Rajesh (Kannada actor)

Rajesh
Born	Munichowdappa/later Vidyasagar (1932-04-15) 15 April 1932 Bangalore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India
Nationality	Indian
Citizenship	Indian
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1963–present
Known for	Actor
Children	5, including Asharani
Relatives	Arjun Sarja (son-in-law)

Vidyasagar (born 15 April 1932), known by his stage name Rajesh, is an Indian actor who appears in Kannada films. Known as 'Kala Thapaswi', Rajesh is an ardent fan of literature. Vidyasagar is the original name of Rajesh. He appeared in many films as the lead in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but later on started appearing in character roles.

He is the father of film actress Aasha Rani who had acted in the film Rathasapthami with Shivrajkumar and the father in law of popular Kannada and Tamil actor Arjun Sarja. He has acted in over 150 films. "Kalathapasvi Rajesh Athmakathe" is the biography of Rajesh. In 2014, he was awarded the Dr. Rajkumar Cultural Endowment Award by the Kannada Sahitya Parishat.

Early life

Rajesh was born as Vidyasagar in 1935 in Bangalore, India. He grew up watching then stars such as Thyagaraja Bhagavatar, Rajakumari and T. R. Mahalingam. He developed interest in theatre from his childhood and joined Sudarshana Nataka Mandali without his parents' knowledge. In the name of tuition he was going for practice and the first role he got was ‘Sri Rama’. From pamphlets, his parents came to know that he has joined theatre troupe. He currently lives in Vidyaranyapura, Bangalore.

Career

Early career

Rajesh initially worked as a typist in government offices. Later he formed the Shakti Nataka Mandali, staging many popular plays. One fine day he got up from the sleet and started writing a play on unemployment. It was titled as ‘Nirudyogi Baalu’. The play he directed later. Got good appreciation. ‘Badavana Baalu’ was his next and it continued like that. Playwright Basheer asked to him act in plays and he was in Visha Sarpa, Nandadeepa, Chandrodaya and Kittur Rani Chennamma. Thackeray role was well received.

His theatre performances eventually progressed to film roles. It was veteran director Hunsur Krishnamurthy who introduced Vidyasagar in Veera Sankalpa. He applied for 15 days leave to his job and went to Madras. While acting in this film he got offer for ‘Sri Ramanjeneya Yuddha’. Dr Rajakumar was Sri Rama and he was Bharatha, Udayakumar was Anjaneya. It was a successful film. While acting in his second film he got offer from BR Panthuluji for ‘Gange Gowri’. Dr Rajkumar was ‘Shiva’ and he was ‘Maha Vishnu’. For some politics he rejected the offer in ‘Jeevana Tharanga’. he kept quiet for two years and came back to Bangalore. But Narayan Seth from Mumbai came in touch with him and took him to CV Shivashanker. That was the new beginning of his life. Vidyasagar became Rajesh and the film was ‘Namma Ooru’. He was not only good at acting but also a good singer.

The turning point was Namma Ooru in 1968. Directed by C.V. Shivashankar, it was a runaway hit and then Finance Minister Ramakrishna Hegde gave it a 100 per cent tax exemption. It was the film's producer B.S. Narayan, Late Shri Suryanarayan Rao & Late J N Shetty who rechristened Vidyasagar as Rajesh and after that, he was flooded with offers, the song "Hoogadhiri Soohdarare" of the film Namma Ooru is a famous Hit. He recently acted in Nanna Gopala, a children film directed by Lakshman. Though he started little late compared to the Kumars - Udaykumar, Rajkumar and Kalyan Kumar, they were all contemporaries. In that competitive period, Rajesh stood strong for his terrific performance on silver screen in Kannada cinema. In the charged up roles similar to what counterpart Sivaji Ganesan was doing the stellar performance of Rajesh was well received. He was not only good in acting but also in singing.

Later career

He was doing what Chi Udayashanker famous cinema writer was doing in the office. In the ledger books he was keeping the famous novels and reading. Chi Udayashanker was sent out from office for that. Even he also faced the same situation. After he became hero as Rajesh he have acted with Dr Rajakumar again in Devara Makkalu, Prathidwani, Kranthiveera. In ‘Devara Gudi’ he was with Vishnuvardhana in an important role. From 1975 he got various good offers. Devara Duddu, Badhu Bangaravaythu, Beluvaladha Madilalli, Mugiyadha Kathe, which all one after the other became hits. It was a lifetime role for him in ‘Beluvaladha Madilalli’. Kaliyuga, Pitamaha. Satyanarayana Pooja Phale, Karna, and the recent Bhimoos Bang Bang Kids of SV Rajendra Singh Babu he played important roles.

He is of the notion that, in the 1950 onwards Honnappa Bhagavatar, Rajkumar, Udayakumar, Kalyankumar, B.R. Pantulu, K. S. Ashwath, Narasimha raju, Balakrishna, Iyer, B. Saroja Devi, Leelavathi, Pandari Bai, MV Rajamma, Mynavathi, Vandhana, Kalpana, Jayanthi, Bharathi enriched the film industry. But, now Rajesh regrets that Kannada films produced in the recent times have lost their credence in the absence of good story and social commitment. The yesteryear star says "Those films had a message for the society besides providing healthy entertainment. But the films that have come after 1980 lack social commitment and are of cheap taste. The technological development and huge money being spent on films have not been used by filmmakers for the good of the society,"

Awards

Honorary Doctorate: For his contribution to Indian Cinema and achievements in the Kannada Film Field for four and a half decades, legendary actor Rajesh was conferred the honorary doctorate by the Karnataka University in the year 2012.

Partial filmography

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

No	Year	Movie (in Kannada)	Director	Co-stars	Banner
1	1964	Veera Sankalpa	Hunsur Krishnamurthy
2	1963	Sri. Ramanjanaiah Yuddha	M.S. Nayak
3	1967	Gange Gowri	B.R. Pantulu
4	1968	Namma Ooru	C.V. Shivshankar	Shailashri, Krishnakumari, Ashwath, Balakrishna, Narasimharaju, Dinesh.	Jayis Productions
5	1969	Suvarna Bhoomi	A.M. Sammevulla	Sudarshan, Shailashri, Udaykumar, Balakrishna.	Bava movies
6	1969	Broker Bheeshmachari	B.C. Srinivas	Jayanthi, Shailashri, Narasimharaju.	L.B.N. Productions
7	1969	Kappu Bilupu	Puttanna Kanagal	Kalpana, Balakrishna, Adavani Lakshmidevi, Sudarshan.	Ravikumar Movies
8	1969	Eradu Muka	M.R. Vittal	Jayanthi, Manjula, Narasimharaju, Sampath, Ashwath, Ranga,	Chitrashri International
9	1969	Punnya Purusha	K. Janakiram	Chandrakala, Narasimharaju, Pandaribai, Niranjan.	Suvarna Movies
10	1969	Kaanike	Satyam	Kalpana, Ashwath, Dwarakish, Shailashri.	Srilakshmi Movietone
11	1969	Brindavana	S.P. Rajgopal	Kalpana, Padmanjali, Balakrishna, Ashwath.	Nandi Films
12	1969	Bhale Basava	B.S. Ranga	Jayanthi, Udaykumar, Rajashri, Premalatha	Vikram Productions
13	1970	Arishina Kumkuma	K.S.L. Swamy	Kalyankumar, Kalpana, B.V. Radha, Dwarakish.	Gurubhakthi Films
14	1970	Mooru Muthugalu	Aaruru pattabhi	Srinath, Pandaribai, Radha, Mainavathi.	Sriranganatha Productions
15	1970	Boregowda Bangalorige Banda	B. A. Arasu Kumar	Leelavathi, B. Vijayalakshmi, Srinath	Sri Mallikarjuna Enterprises
16	1970	Namma Mane	Bangara Raju	Kalpana, B.V. Radha, Ashwath, Dinesh, Pandaribai.	Yeshwanth Films
17	1970	Suka Samsara	Vijaya Satyam	Udaykumar, Srinath, Rajashri.	Venugopal
18	1970	Aaaru Mooru Vambathu.	K.S.L. Swamy	Udaykumar, Srinath, Ramesh, Ravi, Ashwath, Radha,	Raghunandan
19	1970	Devara Makkalu	Y.R. Swamy	Rajkumar, Kalpana, Jayanthi, Narasimharaju.	Bharath Enterprises
20	1971	Poornima	R. Dayananda Sagar	Srinath, Udaykumar, B. Sarojadevi.	Dayananda Productions
21	1971	Betaala Gudda	B.A. Urskumar	Udayachandrika, Shankar, Dwarakish, Eesh.	Sri Gajanana Films
22	1971	Namma Baduku	M.N. Aaradhya	Vijayakala, Purnima, Narasimharaju.	Vijaya Karnataka
23	1971	Bhale Adhrushtavo Adrustha	K.S.L. swamy	Gangadhar, Kalpana, Dwarakish, Srinath, Chi.Udayshankar, Shivram, Radha.	Raghunandan Movies
24	1971	Bhale Bhaskara	R. Ramamurthy	Rajesh, Gangadhar, Anitha, Narasimhraju, Udaykumar, Jayakumari.	Srirama Enterprises
25	1971	Hennu, Honnu, Mannu	"Basavaraja kesturu, Baradaraj"	Udayachandrika, Shankar, B.R.Jayaram, Shakthi Prasad, Toogudeepa Srinivas	Triveni Films
26	1971	Prathidhwani	Dorai-Bhagvan	Rajkumar, Aarathi, Shankar, Dinesh.	Anupama Movies
27	1972	Vishakanye	Hunsur Krishnamurthy	Ashwath, Jayanthi.	Karnataka Movies
28	1972	Subhadra Kalyana	Kangal Prabhakar Shastri	Kalpana, Gangadhar, Vajrmuni, B.V.Radh, Vijayakala, Narasimharaju.	Chamundeshwari Studios
29	1972	Ondu Hennina Kathe	B.R. Pantulu	Jayanthi, Rajamma, B.V.Radha, Sudarshan.	Padmini Pictures
30	1972	Kranti Veera	R. Ramamurthy	Rajkumar, Jayanthi, Radha, Dwarakish.	Srirama Enterprises
31	1972	Bhandavya	Ratnakar-Madhu	Gangadhar, Pandaribai, B.V.Radha, Ashwath.	Deepak Films
32	1972	Mareyada Deepavali	R.Sampath	Kalpana, Sampath, Ashwath.	S.V.N. Movies
33	1973	Sahadarmini	Satyanarayana	B. Sarojadevi, Shubha, Pramila Josai.	Shashiraj Movies
34	1973	Bidugade	Y.R. Swamy	Rajkumar, Kalpana, Bharathi, Kala.	Ramesh Movies
35	1974	Urvashi	Tipturu Raghu	Rajashri, Shivram, Dinesh, Balakrishna, Shakti prasad.	Kalpataru Films
36	1974	Grihini	"Vijay, Satyam"	B.Sarojadevi, Ramgopal, Vijayakala.	Samudra Movies
37	1975	Devara Gudi	R. Ramamurthy	Bharati, Vishnuvardhan, Manjula, Shivram, Manorama.	Srirama Enterprises
38	1975	Kasturi Vijaya	Srikanth	Jayanthi, Shivram, Chandrashekar, Balakrishna.	Mukambika Films
39	1975	Mane Belaku	Y.R. Swamy	Chandrakala, Ashwath, Chandrashekar, Balakrishna, Radha.	Sovereign Cine Enterprises
40	1975	Sarpa Kaavalu	S.N. Singh	Anitha, B.V. Radha, Tugudeepa Srinivas.	Malleshwari Pictures
41	1975	Kaveri	H.N. Reddy	Bharathi, Ashwath, Sampath, Balakrishna, Surekha.	Sri Sharada Cine Productions
42	1975	Viplava vanithe	Chakravarthi	Vijalalitha, B.V. Radha, Gangadhar, Balakrishna.	Kiran Pictures
43	1975	Ashirvada	Kunigal Nagabhushan	Udaykumar, Ramgopal, Narasimharaju, Rajashri, Vijayakala.	R. Jayartna Films
44	1975	Belavaladha Madilalli	Geethapriya	Kalpana, Chandrashekar, Shantala, Balakrishna, Shakthi prasad, Vankatarao Talageri.	Nirupama Movies
45	1976	Baduku bangaravayithu	A.V. Sheshagirirao	Srinath, Ashwath, Jayanthi, Jyothishri, Manjula, Vajramuni,	Bhuvaneshwari Arts Productions
46	1976	Mugiyada kathe	Dorai	Sumitra, Balakrishna, Shailashri, Ashwath, Pandaribai, Gangadhar,	Panduranga Productions
47	1976	Maya manushya	Kutumbarao	Surekha, Radha, Vadiraj, Shakthi prasad, Shailashri.	Sudarshan Films
48	1976	Rajanarthakiya rahasya	B.Harinarayana	Kalpana, Udayakumar, Ramgopal.	Sri Padma Productions
49	1977	Devara Duddu	K.S.L. Swamy	Srinath, Jayanthi, Dwarakish, Chandrashekar.	Rani Arts
50	1977	Renukadevi mahatme	C.s.rao	B.Sarojadevi, Manjula, Srinath, Dwarakish.	Padmalakshmi Combines
51	1977	Sose Tanda Sowbhagya	A.V.Sheshagirirao	Manjula, Vishnuvardhan, Vijayalalitha.	Bhuvaneshwari Arts productions
52	1978	Aatma Shakthi	Raja	Vasudeva rao, Shakti prasad, Pratima reddy.	Sri Gurunarasimha Enterprises
53	1980	Gurusarvabowma Sri Raghavendra Karune	Hunsur Krishnamurthy	B. Sarojadevi, Gangadhar, Jamuna, Dinesh, Ashalatha, Sri lalitha,	Lakshmi Prakash Combines
54	1980	Mayeya musuku	B.Y. Ramdas	Srilalita, Balakrishna, Shashikala, Direndra Gopal.	Kalasri Productions
55	1981	Premanubanda	R. Ramamurthy	Srinath, Dinesh, manjula, K.Vijaya.	Srirama Enterprises
56	1981	Chadurida chitragalu	N.T. Jayarama reddy	Aarati, Indusri, Ashalata.	Popular Pictures
57	1982	Vasanta nilaya	K.V.S. Kutumbarao	Vasantamalini, Su.kru. urs, Shakti prasad.	Kanakadhara Theatres
58	1983	Aanand bhairavi	Jandyala	Girishkarnad, Malavika, Kanchana, Mahalakshmi	Dwarakish Films
59	1984	Kaliyuga	Rajachandra	Aarathi, Balakrishna, Vijaya, Vijay Kashi	Singh Brothers
60	1985	Devara Mane	A.T.Raghu	Ambarish, Tu. Srinivas.	Mani padma Films
61	1985	Pithamaha	Ravi	Udaykumar, Ravichandran, Vijayalakshmi Singh.	Singh Brothers
62	1986	Thavaru mane	Vijay	Kalyankumar, Bharathi, Charanraj, Bhavya.	Madhu Enterprises
63	1991	Thavarumane Udugore	B. Subba Rao	Sridhar, Malashri, Sunil	Suresh Productions

:Refer: Kannada films of the 1960s, Kannada films of the 1970s

External links

• Rajesh on IMDb