If you aren’t aware that Kannada songs are from the state of Karnataka, then you wouldn’t know how Raj Kumar is either. Actually, they’re one and the same! In Kannada cinema, he is treated like a demi-god where even after aging (and balding) he used to play the role of a young actor. To say he was worshiped is an understatement. Other than Kishore Kumar who could act as well as sing, our very own Raj Kumar ran parallel careers in both singing as well as acting and successfully too. How ever, if you’re a fan of Sandalwood (called so, because cinema, then names like Girish Karnad, Shankar and Anant Nag will bring back fond memories of the movies during their time. Here’s a song that is a favorite even till today called “Jothe Jotheyalli”: Most forms of Indian cinema still maintain a tradition of song and dance as a part of the storyline, and Kannada cinema also continues to follow this tradition as well. Here is a song that is a ‘first’ in Kannada cinema, sung by singer-actor Raj Kumar in his younger years: Although, the song is sung in English (yes, with an accent), you have to give it up to the man who had the guts to do something like this in an era, where music was only sung in Kannada. Yet kannada songs, just like Hindi music, isn’t just showcased through cinema but also is showcased through its folk form known as bhava geethe & devotional music as well. Here is an example of ‘bhava geethe’ in kannada: If you’re a kannadiga, you’ll see a distinct difference in the kannada (the language used in song) used between kannada cinema and ‘bhava geethe’. The latter has been composed in pure kannada whereas the latter in the recent years have opened up to including words and phrases in different regional languages such as Tamil, Telugu and the more accepted ones like Hindi and English. And just with the fascination of all things ‘phoren’, we also have a sub-genre now which includes Rap in Kannada, adequately labeled ‘Kannada Rap’. So here’s an example of Kannada Rap by the Urban Lads called ‘Just Missu’: If that wasn’t entertaining, I don’t know what is! Yet these forms of kannada songs appeal to a smaller section of people unlike the movies which are watched and loved by a larger, mainstream crowd. And as of 2009, kannada cinema (and its music) celebrated the completion of 75 years in style at a function in Bangalore, with past and present movie stars in attendance. With a plethora of stars like Aishwarya Rai, Sunil Shetty, Deepika Padukone that have made their mark through Kannada Cinema and have then moved on to Bollywood, there is no doubt that its fans remain faithful to an art-form that has remained faithful to them. Yet with the likes of Upendra and Rajkumar’s three sons, it still moves forward with strength and determination into the New Millenium.