How Kannada cinema debunked the pan-India theory

Small scale films with fresh concepts such as ‘Daredevil Musthafa’, ‘Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare’, ‘Aachar & Co’, and ‘Kousalya Supraja Rama’ focused on its target audience and adopted unique promotional strategies to succeed at the box-office

“The wait was nerve-wracking,” says first-time filmmaker Sindhu Sreenivasa Murthy, talking about the days that led up to the premiere of her film Aachar & Co. Her anxiety soon made way for happiness when she saw the crowd embrace the film when it hit screens on July 28.

The film’s premiere was unusual in many ways. The makers invited journalists and people from the film fraternity to a single screen viewing instead of a multiplex. The iconic Cauvery theatre in the city was lit up with LED serial lights, and the movie hall’s entrance was decorated with flowers. There was even a traditional lamp at the centre of the decoration. Women graced the red carpet in sarees. The carefully-planned event exuded the vibe of a family get-together; the kind of experience the makers wanted people to have while watching Aachar & Co.

The film, which attempted to cash in on the power of nostalgia, told the story of a big, conservative family in Bengaluru in the 1960s and 70s. Co-written by Murthy and stand-up comedian Kanan Gill, Aachar & Co tried to entice middle-aged women — who don’t often go to the theatres for various reasons — to experience the magic of the big screen again.

“Our oldest viewer was a 99-year-old woman. She had come to watch the film in a multiplex screen in Koramangala with her grandchildren. It thrilled and moved me in equal measure,” says Sindhu. “Our target audience was women aged between 30 and 35 years, but we saw women over 70 and 80, who could barely walk, come to theatres for our movie. People sent me pictures of families with 15 to 20 members watching the show together.”

The performance of Kannada films in the first and second half of 2023 is a study of contrasts. Big-budget films, such as Kranti and Kabzaa, turned out to be damp squibs. However, the second half of the year saw a consistent flow of quality releases such as Daredevil Musthafa, Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare, Aachar & Co, and Kousalya Supraja Rama. 

Kousalya Supraja Rama was made by Shashank, an experienced filmmaker, whereas Aachar & Co, Daredevil Musthafa and Hostel Hudugaru Bekagiddare, were directed by debutants. These films, made with moderate budgets, told relatable stories to the Kannada-speaking audience without the intention of pandering to a pan-India audience.

Shashank Soghal’s Daredevil Musthafa, based on the famous story of Poornachandra Tejaswi, spurred a change in industry trends. “We made a film that everyone could enjoy, and the story was the real hero,” says Shashank Soghal about his college drama that highlights the importance of different communities coexisting in harmony.