Honnappa Bhagavathar
| Honnappa Bhagavathar | |
|---|---|
 Honnappa Bhagvathar in 1948 | |
| Born |
14 January 1915 Chowdasandra, Nelamangala, Bangalore |
| Died |
2 October 1992 (aged 77) Karnataka, India |
| Other names | Gaana Kalaabhushana, Gaanakalaa Gandharva,Ganabhinayachandra,Natacharya |
| Occupation | Actor, singer, producer, musician, stage artist |
| Years active | 1935–1992 |
| Children | 2 sons (H.R.Kumar bhagavathar,Bharath bhagavathar) 5 daughters |
| Parent(s) | Chikkalingappa, Kallamma |
Honappa Bhagavatar, also known as C. Honnappa Bhagavathar (born Honappa, 14 January 1915 – 2 October 1992, Kannada: ಹೊನ್ನಪ್ಪ ಭಾಗವತರು, Tamil: ஹொன்னப்ப பாகவதர்), was a Kannada – Tamil theatre artist, film actor, producer, musician and singer.[1][2] He was best known as a singer and as one of the pioneers of Kannada cinema. His son Bharath Bhagavathar was also an actor who worked in Kannada films and serials.
Early life
He was born in 1915 at Chowdasandra, Nelamangala. He weaved for a living. At age 5 he lost his father and grew up listening to his mother's Bhajans and music. He moved to Bangalore for work,learn classicalmusic,accidentally he met his guru Sambandha Murthy Bhagavathar (Hari katha vidwan in three south Indian languages & also classical musician)in relatives marriage function & become his disciple for learning classical music. first becoming a pupil of his relative Murthy, then as a pupil of harmonium player Arunachalappa.
Honappa staged a play in Salem and at the same time M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, a filmmaker, was casting his latest film Ambikapathi. Honnappa's play was a success and he was honoured with the title "Bhagavathar". From then on, Honnappa's name became Honnappa Bhagavathar.[3]
Career
Honnappa Bhagavathar acted in many Tamil films. Based now in Bangalore, Honnappa Bhagavathar replaced M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar in the 1946 movie Sri Murugan, acting alongside MGR. Both Honnappa and Jeevaratnam sang in the movie, with music scored by S. M. Subbaiah Naidu.[1] Honnappa founded a production company named Lalithakaala Films. It produced films in Kannada and Tamil. In 1955, his film Mahakavi Kaalidasa was the first in the Kannada language.
He made his Kannada acting debut in the movie Subadra.[4] Honnappa is known for bringing actresses like B. Saroja Devi into the industry.[5]
In the film Valmiki, Honnappa replaced M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar as Valmiki, the sinner-turned-sage. Honnappa became a star after M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar's temporary exit, playing the lead role in many Tamil movies and later in Kannada. He played the bandit-turned-sage.[6]
In 1960, Bhagavathar started the music school "Nadabrahma Sangeetha Vidyalaya". He became a member of the Kannada Film Advisory Board and worked as a member of Karnataka Sangeeta Nruthya Academy.[3]
Partial filmography[7][8]
| No | Film | Year | Director | Language | Co-star | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Krishnakumar | 1941 | S. D. S. Yogi | Tamil | T. S. Rajalakshmi | Lead Actor |
| 2 | Subhadra | 1941 | P. Pullaiah | Kannada | Gubbi Veeranna, J. Jayamma | |
| 3 | Sathi Suganya | 1942 | T. R. Sundaram & P. V. Chari | Tamil | T. R. Rajakumari | Lead Actor |
| 4 | Arunthathi | 1943 | M. L. Tandan & T. R. Sundaram | Tamil | U. R. Jeevarathinam | Lead Actor |
| 5 | Devakanya | 1943 | R. Padmanaban | Tamil | U. R. Jeevarathinam | Lead Actor |
| 6 | Prabavathi | 1944 | T. R. Raghunath | Tamil | T. R. Rajakumari | Lead Actor |
| 7 | Raja Rajeshwari | 1944 | M. L. Tandon & T. R. Sundaram | Tamil | K. L. V. Vasantha | Lead Actor |
| 8 | Burma Rani | 1945 | T. R. Sundaram | Tamil | K. L. V. Vasantha | |
| 9 | Hemareddy Mallamma | 1945 | G. R. Rao & S. Soundararajan | Kannada | Gubbi Veeranna, B. Jayamma | |
| 10 | Bhakta Kalathi | 1945 | R. Padmanaban | Tamil | K. Thavamani Devi | Lead Actor |
| 11 | Subhathra | 1945 | T. R. Sundaram | Tamil | K. L. V. Vasantha | |
| 12 | Kundalakesi | 1946 | Boman D. Irani | Tamil | N. C. Vasanthakokilam | Lead Actor |
| 13 | Sri Murugan | 1946 | M. Soma Sundaram & V. S. Narayanan | Tamil | MGR as support,[9] U. R. Jeevarathinam, K. Malathi | Lead Actor |
| 14 | Subathra | 1946 | T. R. Sundaram | Tamil | K. L. V. Vasantha | Lead Actor |
| 15 | Valmiki | 1946 | Sundarao Nadkarni | Tamil | U. R. Jeevarathinam, N. C. Vasanthakokilam, T. R. Rajakumari | Lead Actor |
| 16 | Bhakta Jana | 1948 | P. Pullaiah | Tamil | Chittor V. Nagaiah, P. Santha Kumari | |
| 17 | Gokuldasi | 1948 | K. Subramaniam | M. V. Rajamma | ||
| 18 | Bhakta Kumbara | 1949 | Boman D. Irani | Kannada | Pandaribai | Lead Actor & Producer |
| 19 | Devamanohari | 1949 | A. T. Krishnaswamy | Tamil | P. Bhanumathi | Lead Actor |
| 20 | Sathya Sodhanai | 1953 | H. L. N. Simha | Tamil | Pandaribai | Lead Actor |
| 21 | Gunasagari | 1953 | H. L. N. Simha | Kannada | Pandaribai | Lead Actor |
| 22 | Mahakavi Kalidasa | 1955 | K. R. Seetarama | Kannada | B. Saroja Devi (Introduced) | Actor, Producer & Music Director |
| 23 | Aashadya Bhoothi | 1955 | Kannada | B. Saroja Devi | ||
| 24 | Pancharathna | 1956 | K. Vembu | Kannada | Udaya Kumar, T. N. Balakrishna | Actor & Music Director |
| 25 | Jagajyothi Basveshwara | 1959 | T. V. Singh Thakore | Kannada | Rajkumar, B. Saroja Devi | |
| 26 | Uzhavukkum Thozhilukkum Vandhanai Seivom | 1959 | M. A. Thirumugham | Tamil | Prem Nazir, E. V. Saroja | Producer, With M. Karunanidhi in a Role |
| 27 | Kataari Veera | 1966 | Kannada | Udaya Kumar | ||
| 28 | Sadananda | 1979 | Ananth Hiregowder | Kannada | Actor & Producer |
Awards
- Mahakavikalidasa and Jagajyothi Basaveshwara received National Awards in 1955 and 1959 respectively.
- In 1956, the Madras Sina Pyans Associations awarded him 'Best Actor'.
- In 1976, he was conferred the title "Gana Kalabhushana".
- In 1978, Scholars of Mysore state conferred the title 'Gaanakalaa Gandharva' on him.
- In 1986, he was awarded the 'Rajyothsava Award'.[3]
- In 1990, he was awarded the 'Sangeet Natak Academy Award' by the President of India.
- In 1991, the Center for Music Drama Academy awarded him for his contribution to music. Also awarded for his stage music in this year.