Veteran Filmmaker SK Bhagavan Passes Away

SK Bhagavan passed away at the age of 89.

S K Bhagavan passed away at a hospital in Bengaluru.

(Photo: Twitter)

Veteran filmmaker SK Bhagavan passed away due to age-related ailments on Monday, 20 February in Bengaluru. He was known for his work in the Rajkumar-era Kannada cinema. He was 89 at the time of his passing.

The filmmaker along with his collaborator B Dorai Raj, who passed away in 2000, directed 49 movies. The pair were popularly known as Dorai-Bhagavan. The duo was closely associated with Dr Rajkumar.

The celebrated filmmaker last directed Aduva Gombe which got released in 2019 and had Anant Nag and late actor Sanchari Vijay in lead roles. He also directed a James Bond-style film Sandalwood.

Many took to social media to grieve the loss of the filmmaker, Playback singer-music producer Aniruddha Sastry tweeted, "The legend lives on!"

Kannada music label Anand Audio also grieved the loss of the director. They wrote, "@aanandaaudio shows condolence to the senior most film director #SKBhagavan sir who has contributed to KFI with all hit movies. May his soul rest in peace."

The director was from Bengaluru and entered the film industry in 1956 as an assistant to Kanagal Prabhakara Shastry. 

Some of his other notable works also include Giri Kanye, Nanooba Kalla, Odahuttidavaru, Jeevana Chaithra, Yarivanu, Benkiya Bale, Hosabelaku, Muniaya Madari Samyada Gombe and Yarivanu.