Who's the best director in Kannada (Sandalwood)?

Who is the best director in Kannada among current lot? This is the one question that is raised by people every few years. The success rates of a director, his innovations and his awards, come to picture when audience debate over this topic again and again.

Every year, a set of new directors will enter film industry of which many will vanish and countable will survive in the film industry. While some choose to begin their career with remakes, a few will embark on original stories.

In Kannada film industry, in the last two decades, we have witnessed a huge number of newbies wearing director's hat and only few have sustained. Out of those successful directors, we have chosen five best names and we are giving audience to decide, who is the best filmmaker in the present generation.

Upendra
Upendra, before turning actor, worked with one-time popular director Kashinath and learnt the skills of writing. He made his debut with Tarle Nan Maga. But it was Kumar Govind's Shh that earned him a big name in the industry followed by gangster classic Om. From then, he was unstoppable, as he delivered series of hit films like A (debut movie as an actor), Upendra and Super.

Yogaraj Bhat
Just when our urban audience were losing interest in Kannada films, there arrived Yogaraj Bhat and made a romantic-musical Mungaaru Male. Not only this was the career-changing film of the director, who had won state award for his debut film Mani, but also it set a new formula to target the urban audience and youth. His next films like Gaalipata, Pancharangi, Paramathma, etc., were hits.

Suri
Suri, a protégé of Yogaraj Bhat, tasted success in his first film Duniya starring Vijay. His next movie Junglee was a hit and the success of Jackie made him one of the top directors of Sandalwood. His recent movie Anna Bond was a commercial hit.

Guru Prasad
Guru Prasad took a different path to create a niche for himself in Sandalwood. His debut movie Mata,a black comedy, did not receive good response when it was released and the controversial film did not even last for two weeks in theatres. But the word-of-mouth did the magic for the film and him, as the VCDs/DVDs were sold like hotcakes. His next movie Eddelu Manjunatha made him a brand in Kannada film industry.

Prem
Prem, one of the most brilliant director in publicising films, made his debut in Kariya, a gangster film. This movie earned good name for both the director and lead star Darshan. His next Excuse Me was one of the biggest hits of 2004. However, it was Shivaraj Kumar starrer Jogi that made him a household name in Karnataka. However, his next few films like Preethi Eke Bhoomi Melide (his debut film as an actor), Raaj The Showman and Jogayya failed to meet the audience expectations. Nonetheless, his movies have always generated curiosity.

Here, we are giving an opportunity to cast your votes and choose who is the best.

Note: We have chosen only those, who have directed original films and left out the names of successful remake directors.