Independence Day 2022: Five Sandalwood Movies That Will Reignite Your Passion For India

As India is celebrating its 75th Independence Day, we decided to pay homage to some of the best patriotic films to come out of the Sandalwood Industry in the last 25 years. It must be recollected that the Kannada film industry has always produced some of the finest patriotic films since its dawn. Biggest of stars such as Vishnuvardhan, Sudeep and others have proudly essayed the roles of brave soldiers and freedom fighters in some of their most memorable films.

Here is a list of 5 best Kannada patriotic films for you to binge-watch this Independence Day.

Hebbuli (2017)

Sudeep starrer Hebbuli that released in 2017 saw the star play an Army officer on-screen for the very first time in his career. The hero-centric action film was highly appreciated by fans and performed well in the theatres. For audiences who are often bombarded with mass masala films, Hebbuli came across as refreshing.

Directed by S Krishna and produced by SRV Production, the movie had Amala Paul as the female lead along with V Ravichandran in special role and Kabir Duhan Singh, P. Ravi Shankar, Ravi Kishan and Sampath Raj in pivotal roles. The music score for Hebbuli was rendered by Arjun Janya.

Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna (2012)

The epic-historical war film starring Darshan is yet another blockbuster in the list of best patriotic films. Directed by Naganna and produced by Anand Appugol, the film also had Jayaprada and Nikita Thukral as the other lead protagonists.

The movie narrated the valour filled story of freedom fighter Sangolli Rayanna. (played by Darshan) who fought the British as the army chief of the Kingdom of Kittur under the rule of Rani Chennamma (played by Jayaprada)

Made on a budget on 30 crores. Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna was a massive hit at the box office and collected 40 crores in 75 days in theatres. It was named as the best Kannada film at the 60th Filmfare Awards South. Challenging star Darshan also took home the best actor trophy for the film.

Hagalu Vesha (2000)

Hagalu Vesha had Century Star Shivarajkumar portray a man who revolts and rebels against the British rule and fights them. The 2000 patriotic film is written and directed by Baraguru Ramachandrappa. It also has Reshma as the female lead and Tara, Pramila Joshai, Bhavyashree Rai, Radha Ramachandra, Baby Suchetha in pivotal roles. The film had musical score by Hamsalekha.

Veerappa Nayaka (1999)

Veerappa Nayaka was a critically and commercially successfully patriotic movie directed and produced by S Narayan. It starred superstar Vishnuvardhan and Shruthi in the lead roles. The film narrated a powerful story of Veerappa Nayaka who is a son of a freedom fighter and follows in his footsteps in serving the nation. But alas, his son turns into a terrorist and Veerappa decides to kills his own son to save people. Vishnuvardhan earned universal acclaim for his acting in this film.

Thaayi Saheba (1997)

Thaayi Saheba is a 1997 women-centric story based on a novel of the same name written by Ranganath Shyamrao Lokapura. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Girish Kasaravalli, the movie shed light on different aspects of life in both pre-independence and post-independence India. The narrative was carried forward by the women in the story whilst shedding light on the social condition of the fairer sex during that period.

Thaayi Saheba was celebrated for breaking the social norms with its bold narrative and was honoured as the best movie at the 45th National Film Awards.