A superstar fades

Though the Kannada film industry has been growing exponentially in terms of the number of films made in the last one decade or so, it has been a downhill journey of late for a variety of reasons. In fact, 2009 was the worst year as only a handful of over a 100 films made were successful at the box office. As the year comes to a close, the gloom in the film fraternity has only worsened with the untimely death of versatile actor Vishnuvardhan in the wee hours of Wednesday. He is perhaps the last of the superstars of an ailing and struggling industry.

Young Sampath Kumar from Mysore, who was given the screen name of Vishnuvardhan by his mentor-director Puttanna Kanagal, was an instant hit with the Kannada audience with his portrayal of the role of ‘Ramachari’, in his very second film, ‘Naagara Haavu’ in 1972. In the same year, Vishnuvardhan had made his debut with a small role in Girish Karnad’s ‘Vamshavruksha’. Vishnuvardhan’s evergreen good looks, versatile acting, ease of dialogue delivery and more than anything, his humility, grace, poise, friendly nature and discipline made him one of the best loved actors in Kannada cinema. Acting in a little over 200 films, including three in Hindi, two in Tamil along with Rajnikanth and one in Malayalam, over a period of 37 years, Vishnuvardhan attained superstardom, bettered only by the inimitable Raj Kumar. There was a touch of rivalry between multitudes of fans of the two stars, though the actors themselves maintained respect for each other. Vishnuvardhan gave some of the biggest hits the Kannada film industry has seen.
Vishnuvardhan, who married another popular actress, Bharathi, in 1975, was sought to be lured by political parties to contest elections at least a couple of times. But he stuck to his profession, his circle of close friends and occasional games of cricket, which he loved. He always raised his voice and joined his colleagues in protecting the interests of the state and the film industry. Like many other veterans in the field, Vishnuvardhan was concerned about the health of the Kannada films and it is unfortunate that he passed away at a relative young age of 59, when he surely would have contributed to the industry’s revival. But, he has left behind a wonderful collection of films which should act as a guiding spirit to the new generation of film makers.