BENGALURU: ‘Ondalla, Eradalla’ (not one or two), but Kannada films have bagged 11 national awards this year. This is for the first time that Sandalwood has received such high recognition.
The 66th National Film Awards were announced in New Delhi on Friday.Director Mansore’s Nathicharami was the big winner of the day, taking away five awards -- for best regional film in Kannada, best lyrics Maayavi Manave, written by Mansore, best editing Nagendra K Ujjani and best female playback singer Bindhu Malini and the Jury’s special mention of actor Sruth Hariharan for her performance. This experimental film talks about a woman who is caught between her physical desires and emotional beliefs.
KGF Chapter I, one of the blockbusters of 2018, bagged two awards for best visual effects and best action. The Yash starrer is directed by Prashant Neel. Social-comedy Ondalla Eradalla has won the Nargis Dutt Award for National Integration. The movie, written and directed by D Satya Prakash, gets the best child actor award for Rohith Pandavapura.
Rishab Shetty’s Sarkari Hi. Pra. Shaale, Kasaragodu, Koduge Ramanna Rai, a socio-political satire, on shutting down of a Kannada medium school, has won the best children’s film award. The film Mukkajiya Kanasugalu has got the best archives award. Nagathihalli Chandrashekar, chairman of Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy, said he doesn’t remember the last time Kannada film industry bagged so many awards.
“I have been following for the last 35 years, and we would scale between one or two. Only at the time, when Dr Rajkumar won the Dada Phalke award, the same year, Kannada industry won four awards,” Nagathihalli Chandrashekar, chairman of Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy said.
An elated Sruthi Hariharan told The New Indian Express, “To be mentioned in the list of National Film Awardees, is definitely like a dream come true. I feel humbled. While announcing the award, the jury mentioned that they really liked the subtlety in my performance of a very complex character.”An award and success has come without expectation, said director Rishab Shetty of Sarkari...
He said, “I consider winning a national award a bigger achievement than the Oscars because the recognition is coming from our country. I want to dedicate this film to all the children studying in government schools, especially in Kannada medium. I also think that this will give a great fillip to students like me, who studied in a Kannada medium school, that they can direct a film in their mother tongue and still win a national award,” he says.