Jeevana Chakra

1985 157’ col Kannada d/sc H.R. Bhargava pc Kalakrithi st Prabhakara Reddy dial/lyr Chi. Udayashankar c D.V. Rajaram m Rajan-Nagendra lp Vishnuvardhan, Radhika, Vijayakashi, Saroja, Ramesh Bhatt, C.R. Simha, Sudhir, Chi. Udayashankar, Shankar Rao, Jayamalini, Anuradha, Janaki, Jayashree, Bharani, Sivaprakash, Suryakumar, BEML Somanna, Janardan, Ramdas

Melodrama about a loyal subaltern’s selfless service to his master. Ranga (Vishnuvardhan), a ‘rowdy’, is reformed by a woman (Radhika) who materialises out of nowhere in order to take charge of his life. Employed in a factory, Ranga demonstrates his loyalty by forming a pro-management union and persuading workers to discard their red flags, thus saving the company from bankruptcy. The proprietor dies, leaving his wealth as well as his wife and son to Ranga’s care. In old age, Ranga faces the resentment of the proprietor’s grown-up son as well as his own daughter’s ingratitude. When his own wife dies, he hands over his wealth to the proprietor’s son and leaves. The heroine’s relation to the hero is structured as resembling a female fan’s fantasy for her favourite star, not uncommon in star-centered films.

Film