On my pinboard- Sudha Rani

Sudha Rani entered the Kannada film industry as a child artiste and soon marked her presence with varied roles. First seen on screen in ‘Kiladi Kittu’, which was followed by movies like ‘Anupama’, Kulla Kulli’, ‘Ranganayaki’ and ‘Bhagyavantha’, the actor rose to prominence quickly.

She debuted as a lead actor with ‘Anand’, which was also Shivarajkumar’s first film. The
actor was awarded the Karnataka State Award for her roles in ‘Panchama Veda’ and ‘Mysore Mallige’. She was also recognised for her role in ‘Sparsha’.

The artiste is still actively involved in the film industry and was seen in ‘Happy New Year’
recently. Her upcoming movies include ‘Mudla Seemyalli’ and another project where she will be seen opposite actor Devaraj.

Actor
Dr Rajkumar

“My favourite actor will always be the evergreen actor
Dr Rajkumar. He is the only artiste in our industry who could act in historical, mythological and socially relevant  movies and portray each of the characters with panache. He was a multifaceted artiste as he could also sing well.”

Music
Jagjit Singh

 “I prefer listening to melodies now. I love ghazals by Jagjit Singh — I’m not sure if it’s because of the lyrics or the soothing and relaxing effect of the music. I listen to peppy numbers too but I prefer songs which trigger feelings or thoughts. I also love listening to songs by Runa Laila, S P Balasubrahmanyam and Shreya Ghoshal.

Earlier, I used to listen to a lot of Western music, which included songs by Tina Turner, Stevie
Wonder and Lionel Richie. But over a period of time, my taste in music changed.”

Travel
Maasai Mara Park, Kenya

“I love places that are surrounded by nature as they have a fascinating feel to them. Some of the places that I travelled to, and fell in love with, are Kenya and Bhutan. The Maasai Mara Park in Kenya is a favourite haunt of mine because of its wildlife. I love the Paro Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest) and Thimphu in Bhutan too.”

Author
Twinkle Khanna

“I read anything and everything as long as it is interesting, though my preferred choice is  biographies. One of my favourite books is Twinkle Khanna’s ‘Mrs Funnybones: She’s Just Like You and a Lot Like Me’. I loved her witty writing style and how she had penned down a variety of short stories in one collection. I could relate to each one of them very well. Other than this, all books which are based on Princess Diana also fascinate me.”

Inspiration

“It is almost impossible to list down all the people who have inspired me. I have learnt valuable lessons from people from all walks of life and I draw inspiration from everything around
me. I unknowingly keep observing things and try to pick up lessons. Be it a child in the family or a stranger on the road, we can learn something from everyone.”

Food
Chiroti

“My favourite cuisine is South Indian food as I feel it is a healthy option and provides everything in perfect balance. I also have a sweet tooth and love Indian desserts like ‘Chiroti’, ‘Rasgullas’ and ‘Rasmalai’. I love indulging in ‘Chiroti’ at functions. In fact, I don’t mind starving myself beforehand so that I can liberally indulge in it. One has to be a really good cook to be able to make a perfect ‘Chiroti’ as it is made very artistically. I also love Italian, Spanish and Mediterranean food. I am a vegetarian so I always opt for dishes which have a lot of vegetables.”