoyingly inquisitive. Both Shyam and Revathi toil hard to make both ends meet. The two follow ...

As someone said, truths are best expressed in the form of myth. On the dot! Rectitude and righteousness too are best spread with mythology. “ ಮೂರೂವರೆ ವಜ್ರಗಳು ” (‘ Mooruvare Vajragalu ’, which translates to: ‘ Three & Half Diamonds ’) is a 1973 Kannada mythological film based on events narrated in the pur ā ṇa s and other ancient literary works. Woven around characters in the epic Mah ā bh ā rata , the B&W movie is a masterpiece. It was a super-duper hit and garnered critical acclaim too. The film unfolds with Sage Narada (Dr. Rajkumar) reassuring a poor, blind and orphaned Kritavarma (Srinath) about Sri Krishna’s (Dr. Rajkumar) benevolence towards those devoted to him. The noble sage narrates the exemplary story of Sudama (Gururajulu Naidu) to prove his point. Kritavarma marries Satyavati (Jayanthi), an ardent, devout worshipper of Sri Krishna, and regains his lost kingdom. Many sub-plots, entailing conspiracies of pompous Duryodhana (Vajramuni); negligence of Kritavarma;...

The English statesman and philosopher, Francis Bacon aired eloquently, “the worst solitude is to be destitute of true friendship.” One may be tempted to add ‘ family ties devoid of agony and anguish ’ to that quote. “ ಮಿಸ್ಟರ್ ಗರಗಸ ” (‘ Mr. Garagasa’ ― literally ‘ Mr. Saw’ , it is a moniker for a ‘ boringly garrulous man ’) is a 2008 Kannada film that has for its theme the significance of harmony and congeniality in matrimonial relations. Garagasa is heavily inspired by the French comedy Le Dîner de Cons and the Hindi flick Bheja Fry . The comedy did well at the box-office. Muniya (Komal Kumar) is a struggling scriptwriter, who is a bit of an eccentric cackler. He is a genuinely decent human being, albeit a bumbling do-gooder. So, goofy Muniya, with his penchant for plain-spokenness, meets a film producer, Parthasarthy (Anant Nag), who is beset with daunting problems at home. Muniya begins to narrate his script to Parthasarthy; but, the queer, quirky attempt soon runs into rough...

Poverty, they say, is the mother of prostitution. Indeed! An apathetic society though fathers the profession…and, often gives it a fillip too! “ ಗೆಜ್ಜೆ ಪೂಜೆ ” (‘ Gejje Pooje ’, which literally means: ‘ Anklet Worship ’) is a 1969 Kannada film that portrays how society forms a vicious cycle to deny dignity and deprive distinction to those in the flesh trade. Based on the literary masterpiece of MK Indira, the flick was a resounding commercial success…and, a musical megahit. It won a catena of awards too and was remade in Tamil ( Thaaliya Salangaiya ), Telugu ( Kalyana Mandapam ) and Hindi ( Ahista Ahista ). Chandra (Kalpana) is the daughter born out of wedlock to Shivarudrappa (Loknath), an affluent landlord, and Aparna (Leelavathi), a sex worker. Sharp as a tack, Chandra values the importance of education. Diligent at her studies, she dreams of shelving the life of debasement and leading a life of dignity. Chandra falls in love with her neighbor and friend, Somu (Gangadhar). Th...

Edmund Burke, the Irish statesman and philosopher, was on point when he declared emphatically that superstition is the faith of feeble minds. Besides it also indicates a lack of judgment in the superstitious.   “ ಕುಬಿ ಮತ್ತು ಇಯಾಲ ” (‘ Kubi Mattu Iyala’ , which translates to: ‘ Kubi and Iyala ’) is a 1992 Kannada film about blind beliefs of common folk in a remote village. Based on a story penned by literary giant, Poornachandra Tejaswi, the drama won several awards; critics too gave it their thumbs-up. The protagonist, Dr. Kubera, or for short, Dr. Kubi (Charuhasan), a diligent ex-military doctor, is assigned to the ramshackle healthcare centre at Byrapura, a small hamlet out in the wilderness. Shrouded in superstition, the locals seem to be stuck in a time warp― they live in primal fear of angering the spirit believed to be hidden in a huge boulder nearby. A bemused Kubi, an idealistic rationalist, takes it upon himself to bust the myth and inculcate the villagers with s...

Dale Carnegie, the American motivational writer, said that the man who goes farthest is the one who is willing to do and dare .   That profound thought applies to as mundane, but momentous a pursuit in life as finding love. Unexpressed love indeed becomes unrequited love often. Hence it is vital not only to dare, but also to declare that love. No flippancy there!  “ ಶ್ರಾವಣಿ ಸುಬ್ರಮಣ್ಯ ” (‘ Shravani Subramanya ’) is a 2013 Kannada film that had the cash registers ringing relentlessly. A blockbuster, the romantic comedy garnered plaudits galore and gained an award or two as well.   Shravani (Amulya) is a naïve, dewy-eyed girl in love. She elopes with Sudeep (Yashas), who, it turns out, is a goon with ulterior motives and nefarious designs. Subramanya (Ganesh), an aspiring singer with dreams of making it big in the music industry, arrives in the nick of time as a knight in shining armour and rescues Shravani from the clutches of Sudeep. When Shravani returns home though...

The Doctrine of Lapse was as devious a formula as it was ingenious devised for  the British to reclaim paramountcy and usurp direct control over subordinate princely states in pre-independence India. Under the ploy of regulating succession, the British annexed states of monarchs who died without natural heirs. Thus, the doctrine was aimed at regaining direct superintendence over states for imperial gain. “ ಕಿತ್ತೂರು ಚೆನ್ನಮ್ಮ ” (‘ Kitturu Chennamma’ ) is a 1961 Kannada film that featured the freedom struggle of the Queen of Kittur, who rebelled and defiantly went to war against the British in 1824 CE. The historical drama won several awards, including the National Award for Best Feature Film  in Kannada. As a commercial venture, the period flick attained great success; critics raved over it too. Rani Chennamma (B Saroja Devi) was trained in archery, fencing, horse riding and other martial arts at an early age. She married Raja Mallasarja (Dr. Rajkumar) in 1793 and begot a so...

Adam Smith, the Scottish pioneer of Political Economics, observed: “The real tragedy of the poor is the poverty of their aspirations.” But, he perhaps forgot that often aspirational poverty is itself a product of personal finances, familial compulsions and societal structure. “ ಪ್ರವಾಹ ” (‘ Pravāha ’, which means ‘ Flood ’) is a 2004 Kannada film, which explores the link between rural poverty and urban influx. It also delves into the exploitation of the under-privileged and the reasons for rapid urbanization. The social drama found favour with critics; it won awards and garnered accolades too. Marappa (Achyuth Kumar), a village potter, is in the clutches of local loan-sharks and landlords. He struggles to eke out a living with his hereditary profession, because the demand for his clayware is on the wane. In the ebb and flow of life, Marappa’s wife, Ramakka (Mangala) and son, Siddarama (Rohith Bhat) also bear the brunt of penury. Marappa’s traditional craft of pottery too is on th...

“ A thriller is a very carefully structured story, ” wrote a well-known crime writer. In stark contrast, a potboiler offers enough thrills despite its unstructured, and often hackneyed, story. “ ಸಿಂಗಪೂರಿನಲ್ಲಿ ರಾಜ ಕುಳ್ಳ ” (‘ Singapoorinalli Raja Kulla ’, which translates to: ‘ Raja Kulla in Singapore ’) is a 1978 Kannada film that turned out to be a whopper of a success at the box-office. The action thriller started the trend in Kannada films of shooting at exotic locales overseas; it was a musical blockbuster too film. Shivaraj (Loknath) and Junie (Thoogudeepa Srinivas) are underworld kingpins in Singapore; both are into diamond smuggling and a host of other nefarious activities. Needless to say, they are on the radar of law enforcement authorities. Detective Venu a.k.a. Kulla (Dwarakish) is entrusted with the task of bringing the hoodlums to justice. Pop-singer Raja (Vishnuvardhan) gets acquainted with Gopinath Rao (Shakti Prasad), a wealthy man into some shady stuff. Tara (Man...

“ The battle lines between good and evil runs through the heart of every man, ” wrote the Russian novelist and Nobel laureate, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. That deep, dramatic thought has a philosophical angle; but it reflects reality. “ ಕಿರಿಕ್ ಪಾರ್ಟಿ ” (‘ Kirik Party ’) is a 2016 Kannada film is based on that theme. The romantic comedy-drama won a bunch of awards and was critically well received. A resounding success at the box-office, the movie was remade in Telugu ( Kirrak Party ). Karna (Rakshit Shetty), the male protagonist, enrolls for an engineering degree. In his first year, he gangs up with his hostel mates for some monkey business on campus; and, lots of fun and frolic follows with all the mischief around. Amidst lots of levity, frivolity and pleasantry, Karna befriends his senior, Sanvi (Rashmika Mandanna), who is the daughter of a strict, senior police officer . Half the college is mad though about the beautiful bombshell. Karna too takes a fancy for Sanvi, who gradually ...