Sandalwood will be celebrating the 92nd birthday of its late legend Dr Rajkumar on Saturday, 24 April. Like last year too, there will not be a public celebration due to Covid-19. On this occasion, here we are providing you a list of five classic movies netizens can watch on YouTube for free.
Kasturi Nivasa
Among the plenty of movies, we have handpicked five movies while staying at home
Released on 19 January 1971, Kasturi Nivasa remains a rare gem in which Dr Rajkumar plays the role of a stubborn and person unwilling to let go of his self-esteem. Writer G Balasubramaniam had first approached Sivaji Ganeshan to star in the flick, but the legendary Tamil actor was not happy with the tragic ending.
Later, the script came to Dr Rajkumar, who too was hesitant, but director duo Dorai-Bhagawan along with the legend's brother Varadappa convinced him to take up the project. The film met with a decent response on the first two days, but the collection picked up from the third day.
The film had powerhouse performers like KS Ashwath, Narasimha Raju, Balakrishna, and Jayanthi. The doll and the dove in the film had roles to play in the storyline.
Interestingly, Sivaji Ganeshan, who had turned down the offer, later, bought the rights for Rs 2 lakh and remade it in Tamil as Avandhan Manidhan.
Babruvahana
Babruvahana remains a landmark movie in the mythological genre in Sandalwood. Hunsur Krishnamurthy-directorial movie had Dr Rajkumar in the dual roles of father Arjuna and son Babruvahana. An engrossing narration backed by the solid performance of Annavaru with apt one-liners made this film an enjoyable outing. Like Kasturi Nivasa, the movie does not have a tragic ending. So, people do not complain about watching the film again and again.
Bangaarada Manushya
Siddalingiah's Bangaarada Manushya was a social drama in which Dr Rajkumar had paired up with Bharathi Vishnuvardhan. The movie will be remembered for its huge impact on society that made 1000s of people leave their jobs and take up farming. It has a record run in theatres across the state and in Bhumika Theatre in Bengaluru alone it ran for two years.
Shravana Banthu
Singeetham Srinivasa Rao's Shravana Banthu was the story of reincarnation. A couple who are separated in their previous births is united in the present lives. Urvashi had paired up with Dr Rajkumar in this classic and their chemistry remained one of the prime attractions in the film. M Ranga Rao's music was one of the highlights of the flick.
Kaviratna Kalidasa
Rajkumar and Jaya Prada's Kaviratna Kalidasa was a historical drama based on the life of Kālidāsa, a renowned Classical Sanskrit writer of the 4th Century A.D. It turned out to be one of the highest-grossing movies of its time.
