Puneeth Rajkumar constantly challenged and reinvented himself

Puneeth Rajkumar was someone who constantly challenged and reinvented himself, industry insiders say. He was also one of the first marquee names to take to the small screen by playing the host of ‘Kan

Puneeth Rajkumar was someone who constantly challenged and reinvented himself, industry insiders say. He was also one of the first marquee names to take to the small screen by playing the host of ‘Kannadada Kotyadhipati’, a quiz show modelled on “Kaun Banega Crorepati” and family game show ‘Family Power’. He backed new talents and encouraged new wave Kannada cinema as a producer.

He set up his production firm PRK Productions and Kannada audio label PRK Audio in 2017. Contrary to expectations, he did not take to producing films starring himself and other actors in his family, a path taken by his parents’ production house Vajreshwari Combines.

He took to producing new wave films and gave opportunities to many new talents. He produced Kavaludaari, Mayabazar 2016, Law, and French Biriyani. He had three films under production — Family Pack, One Cut Two Cut An Flower is Came, and an untitled documentary about a mudskipper in coastal Karnataka. He was the first producer to release Kannada films — Law and French Biriyani — directly on OTT platforms during the pandemic.