Dr. Rajkumar - legend of Indian Cinema, Demigod of southern Indian film, unforgettable personality, most talented actor, a master, a magician on screen, role model for today's film industry people and above a good person. He is the most popular actor/person of Kannada Cinema Industry and he has been honoured by most prestigious award ''Dada Saheb phalke'' for his outstanding contribution to the growth of the kannada film Industry which really he deserve as well. Also he has served for more than four decades and acted in more than 220 movies in Kannada and received number of regional, national as well as international awards. The people of Karnataka adore him. They call him with love ''Annavaru'' meaning beloved elder brother.
Honestly saying I am not able to understand kannada language but I have seen some of movies with subtitles in english and some with the help of my friends; and it is worth to say that the only hindi knowing movie fans are not fortunate enough to
watch this superstar and in his movies...he has been the most admirable film personality and his loads of fans use to pray him as GOD...This is a fact that the South Cinema [Kannada, Malyalam, Telugu or Tamil] is much more better and well
maintained as compared to Bollywood... I think there is no one in Bollywood who got this much respect and honour what Dr. Rajkumar has gained in his career and life; just coz this person deserve all this.. may be we are not lucky enough to give
him much here but he will definitely get the rest of the honour in heaven as well...
But unfortunately, Dr. Rajkumar is no more with us now...
About Him
His real name was Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Mutturaju, the legend appeared on earth on April 24, 1928, born in Gajanur, a village near Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border in Tamil Nadu; and leave us in tears on April 12, 2006... He was like a god father
for the Kannada Films having millions of his fans, he was sometimes called the John Wayne of South Indian cinema. He acted in more than 200 movies over 50 years in Kannada. Some of his most popular films include Bangaaradha Manushya (The Golden Man), Kasturi Nivasa, Gandhadha Gudi and Jeevana Chaitra. He was also a good singer as a playback singer as well as devotional songs.
He has Won 10 Filmfare awards for the best actor category which happens to be the second highest in the history of Indian films. He won 9 state awards in the best actor category. He also won a National award in best singer category. He received
the Padma Bhushan award from the Government of India and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1995, in recognition of his contributions to the Kannada film industry. His loving fans have conferred him the title ''Nata Saarvabhowma'' - The Emperor of Acting.
Dr Rajkumar was a role model to millions of Kannadigas. He never smoked a cigar/cigarette or acted as an alcoholic in any of his movies (excepting a few in the initial days of his film career). In real life too, he was a non-smoker and non-alcoholic
and maintained a very high standard of living, performing daily Yoga-Asanas [see Yoga] and following a strict diet. Though he had numerous chances to try his hand at Indian politics owing to his mass following, he shied away from active politics
focussing his energy towards art and cinema.
His Career & some of his Movies
Started his career as a dramatist and learned all his acting and singing skills there. Bedara Kannapa was his first movie in the lead role, but had earlier acted in Ohileshwara a mythological movie. He made the first independent Kannada movie called ''Ranadheera Kantheerava'' exclusively with pure Kannada technicians and cast and succeeded in a big way. The same event marked the emergence of the Kannada Cinema Industry as an independent entity separate from other south Indian cinema industries.
He was also one of the most versatile actors in Indian cinema. His character depictions ranged from comedy to action, from lover to double/triple roles, from mythological characters to portrayal of modern day social causes. He acted
with the most popular heroines in southern Indian cinema, such as Kannada's Leelavathi, Arathi, Jayanti, Jayaprada, Madhavi, Sarita and others from neighbouring states. He acted with many directors of the south Indian cinema from B.R. Pantulu,
Puttanna Kanagal to Shankar Nag and Nagabharana. He was known for only acting in Kannada movies, even though he got many offers from different movie industries in India. Actors who have acted with him considered it an achievement of their
lifetime.
In his lifetime, he has acted in 205 Kannada movies. He had a film production company called Vajreshwari Combines. He also was well trained in Yoga and horse riding. At his peak he is said to have worked out for 3 hours and practised pranayama, a form of meditation, every day. Two of his most famous performances were in his own productions - Kaviratna Kalidasa and Shankar-Guru. He produced movies based on famous Kannada novels. He was ably supported by his friend and script writer Chi.Udayashankar. He chose stories which usually had a social message for the audience. He also made many movies against social evils. One such movie is Shabdavedi
About His Family
He was the eldest son of his family, official name was S.P. Muthuraju named after lord Muthathi-rai (Lord Hanuman). His name was changed to ''Rajakumara'' (meaning Prince) when he entered films.His father was the famous Kannada dramatist named Puttaswami. Puttaswami worked in a drama company named Gubbi Veeranna Company. He had a brother named S.P.Varadaraju who worked with Rajkumar in his production company. He also had a sister.He was married to Parvathamma, who later became a film producer. He had 3 sons (Shiva Rajkumar, Ragavendra Rajkumar and Punith Rajkumar) and 2 daughters. He launched all his three sons as actors in Kannada films. He is also survived by 12 grandchildren.
His Kidnapping - Important Incident in his life
On July 30, 2000, at the age of 71, Rajkumar, his son-in-law Govindaraju & two others were kidnapped from the actors' country cottage at Gajanur in Tamil Nadu by the bandit & terrorist Veerappan. Veerappan was demanding the release of his gang members who were being held in jail under a defunct anti-terrorism law. The event prompted a massive manhunt and threw the Karnataka government into crisis. Rajkumar was released unharmed on November 15, 2000, after 108 days of captivity. His kidnapping and the manner in which his release were secured are a mystery to this day.
Death and aftermath
Rajkumar passed away on April 12, 2006 at 13.45 IST following a cardiac arrest on Wednesday afternoon in M S Ramaiah hospital, Bangalore. Following his death, April 13 was declared a state-wide holiday, in order to mourn the thespian's passing. The Bangalore city virtually came to a halt as the news spread about the death. The news of his death precipitated a city-wide reaction comparable to the time he was kidnapped by Veerappan. Following the news of his death, Bangalore city saw
mob violence by people who seemed to be his fans who had come to mourn for him. An unofficial 'bundh' (closure of all shops and other establishments) was announced. More than 100 vehicles were burnt and 8 people were killed including a policeman[1]. BBC News reported on the financial impact of the riots.
And in the last
Dr. Rajkumar will always remain in our memories with his simplicity and generosity...
May god bless the holy soul!!!
This is all what I wish to write about Dr. Rajkumar from my knowledge and info...
Thanks for reading, Waiting for your comments...
Akash Dwivedi
