RAVEESH KUMAR writes from Bangalore: Can Kannada cinema be the ambassador for Kannada language? This question has been in my mind for some time now although there have been lots of debates on the issue of the language.
The trigger was how Hindi, as a language, has spread all over India. I am sure all who speak Hindi are not well versed in reading and writing the language. Yet that does not stop anybody from conversing in Hindi in almost any part of India.
What, then, is the magic ingredient that helps India’s largest spoken language to enlarge its footprint?
And can Kannada tap that too?
***
Hindi cinema or Bollywood has played a big role in helping spread Hindi language. Though learning Hindi as a third language in schools in most States has helped its cause to some extent, it is the charisma of Hindi films which makes it easy for any person to learn and speak the language.
That applies partly to movies of other languages, too, like Tamil or Telugu; at least they have a presence in South India outside their home-States, if not across the country. I got introduced to Tamil when I was in Mangalore; it was through the song Chiku buku raile from the movie Gentleman. Kaadalan, Roja, Bombay were next in line to cast their spell.
People readily admit that they learn the language by watching movies. Does that open a window of opportunity for Kannada?
Here are a few questions for Kannada cinema to ponder upon: How often are Kannada films released outside the State, if not outside the country? How many films are screened, say, in Kasaragod district of Kerala, with a sizeable Kannada and Tulu population? How many before they become blockbusters like Yajamaana or Mungaaru Male?
Big cities like Bombay, Poona, Madras too have a good number of Kannadigas as do the border districts of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu where Kannada is spoken. Why can’t we screen our films there?
In Bangalore, movie halls show languages of six different languages every day. Can’t we screen Kannada movies in places where there is a significant presence of Kannadigas when Tamil and Telugu films travel to places where there is a much smaller presence of Tamilians and Telugus, sometimes not even that?
Marketing would have made sure that it reaches places unheard of in mainstream media. Can we have the same marketing for namma Kannada films too?
***
Prakash Belavadi, the playwright and director of the English movie Stumble, said in a seminar recently that we Kannadigas are a lot more emotional about the script we follow. He said we give importance to lipi (script) rather than nudi (language).
Have you observed that Hindi ad punch lines are always written in English?
Bollywood movies in the late ’90s began the trend of putting everything from film name to ‘The End’ message in English and that is not without reason too, as most of the movie goers could read English, so it was easy to understand.
Can we have a similar thing for Kannada cinema too?
Along with the name in Kannada script can we have it written in English so that non-Kannadigas too able to read the title, in turn learn a few Kannada phrases!
Interestingly we find most times, captions after the film title in all English! Big hoardings in Bangalore now have Kannada written in English sometimes. If only they could be more meaningful it would serve the purpose.
I am making it clear that it is not to replace the beautiful Kannada script but it is a temporary solution to the “don’t know Kannada” problem.
A few days back, I was asked by a non-Kannadiga colleague to translate ‘Ninnindale’ song from the movie, Milana to English. Songs like Beduvanu Varavannu from Jogi and Anisuthido Yaako Indu from Mungaaru Male and most recently Jinke Marina from Nanda loves Nanditha are liked by every Bangalorean no matter whether he is a Kannadiga or not. FM radio plays its part too.
Good things are always appreciated devoid of language barriers. When that is the case, should we take steps to make Kannada more accessible?
Having said all that we have to make more ‘good’ movies and market lesser popular but technically good movies. One Mungaaru Male or one Duniya is not enough to make a huge difference. Firstly filmmakers have to come out of their Bangalore centered approach while making films. Then there should be good marketing to explore new markets and in turn spreading the language of the land.
Also read: How Kannada filmdom is killing Kannada music
When breath is scarce like the sound of whisper
Tags: Churumuri, FM Radio, Prakash Belavadi
24 July 2008 at 7:34 pm
(This appeared in Deccan Herald few years back)
Cultural nationalism and language – Parsa V Rao Jr
(truncated..)
Nationalism through TV
One of the brilliant and un-noticed forms of cultural nationalism is the boom in television channels in Indian languages, both in the entertainment and news segments. Despite the fear neurosis generated by Leftists and the NGOs about the destructive impact of globalisation, it is amazing to find that Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi and Hindi television channels are growing at an accelerated pace. One of the first to recognise that English language is a tiny segment in India is none other than Rupert Murdoch, who went on to set up a successful entertainment channel, StarPlus. Indian languages are now adapting gloriously to the new medium.
Suddenly, thousands of young people have discovered that there is more money and more jobs in attaining fluency in an Indian language than in English.
This does not mean that Generation Now has become inward-looking or claustrophobic. On the contrary, the young people of today are the hipsters who speak English very well and they are infusing the MTV’s psychedelic zing into their own languages. But such are the ways of cultural osmosis, that they end up soaking more of the traditions of their own language and culture than the American stuff. Today’s TV show’s host or hostess is nimble in using the resources of an Indian language to express the realities of a globalised world.
This has also strangely reversed the pecking scales of the social world. The English-knowing person is no more sitting at the top as in the Nehruvian era when the Kannada or Tamil speaker was looked upon as a country cousin of the English-speaking dandy. It is the English-speaker in India who feels the inadequacies of the “global language” in reaching out to people in Uttar Pradesh and in Karnataka and makes frantic attempts to grapple with an Indian language.
The vibrancy of Indian languages has never been in doubt except in the minds of a Sir V S Naipaul or a Salman Rushdie, or some Indo-Anglican critics. The fact that millions of people in India speak so many languages though they have all been under the relentless onslaught of modernism is a cultural miracle in itself. It may be the case that no great works of literature are being created every moment in these languages” and it is debatable whether a language is to be judged by “dead” literary works or by the fact that millions of living people use it every day to express and communicate their needs.
24 July 2008 at 8:07 pm
Number of kannada channels – 12-13?
Number of kannada newspaper speakers – Higher than national average,around 95 lakhs.
Literary works – Very good among Indian languages,rated top 3.
We are healthy and very healthy.Stop cribbing about destruction and look forward in getting new things and new spice into our language.
24 July 2008 at 10:02 pm
Well written truth from facts.
Remember the days of DD? There was ‘national integration’ sure, since everyone was forced to watch the same force-fed crap. The english-knower was king in the Indian city, and not-so-confident when she/he went abroad. But what you say about the younger generation being cooler, smarter and comfortable with speaking their own language and english is true.
24 July 2008 at 10:18 pm
raveesh,u hit the nail on the head.correct agi helidri.udaharanege mungaru male ,sumaary non-kannadigarige kannada kaliyokke asakthi kodthu..nanna summaru snehitharu kannada kaliyoke munde bandru to listen to songs.
Kandithaavaagi uttama chitragalu,haadugalu non-kannadigas ge kannada kaliyoke prerane aguthe..
Hope to see many more super hit kannada movies.
25 July 2008 at 12:46 am
What DD did in the 80s to reign in Hindi on us cannot be repeated now. Being the only channel people were forced to learn Hindi to try to laugh with ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’ or cry with ‘Buniyaad’. A outsider now has plenty of choice to all his native channels he saw in his native place and movies in his language at theaters there is no reason for him to check out local stuff. I&B did a brilliant job Hindifying India it would be tall order for Sandalwood to repeat it with Kannada.
25 July 2008 at 1:33 am
In the early 90s it was starting to rain Hindi channels. It is now the turn of other regional languages. We get everything in Kannada – 24/7 news channels, music, movies. Literature has always been the first point of talk when speaking about Kannada. Can we make it more people oriented like providing info in Kannada in public/private services where only English rules?
25 July 2008 at 2:33 am
Folks we have had the best literature and the number of Jnanpith Awards out number the rest.
We had some classics i the past and we have to get globalised as well. We cannot rest on past laurels.
Make learning in Kannada more enjoyable. Think out the the box. Folklores and Animation can be a medium which we can explore. We have the IT Capital and we can tap the potential to extend the new version of Globalised Kannadiga.
Create a Market for our movies and make the non Kannadigas also to love Kannada. Violence will only alienate the Non Kannadigas and also the Kanndigas. Love for Kannada should be preached through Harmony.
Allow non Kannadigas also to invest in Karnataka,Kannada Culture and Tourism. Then they can see how Kannada benefits and it sustains the growth model. They should be given tax breaks for preaching Kannada etc. This encouragement can be insitutionalised.
Create a Plan for promoting Kannada across the World and dont restrict it to Karnataka. Allow Kannadigas to go around the World and migrate and this can bring foreign exchange and also spread the culture.
25 July 2008 at 3:20 am
I agree with sumkirla…. We need not crib or worry too much.
But I don’t think we should be writing Kannada in English script. It doesn’t make sense… Except of course for the very famous “enjoy maaDi”
25 July 2008 at 3:58 am
Raveesh,
I agree Kannada moveis and Kannada TV can be ambassador for the Kannadigas who are living outside Karnataka and India, especially for the 2nd and 3rd generation Kanndigas.
Hindi did manage to spread across India because of TV and Bollywood. Kannada can definitely do it, but there should be will from Karnataka Govt and private media. For e.g, in England, we get about 2-3 Kannada films in theatre and most of them are Ramesh movies. We did get Mungaaru male. But all these shows are not at business level. We do not have a single Kannada channel, where as Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam have their channels in the UK. For 2nd and 3rd generation people, TV and movies are the only way to get in touch with their mother tongue. It is true with languages like Kannada as Kannadaigas are in that many number as Punjaabees and Gujaraatees.
ALl the bollywood movies which are released here in the UK come with English subtitles. Star plus in UK comes with English subtitles. It might be expensive business for Kannada movies and Kannada channels, but Nagtihalli Chandrashekar showed “maatad maatad mallige” with English subtitles in the UK!
I agree with you, but who has to do the work of taking Kannada movies and TV channels outside Karnataka and India? I think Govt of Karnataka and Pvt sector should join hands.
Keshav
25 July 2008 at 4:26 am
I agree with nitin that setting up of low power transmiters all over the country went a long way in popularising hindi. We were forced to watch,Hum Log, yeh jo hai zindagi and even krishi darshan. We got kannada transmission only in 1990 outside bangalore. More than films, TV was responsible in spreading hindi.
25 July 2008 at 6:49 am
Definitely! Provided we can produce quality films, without masala where half naked people dance. There have been films recently like Delhi, Bombay, Roja and a few of them. These films were viewed be many people even though they did not know the language. Take for example the Hindi version of Ramayana and Mahabarata, which were viewed by all. If the quality of the film is good, it will be viewed by people of other languages not necessarily Kannadigas.
This will positively help promote Kannada as a language.
25 July 2008 at 10:14 am
Yes, Hindi was imposed on us thru TV channels. All those programmes bloggers have mentioned above hardly had anything for us to identify with.
We in the South have not experienced partion and our cultural values are so different from theirs. We were forced to accept their cultural values an dress codes. Women in south started sporting sindhuur on their bythale, which was not seen earlier. Putting a Kunkuma on the forehead was a normal practice. It is a false message to say if you speak Hindi or dont oppose then you are nationalist and an Indian. Cant we think of survival and support of regional languages as a way of national integration?
There is no need to speak Hindi to be an Indian.
The Indian Constitution clearly says and reconises all 18 regional languages as national langugaes, not just Hindi.
How many northies speak even one south indian language?
One UP guy asked me whteher Chandrabaabu Naidu is chief minister of Chennai and Bengaluuru is the capital of Tamil Naadu.!!
I dont call this ignorance, sheer arrogance.!!! They want to display no knowledge of South and thus say South is of lesser existence.
Kannada literary works are of very high standards. No one should have doubts about this.
Rule should be made in such a way all TV channels / networks that have operations in Karnataka should at least allot 2 to 3 hours in primeslots for showing Kannada programmes. If the TV channels dont comply by these rules, they should not be allowed to operate/transmit in Karnataka.
Both AP, TN, and MH have good size of Kannada population. If they are showing their movies here in Karnataka, those governmnets should also make arrangements to show Kannada programmes.
25 July 2008 at 10:32 am
I was amazed to hear my child speak proper Hindi. wondering how this could be possible, I learnt later that many cartoon programs are dubbed in Hindi.
Why has the Kannada Film industry banned dubbing, why can not our children see dubbed cartoon.
Will it ever be possible for the kannada, or Hindi industry to make a movie like Titanic, it was dubbed in Hindi, tamil, then why not in Kannada.
25 July 2008 at 12:33 pm
How many Kannada channels do you think a cable operator in Chennai or Hyderabad air. These are cities which have a huge number of kannadigas. Moreover Udaya and ETV kannada which are the most viewed kannada channeels have their headquarters outside Karnataka. We as Kannadigas do not have a kannada channel that we can feel proud of for ourselves. I’m not against either Udaya/ ETV or Zee or any other channel, but it’s only that these channels would be influenced by their parent channels. The concern here is that when there are so many Tamil/ Telugu channels being aired in Blore, the Kannada channels do not get any justice outside Karnataka. How can we expect that our channels would spread our culture/ Kannada.
25 July 2008 at 12:37 pm
We have had the most Jnanapeeth awardees in Kannada.Fine. That may not help in spreading / popularising Kannada now.
1. Years back Kannada was first learnt thro’ Chandamama /Balabodhe / Bala mitra.These were great books for reading stories. Stories like ‘AvaLi MakkaLa Kathe’ ‘AIdu (5)Prashnegalu’ were so popular, we used to wait for the next issue to knpw what happened to ‘Udaya, Sandhya, and Nishetha’- the 3 Rajkumars. Such Books are rare and are not easily available now..
2.Anakru, Tharasu, Basaraja Katimani, Niranjana- both husband and wife, Thriveni, M.K. Indira wrote great novels.These were snapped by readers as they came out of press.Kannada grew and was popular without Govt. thinking of Boards in Kannada and Kannada Development authority.
3 We still have no answer why Kannada was so popular among Non- Kannadigas, so much so, great contributons came from these people. T.P. Kailasam,Bendre, D.V. Gundappa, Gokak, Na Kasturi & Kittel!
What could be doneNow?
1. Run classes in Kannada like ‘Dakshin Bharath Hindi Prachar Sabha’ which for yeras ran hindi classes like Prathama, Madhyama etc.
2.Sahitya Parishad , instead of wasting enormous funds for yearly’ Sammelans’ should approach Companies to run ‘easy to understand -read and write’ Kannada classes.
3.Make sure hotels, Parks, Rly Stations and Airports have easy to understand simple words in Kannada , same word spelt in english.
4. Why not involve, URA, SLB GSS and Karnad to come out with a plan of action?
5. Think, Think what else could be done.
Blackening Nameboards is not the answer.
25 July 2008 at 12:42 pm
This is the age of Marketing. You can ‘sell’ anything, everything, anywhere, to anybody, anytime. So, definitely it is possible to spread Kannada, with right (read aggressive) marketing management, advertising, even bombarding. But first of all, whether the Kannadigas are ready for it? I doubt. Like Hirannayya says, Malayalis have swabhimana, Tamilians have durabhimana, Telugus have atmabhimana, and Kannadigas? Yes, they too have ……. NIRABHIMANA. Unless, the Kannadigas have the will and abhimana, nothing is possible. In my office, once I chided my colleagues from other states – You have been here for many years. Why don’t you speak Kannada. I got a slapping reply. We want to. But whenever we try to speak, Kannada, you people start speaking in our languages – Tamil, Telugu, Hindi. We can learn kannada only if YOU speak to us in Kannada. Please go the markets, shops, offices, banks, railway station and observe. You will find our Kannadigas speaking to the shopkeepers in every language except Kannada. Spreading Kannada, (Snort) First we Kannadigas should try to spread Kannada amonst us before we spread it elsewhere. Sorry to say this. But it is true.
25 July 2008 at 12:45 pm
>>>>sumkirla in english Says:
>>>>24 July 2008 at 8:07 pm
>>>>Number of kannada channels – 12-13?
Most of them are owned by outsiders.
There are only here to make profit…..not to spread the culture and also they don’t have respect towards kannada and kannadigas.
25 July 2008 at 1:44 pm
With the quality of screen play existing in Sandalwood, it would be absurd to go for marketing Kannada movies outside Karnataka.
25 July 2008 at 2:06 pm
Contrary to the myth that Kannada is being neglected, here is a new insight:
Kannada is growing at a rapid pace. Lakhs of people who have come from outside Karnataka and have made Bangalore their home, speak fluently in Kannada.
My Malayalee friends who have been living in Karnataka for decades, speak Kannada flawlessly, without a trace of Kannada accent.
My Marwadi neighbours have learnt to speak kannada and manage to participate in heated political debates
My Gujarati colleagues understand Kannada perfectly and bargain with vegetable vendors with remarkable success.
My Bihari labourers have picked up Kannada after being in the construction industry for four years.
My Muslim friends read, write and speak perfect Kannada. Remember C.M. Ibrahim?
A Telugu familiy who has settled down in Bangalore for decades, now speaks only kannada. They have forgotten their mother tongue telugu.
Iyengars speak better Kannada than Kannadigas themselves.
My Tamil driver listens to Kannada songs on FM channel, and boy does he love it!!!!!!!!!!
I studied in an elite English school where Kannada was my third language. But I have started reading Kannada papers since two years because I realised English papers just don’t give indepth local news, with that special flavour of Kannada!!!!! My reading speed of Kannada has picked up remarkably. I also watch Kannada serials and movies, listen to Kannada songs, and kannada news.
Result? More number of people speak Kannada today than say twenty years back. Kannada is growing, kannada is flourishing. No need to whine about the neglect of Kannada.
Yes, I am a Kannadagia, but at the same time I enjoy movies from around the world – spanish to french and brazilian. I am a globalized Kannadiga!
25 July 2008 at 3:51 pm
Agree. I hardly see any ads of Kannada movies in newspapers here in Chennai… its not economical for me to travel to Bangalore just to watch a movie… Only blockbusters are screened in other cities after long time…
25 July 2008 at 3:55 pm
And some Kannada movies which are dubbed/remade in other languages-the core essense is destroyed…
For example, “Ello Jogappa nin aramane” was a beautiful janapada song inducted into Jogi with some masala… The telugu version, named Yogi, has this song giving a totally different meaning-”something like shake me shake me” or something like that. Those listening to telugu version will never get an idea that original kannada lyrics was far more beautiful…
25 July 2008 at 7:22 pm
Lets not go too far. The reason we visit this blog is for its Kannada flavor.
KP knows that Kannada sells!
25 July 2008 at 7:47 pm
Dr.Reddy,
>>How many northies speak even one south indian language?
>>
The question should have been “How many northies even know how many different south indian languages are there?”. Their knowledge of south Indian language/culture is abyssmal and they are proud of it.
It is only us South Indians who suck up to them as they were god send to our country. Their understanding is anybody living south of vindhyas is a “Saala Madrasi”. One Northie I knew even said people living in south india should be called “Thamb desh ke nivasi”, surely a snide remark on the tamil people referring to one another as “thambi”.
To counter this I have started a reverse assault by calling all northies as Biharis. One of my northie friend asked why. I told him as far as I am concerned there are only 2 types of people in North India, they are Bihari and Sardar. Sardars wear a turban and grow beard whereas biharis do not. So if you are not wearing a turban and having a beard you can only be a bihari
:)
25 July 2008 at 8:11 pm
Good to see a healthy discussion developing up here about Kannada. One example I would like to share is about the Nationalized banks not using the state language in their transactions. I was in Vijaya Bank and an elderly woman asked me to fill the details for withdrawal slip. She knew Kannada and signed in Kannada after I filled the details. Reason for her asking me to fill the details – instructions on the withdrawal slip were in English and Hindi and not in state language Kannada. Atleast banks operating Karnataka should be mandated to use Kannada.
Regarding lack of pride in speaking Kannada, I found this tendecy only in state capital, Bangalore and not anywhere else in Karnataka. What an irony!
26 July 2008 at 11:41 am
Mayura,
Nice one! I like the Biharis:) to go back where they came from…if they cannot respect the local culture.
26 July 2008 at 1:02 pm
Biharis refert o themselves in a modernised version ‘Harrys’ !
thumba modernnu.
26 July 2008 at 2:11 pm
Question, where do you live? In Bangalore or in Fools’ Paradise? You seem to say that Kannada is the local language in Bangalore, naturally spoken by each and everybody. Please go around the places I have mentioned and observe yourself. You will hear all languages, except Kannada.
26 July 2008 at 6:52 pm
taj mahal film nodoo varegu nanu nim abhiprayadale ide gurugale adanu nodida mele gothaytu jana yake kannada film galige kekursi ugithare anta
27 July 2008 at 9:17 am
@Buz
Neevu yestu hindi chitragalanna nodideera.adralli estu chennagittu….
e varshadalli hit agiro hindi chitragalella bere kade inda kaddu madiro remake chitragalu…very recently RGV yestu chitragalu toppedu hogilla…hagantha hindi chitraranga ugithaara jana…
kannadadalli yevdu ondu chitra seri illa andu koodle kannada chitraranga na bayyodu seri alla….
nimma yochaana lahari swalpa sari madkolli guruve…!
27 July 2008 at 6:40 pm
Only those who know Kannada watch Kannada movies. Avarige Kannada kalisodu bettakke kallu hoththanthe.
Art and language are two different things. Popular non-Kannada movies offer more bang for our money than the ones sponsored by the mindless dabbawaalas in Gandhinagar. Even those Golden Lotus winning reels in Kannada don’t pull in audiences for long.
Want Kannada to live? Make it possible for us to earn a living in Karnataka through Kannada. Let those who trade with Kannadigas speak Kannada and not the other way round.
What are those beggars colonies going by the name of this Praadhikaara or that Academy or this Parishad doing for the cause of Kannada? What can they do when their life blood is casteist politics? Where will our new, demoted Kannada Pusthaka Praadhikaara chief go when his term is over? When will the vokkaliga/lingaayath bloodletting in the Sahithya Parishad cease?
Let us not ruin Kannada children’s future by insisting that they learn in Kannada because this or that literature person says we learn best in our native tongues. If that were the case, every native English speaker would be a genius and English speaking countries would not need our computer or medical coolies. Let us remember that most of us were educated in Kannada schools because we had not much choice in the matter.
If the Kannada issue is truly important, we should learn to put naadu and nudi ahead of the political construct called Raashra.
Kannada nationalism is nearly a century old. Where is our “Cheluva Kannadanaadu?” That mindless, caste promoting politicans picked “Jayabharatha Jananiya Thanujaathe” as our naadageethe says something about our willingness to be oppressed by patriotic claptrap made in North India. Name another south Indian state that has demonstrated such slavish mentality.
The bitter truth is we have reached a stage where Kannada matters little to those who have no time to think about it but speak it because that is the only language they know.
27 July 2008 at 9:05 pm
ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರರಂಗದ ವರಾಂಡದೊಳಗಿಂದ ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಒಳ್ಳೇಸುದ್ದಿ ಬಂದಿದೆ. ಚಿತ್ರಲೋಕದ ಶ್ರೀ ಕೆ.ಎಂ.ವೀರೇಶ್ ಅವ್ರು ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರಗಳಿಗೆ ವಿದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಹಂಚಿಕೆದಾರರಾಗೋಕೆ ಹೊರಟಿದಾರೆ ಅನ್ನೋದೆ ಆ ಸುದ್ದಿ. ಈ ಸಾಹಸಕ್ಕೆ ಮುಂದಾಗಿರೋ ವೀರೇಶ್ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಒಳ್ಳೇದಾಗ್ಲಿ ಅಂತ ಬೆನ್ನು ತಟ್ತಾನೇ ಅವ್ರ ಈ ಸಾಹಸಾನ ಮೆಚ್ಕೊಬೇಕು ಗುರು.
ಬರೀ ಅಭಿಮಾನ ಅಲ್ಲ! ಉದ್ದಿಮೆಯೂ ಹೌದು!!
ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರಗಳನ್ನು ಹೊರದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರದರ್ಶನ ಮಾಡೋದು ಯಾಕೆ? ಅನ್ನೋ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆಗೆ ಉತ್ತರ, ಅದು ಅಭಿಮಾನಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಮಾತ್ರಾ ಅಲ್ಲ ಲಾಭದಾಯಕ ಉದ್ದಿಮೆಗಾಗಿ ಅನ್ನೋದಾಗಬೇಕು. ಹಾಗೆ ಆಗಬೇಕಂದ್ರೆ ಹೊರದೇಶದ ಕನ್ನಡಿಗರಿಗೆ ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ನೋಡಲಿಕ್ಕೆ ಅವಕಾಶ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಡೋದು ಮಾತ್ರಾ ಸಾಕಾಗಲ್ಲ, ಅವರಿಗೆ ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರಗಳ, ಚಿತ್ರಗೀತೆಗಳ ಗುಂಗು ಹಿಡುಸ್ಬೇಕು. ಅಭಿಮಾನಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ನೋಡಿ ಅನ್ನೋ ತಂತ್ರ ಸವಕಲು, ನಿಮ್ಮ ಮನರಂಜನೆಗಾಗಿ ಅತ್ಯುತ್ತಮವಾದದ್ದನ್ನು ನಿಮ್ಮವರೇ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ, ನೋಡಿ ಅನ್ನೋ ಹಂತಕ್ಕೆ ಕರೆದೊಯ್ಯಬೇಕು. ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಬಿಡುಗಡೆಗೆ ತುದಿಗಾಲಲ್ಲಿ ನಿಂತು ಕಾಯೋಹಾಗೆ ಮಾಡಲು ನಾವು ಯಶಸ್ವಿಯಾದ್ರೆ ಈ ಉದ್ದಿಮೆ ಖಂಡಿತಾ ಲಾಭದಾಯಕವಾಗುತ್ತೆ ಗುರು.
ಬರೀ ಹಂಚಿಕೆ ಅಲ್ಲ ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣ
“ಕನ್ನಡದೋರು ಇಷ್ಟು ಲಕ್ಷ ಜನ್ರು ಈ ದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿದೀರಿ, ಬನ್ನಿ ನಿಮಗೆ ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ನೋಡಕ್ಕೆ ಅವಕಾಶ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಡ್ತೀವಿ ಅನ್ನೋದು ಅಷ್ಟು ಪರಿಣಾಮಕಾರಿ ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆ ತಂತ್ರವಾಗೋಲ್ಲ. ಯಾಕಂದ್ರೆ ಕನ್ನಡಿಗರಲ್ಲಿ ವಿದೇಶಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗಿದ್ದೂ ನಾವು ಕನ್ನಡಿಗರಾಗಿದ್ದೀವಿ, ಕನ್ನಡತನವೇ ನಮ್ಮ ಗುರುತು, ನಮ್ಮ ನೆಲದ ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತಿ, ಭಾಷೆ ಇವುಗಳನ್ನೆಲ್ಲಾ ಉಳಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳೋದೇ ಸರಿಯಾಗಿರೋದು ಅನ್ನೋ ಮನೋಭಾವ ಇಲ್ಲದೇ ಹೋದ್ರೆ… ನಾವು ಸಿನಿಮಾನ ಬಿಟ್ಟಿ ತೋರುಸ್ತೀವಿ ಅಂದ್ರೂ ಜನನ್ನ ಸೆಳ್ಯಕ್ ಆಗಲ್ಲ. ಹಾಗಾದ್ರೆ ಏನ್ ಮಾಡಬೇಕು ಅಂದ್ರೆ ಸಖತ್ ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆ ತಂತ್ರಗಳನ್ನು ಬಳುಸ್ಬೇಕು. ನಮ್ಮ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ತಾರೆಗಳನ್ನು ಕರ್ಕೊಂಡು ಹೋಗಿ ಆಕರ್ಷಕವಾದ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮಗಳನ್ನು ನಡೆಸಿ, ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಹಾಡು ಬಿಡುಗಡೆ, ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಬಿಡುಗಡೆ ಅಂತ ಬಣ್ಣಬಣ್ಣದ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮ ಮಾಡೋದ್ರು ಮೂಲಕ ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆ ಕಟ್ಕೋಬೇಕು. ಕನ್ನಡ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಬರೀ ಕನ್ನಡದೋರಿಗೆ ಮಾತ್ರಾ ಅಲ್ಲ, ಬೇರೆಯೋರೂ ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಗ್ರಾಹಕರಾಗಬೇಕು ಅನ್ನೋ ಗುರಿ ಇಟ್ಕೊಂಡು ಡಬ್ಬಿಂಗು, ಸಬ್ ಟೈಟಲ್ಲು ಅದೂ ಇದೂ ಅಂತ ಇರೋಬರೋ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ತಂತ್ರಜ್ಞಾನಾನೂ ಬಳುಸ್ಕೋಬೇಕು. ಆ ಮೂಲಕ ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರಗಳಿಗೆ ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆ ಕಟ್ಕೊಬೇಕು…. ” ಅನ್ನೋದನ್ನೆಲ್ಲಾ ಖಚಿತವಾಗಿ ಈ ಉತ್ಸಾಹಿ ಉದ್ದಿಮೆದಾರರು ನೆನಪಿಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡೇ ಈ ಹೊಸ ಸಾಹಸಕ್ಕೆ ಕೈ ಹಾಕಿರ್ತಾರೆ ಗುರು. ವಿದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿರೋ ಕನ್ನಡಿಗ್ರೂ ಇವರ ಕೈ ಹಿಡೀಬೇಕು, ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರರಂಗ ಕೂಡಾ ಮಾರುಕಟ್ಟೆ ಬೇಡಿಕೇನ ಪೂರೈಸಕ್ಕೆ ಅಗತ್ಯವಿರೋ ಗುಣಮಟ್ಟಾನ ತಮ್ಮ ಕೈವಶ ಮಾಡ್ಕೋಬೇಕು… ನಮ್ಮ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ನೋಡೋದು ಮನಸ್ಸಿಗೆ ಖುಷಿ ಕೊಡೋದ್ರು ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಪ್ರಪಂಚದಲ್ಲಿ ನಾವು ಯಾರಿಗೂ ಕಮ್ಮಿ ಇಲ್ಲದ ಹಾಗೆ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಅನ್ನೋ ಕಲೇನ ಕರಗತ ಮಾಡ್ಕೊಂಡಿದೀವಿ ಅನ್ನೋ ಹೆಮ್ಮೆಗೆ ಕಾರಣವಾಗುವಂತಹ ದಿನಗಳು ಬರಬೇಕು ಗುರು!
krupe: Enguru
28 July 2008 at 9:42 am
Janasamanya
I live in Bangalore. And, you cannot refute the fact that Kannada is growing. Here’s why:
1. All Kannadigas speak kannada at home.
2. Agreed, that quite a significant ‘outsiders’ do not speak Kannada (maybe in the places you have mentioned), but dude, at the same time, a chunk of ‘other language’ people converse, read, write in Kannada very well.
The number of outsiders speaking kannada is growing by the day. Can you deny that?
You will be living in your own dream world, nursing imaginary wounds if you deny it.
30 July 2008 at 11:43 am
@Pulekeshi The Last
I think you have made very good points.
The quality of Kannada movies produced by Gandhinagara is not even up to the average.
Our naadu and nudi should be given more prominence than “nation-state”. We should not deprive kannada children from jobs in the world market. English also should be taught along with Kannada from primary schools. This should apply to all those who live in Karnataka irrespective of their mother tongues. When i was a highschool student, thewre was a Konkani female, was learning a i u of Kannada aksharamale while being in
High School!. I was so suprised. She did not come from any foreign country. She was very much from Karnataka. She preferred to learn Kannada as third language which is very veyr elementary. Instead she was learning Hindi as first language in the school.
30 July 2008 at 5:42 pm
Thanks, Shree Reddy. “Kannada and English” makes more sense than “Kannada or English.”
We may also want to keep in mind that in spite of its fundamentalist obsession with Tamil, Tamil Nadu sends more immigrants to other states than Karnataka. Tamils can adapt, while keeping their language alive at home.
In my schooldays, I had a number of Tamil speakers in every class. Beleive me, they made no bones about speaking Kannada. By the time we arrived in college, the issue was different because the student population was vastly different at that level. Kannadigas stuck with those who spoke Kannada, and speakers of other languages fraternized with their own kinds. But the situation hardly prevented us all from being friends. Nobody ever objected to automatic membership in our Kannada Sanghas.
The situation is different in Bangalore because immigrant communities there have no incentives to learn the local language. This is as true of traders as of those who work in national administrative services. Once they get past the training oriented entry level positions, they rarely deal with Kannada on a daily basis. And the irony is that the probation period is intended to teach them to learn Kannada so they can become effective administrators. Non-Kannada IAS, IPS, and IFS officials somehow manage to become permanent residents of Bangalore and thus have no need to become members of the local community.
Some of them are reported to have called Vatal Nagaraj and M. Chandru jokers. Somehow I cannot bring myself to be enraged about the issue. The names seem to be well deserved. We deserve better Kannada leaders.
1 September 2008 at 11:02 pm
whatever hindi i know is only from bollywood movies and i used to fail in hindi tests in school.. so the point is market kannada movies well and so well so that the whole india and abroad can enjoy the values that Kannada films carry.
22 July 2010 at 1:22 pm
There is ONLY ONE way to spread the kannada language amongst kannadigas and non-kannadigas. Get out of this jnanapith award mentality. This is an elitist mentality which does not recognise the existence of masses. Tamil boasts as many literary classics as kannada if not more. The fact that they did not bag any jnanpith award proves nothing! Tamil classics are of much older origin than kannada and equally great.
But Tamilians also recognise the existence of the masses and value of the masses. They dont look down upon the masses. So they have simplified the language and if you see unlike in former times, only one letter exists for all four variations of the sound. This led to better spread of the language and greater literacy.
Also tamils make mass entertainers. They recognise that the primary aim of the movies is to entertain the masses with light stuff after a hard day’s/week’s work. They work on the story, cinematography and action sequences and get the best actors and actresses to add the right dose of sensuality. But kannadigas dismiss these tamil movies as rotten and immoral and what not, and insist we make better movies. I agree, but these better movies can be watched only by a small percentage of intellectuals. You will not the large footprint. And the kannadigas who are deemed to possess the higher tastes by the intellectuals go and watch the tamil/hindi/telugu “crap” to get their fix of violence and sensuality. And the sensual element in 90% of the cases (especially after 1997) has been provided by the intellectual kannada actresses only. They are preferred more than the north indian chicks because they expose more and do other things as well.
So please come down from the high intellectual plane if you want to spread kannada.
Or if you prefer quality is to be maintained and cannot be compromised by indulging in “cheap things” , then stick with jnanpith awards and don’t complain the kannada masses prefer to watch tamil/telugu movies instead of kannada movies.
***
There is actually a simple and effective way to spread kannada movies all over south india and in fact all over india.
First, posters should have the names in English and Kannada. Tamils do that. This ensures non-kannadigas can know the names and this enables them to come to a conclusion about the movie and will try to watch it. For example an action movie can be watched by anybody. If you write “Shankar IPS” in English any male human being with time on his hands will try to go and watch it. If you write it in kannada script even the large number of kannadigas who dont know how to read the script (but speak the language very well) will give it a miss.
Also it is human tendency to link the sound with the script. So people will also try and learn kannada.
Second thing is please put the names of the theatre and its location on cinema posters. This is not done even in bangalore. I see many interesting posters and get the name of the movie, but without the name of the theatre, I am put in a difficulty. I have to either look in the newspapers or internet. This was possible a decade ago, but now with time being at a premium and the short attention spans people have, nobody, not even me, will take the time to look it up.
Information should be provided on hand immediately to catch attention and close the sale.
Even brochures of Russian defence industries provide complete information to close the sale immediately. When a product which is supposed to guard the nation and people are willing to research, provides easily accessible information, how much more information should a casual thing like cinema should provide? Especially in a competitive environment like bangalore?
***
What does Kareena Kapoor do in Hindi movies? Keep changing sizes from Zero to 36DD thats it! But have these movies been called cheap and trash by critics in karnataka? But when a kannada director deploys the same techniques he is accused of using sex to sell movies, putting out trash in the name of cinema and what not! When bollywood puts out crap, it is not criticised in harsh langauge, but when a kannada movie director does it, he is hounded for lowering audience tastes!
***
I remember when the movie “Mona Lisa” was made, the producer had put up billboards all over bangalore. One kannada film organisation with its coterie of intellectuals accused the director of using marketing gimmicks to promote the movie! Can you believe this? But it happened! Marketing a movie is condemned in Sandalwood!
That movie was a simple and silly love story but it did well thanks to good marketing and also because the lead actress was stunning and it was done in a very sensual way!
You need to get the word out and say such and such movie exist and will be screened in such and such a theatre!
This is taken for granted and any child in TN will tell you, but this is a great technique which needs to be explained in detail for kannadigas!
23 July 2010 at 9:49 pm
I don’t know about how movies can spread kannada , but I have seen how Udaya TV midnight masala spread kannada all over the world. The whole of south india, in fact all of India was hooked on to watch the masala stuff. While kannadigas were known in south india, midnight masala brought greater awareness and brought kannada in to prominence. And the rest of India which had never known a language called kannada existed, came to know of it. I even know how many tamils wanted to know the meaning of the songs and tried to learn kannada.
25 July 2010 at 7:30 pm
Pop songs are a rage in all languages. So many music remixes. I have with me several DVDs of pop songs in tamil. Not remixes. But written by some lyricist. These DVDs are watched outside tamil nadu and even in bangalore. Songs are good, but so also is the choreography. But many watch these mainly because of the sexy actresses in these songs. Dressed in tees and shorts and good dance steps.Even hindi pop music videos sell mainly because of this. How many such kannada music videos exist? How many remixes exist? Usually remixes contain fast numbers with new artistes. There are good many songs amenable to remixes, how many of them have been done? None! Tamil girls in the tamil remix videos are stylish and sexier than the kannada girls! And in a couple of such videos, the girls are actually kannada girls! hmmm! Shouldnt we be doing such videos? One of the girls I knew and she told me she had told the producers she knew to make such modern dance videos but he did not. So she had to act in tamil videos!
***
Hindi people blatantly use sex to sell their language and culture.I don’t see why we should keep quiet and do nothing about it , when our boys and girls are watching these same erotic videos and imitating their culture.
***
Either ban these videos or let our boys and girls also make such videos. Come on, we should move with the times, westernisation is in, India is becoming more liberal, if we miss the bus now, we will definitely regret. Look how punjabis have promoted their culture and language through music videos. Punjabi has become cool thanks entirely to music videos and pop songs and nothing else, and they are playing it in all clubs in London and New York.
26 July 2010 at 6:37 am
Harish–
Our Tamil cousins also have a penchant for erecting temples in honour of their movie stars. We can dispense with such idiocy.
26 July 2010 at 2:54 pm
‘They recognise that the primary aim of the movies is to entertain the masses with light stuff after a hard day’s/week’s work.’
I would imagine so do the Columbian drug lords think- of their export, not of Tamil movies- when their milk of human kindness is overflowing!!!
26 July 2010 at 5:01 pm
@Pulikeshi the Last:
True. When I was in school, there used many Tamil speaking boys/girls. But now everywhere I see Telugu. Its matter for few years before Telugu speakers will be in majority in Bangalore.
@Chetan
True, in Karnataka, everybody wants to be a ‘Buddi Jeevi’, as if thats nirvana.
IMHO, Kannada films serve these purpose:
1) Turn black money to white
2) Satisfy childhood desire of 40 something cash rich guy of becoming a hero.
3) See their kids on big screen.
How (1), (2) & (3) are achieved? Make a love story and bore audience to death.
Entertainment doesn’t figure in the purpose.
27 July 2010 at 7:42 am
Nastika–
Your take on the situation is absolutely right.
We have a small viewership for Kannada fillums. The only way they can be taken seriously by the rest of the world is if they are world class. The current inhabitants of Kannada filmdom, most of them, at least, should retire before we can witness such a desirable outcome. The Bengalis should be our role models here, not the Tams with their katthi, long brandishings.
22 January 2012 at 3:29 am
Are there any cinema halls in Bangalore showing Kannada movies (or any Teleugu/Tamil/Malayalam movies) with English or Hindi subtitles? There are several good movies from south that a north Indian cannot watch due to language problem. Watching a movie with subtitles would help in learning the language also.
15 May 2012 at 12:19 am
“Kannada literary works are of very high standards. No one should have doubts about this.
We have had the most Jnanapeeth awardees in Kannada.Fine. That may not help in spreading / popularising Kannada now.”
STOP Repeating this ad nauseam.
People are not attracted to languages because of literary merit.
3 August 2012 at 10:57 pm
‘They recognise that the primary aim of the movies is to entertain the masses with light stuff after a hard day’s/week’s work.’
I would imagine so do the Columbian drug lords think- of their export, not of Tamil movies- when their milk of human kindness is overflowing!!!
Pity you don’t know the difference between movies and drugs. What more to be expected of the jealous kannadigas except badmouthing tamilians ? Kannadigas cannot make good movies so successful tamil directors are akin to drug lords.
Thankfully, the world appreciates good cinema ! Who cares for kannadigas and their jealousy for tamilians !
3 August 2012 at 11:02 pm
I agree with sumkirla…. We need not crib or worry too much.
But I don’t think we should be writing Kannada in English script. It doesn’t make sense… Except of course for the very famous “enjoy maaDi”
That is exactly how Hindi spread in India. All Hindi movie names are written in English in the posters and also in the film itself, all names of Hindi actors are credit in English. Same thing happens in all languages
You cannot even learn from what you see everyday in front of your own eyes.
How dumb can you guys get ?
3 August 2012 at 11:04 pm
Harish–
Our Tamil cousins also have a penchant for erecting temples in honour of their movie stars. We can dispense with such idiocy.
Can you show me the location of these temples ? I will give you ONE MILLION DOLLARS !
4 August 2012 at 10:33 am
A temple dedicated to popular south Indian actress Namitha is being built in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district and she is “thrilled and scared”.
“I am both thrilled and scared because I find a temple built in honour of a living person – especially me – a little difficult to come to terms with,” said Namitha, who gave hits like Engal Anna and Arjuna Arjuna in Tamil.
“The initial works are completed. Soon, the stone icon of Namitha will be installed and consecration done,” said S Selvam, secretary of her fan club.
Born on May 10, 1981 as Namitha Kapoor in Surat in Gujarat, the actress has appeared in 35 movies in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. She also featured in an English film, Maya.
When completed, it will be the second such temple in honour of an actress in Tamil Nadu. Tirunelveli district is about 600 km from Chennai.
Earlier, a temple was built in honour of Khushboo in Tiruchirappalli district but irate fans razed it following her controversial comments in 2005 about pre-marital sex and AIDS.
Khushboo was born a Muslim in 1970 and converted to Hinduism following her marriage to director-actor-producer Sundar C.
Temple for Karunanidhi…
His government instituted an award, a housing programme and an insurance scheme in his name while his party named its TV channel after him. Now, Tamil Nadu CM and DMK chief M Karunanidhi, a self-professed atheist, will have a temple in his name, an initiative by a local DMK councillor in Vellore district.
G R Krishnamoorthy, a district panchayat councillor owing allegiance to the DMK, decided to set up a temple in Karunanidhi’s name after being impressed by the “pro-poor welfare measures” initiated by the DMK patriarch.
The ‘Kalaignar Thirukkovil’ at Samireddipalli village in Gudiyattam panchayat union is coming up at a five-cent area land, with a granite bust of the CM as the central figure. On the outside pillars, there are pictures of Deputy CM and Karunanidhi’s son M K Stalin, Law Minister Durai Murugan, and district secretary R Gandhi.
Parthiban tamilian, will you now pay me a million dollars????