Bengaluru: As many as 71 distinguished achievers from different fields have been selected for the prestigious Kannada Rajyotsava Award-2026.

Announcing the list of awardees at a press meet held at the State Capital yesterday, Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj Tangadagi said that the 71 personalities would be presented the awards in Bengaluru on Nov. 1, marking Kannada Rajyotsava.

The awardees include senior politician and former Minister Kagodu Thimmappa, veteran actor Ashok, former IAS officer Teresa Bhattacharya, fashion guru Prasad Biddappa, senior journalist D. Umapathy, writer Indira Heggade and businessman M.R. Jaishankar, among others.

5 from Mysuru district get award

As many as five personalities from Mysuru district figure in the list of Rajyotsava awardees.

Noted historian Prof. N.S. Rangaraju, Journalist-turned environmentalist R. Swamy Anand, noted Musician C.A. Sridhar, theatre personalities K.R. Sumathi and Honna Nayak are the awardees from Mysuru district.

Rangaraju retired as a Professor of Ancient History and Archaeology from University of Mysore and served as a heritage expert in various Government Bodies and Agencies, including the Mysuru Chapter of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). He has been chosen for the award under the education category.

Swamy Anand, who worked as a Journalist for more than two decades in publications like ‘Lankesh Patrike’ and ‘Agni,’ got his Ph.D from Hampi Kannada University for his thesis on ‘Traditional Indigenous Agricultural Knowledge Systems of Karnataka.’

Anand has translated Subhash Palekar’s book on ‘zero budget natural farming.’ He has been chosen for the award under Environment category.

Noted musician of the city Dr. C.A. Sridhar has been chosen for his contribution to the field of Music, while K.R. Sumathi and Honna Nayak have been chosen under Theatre category.

Reacting on his selection for the award, Prof. Rangaraju said, he was extremely delighted to have got the prestigious award. Stating that he was thankful to the media, he said, he had been applying for the award for the last three years and he has got the award  this year.

Theatre personality K.R. Sumathi said, she was happy to get the award for her contribution to the theatre over the years.

Veteran artiste Honna Nayak said, he has been in the field of theatre for the past 45 years. Stating that he was joyous that he got this prestigious award from the State Government, he said that the support of his family and relatives played a vital role in his theatre activities.

Noted Musician Dr. C.A. Sridhar said, he had never applied for the award. He was thankful to Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj Tangadagi and the Selection Committee for having chosen him for the award under Music category. The award has come to him with more responsibility, he said adding that he would continue to serve music until his last breath.

Journalist Swamy Anand, who has bagged the award under Environment Category, said,    he had worked for ‘Lankesh Patrike’ and ‘Agni.’ Pointing out that he was greatly inspired by Subhash Palekar’s zero budget farming, he said, he attributes the award to the success of farmers who adopted ‘Natural farming’ techniques.

Posthumous ‘Karnataka Ratna’ award for actors Dr. Vishnuvardhan & Saroja Devi

Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj Tangadagi also announced that the prestigious ‘Karnataka Ratna’ award will be conferred posthumously on actors Dr. Vishnuvardhan and B. Saroja Devi. The award will be conferred on the late actors at a programme to take place at Bengaluru on Nov. 19, marking the birth anniversary of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, he added.

Stating that the Government has great regard for late actor Ambarish, Tangadagi said that Ambarish’s name would be considered for the award in the future.