After years of delays, veteran filmmaker SV Rajendra Singh Babu’s Kannada film Raktha Kashmira is finally set to release in theatres across Karnataka this week. The director believes the wait has only strengthened his confidence in the film. “This film was always meant for the big screen,” he explains. “We made it on a large scale, with real locations and strong emotions. I wanted audiences to experience it in theaters, not just on television or online.”
Produced by MDM Productions, the film features Upendra and Ramya in lead roles, with Mars Suresh managing the statewide release.
The director shares that the story draws inspiration from events in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and terror attacks in Indian cities. “The story shows how terrorism impacts ordinary people. In our film, attacks occur not only in Kashmir but also in cities like Bengaluru, where thousands of innocent lives are lost. That suffering drives the hero and heroine to travel from Bengaluru to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to fight back,” he states.
Rajendra Singh Babu adds that the team spent over a month filming in Kashmir. “We wanted authenticity. We shot in real locations, and many children acted in the film. The emotions needed to feel genuine,” he says, describing it as a patriotic family drama.
One of the film’s main highlights is an 18-minute special song featuring several top Kannada stars. “This is something no one has done before,” the director points out. “Vishnuvardhan, Ambareesh, Srinath, Shivarajkumar, Puneeth Rajkumar, Jaggesh, Upendra, Ramesh Aravind, Darshan, Jai Jagadish, and Aditya all appear in one song. It wasn’t easy to bring everyone together, but they supported the idea because the film discusses the nation.”
While Rajendra Singh Babu has written the story and screenplay, MS Ramesh has written the dialogues, and music is by Gurukiran. “Every department worked with a lot of dedication. Even after so many years, the film’s message remains relevant,” he says.
Apart from Upendra and Ramya, the cast includes Mukesh Rishi, Doddanna, Om Prakash Rao, Anil and Kuri Pratap.
As the film finally gets its release, the filmmaker sums it up simply: “We made Raktha Kashmira with honesty and passion. Now it’s time for the audience to see it on the big screen, the way it was meant to be seen.”