Veteran actors Srinivasa Murthy and Umashree to receive Dr. Rajkumar Award

Mysuru: Veteran actors Srinivasa Murthy and Umashree will be honoured with the prestigious Dr. Rajkumar Award for the years 2018 and 2019, respectively, in recognition of their outstanding contributions to Kannada cinema.

The awards will be presented during the State Film Awards Ceremony to be held at the KSOU Convocation Hall, Mukthagangothri, tomorrow at 5 pm.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will present the awards in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, District Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa and other dignitaries.

Preparations are underway for the grand event, with officials from the Department of Information and Public Relations and City Police inspecting the venue and reviewing parking arrangements.

For the year 2018, Film Director P. Sheshadri will receive the Puttanna Kanagal Award, while B.S. Basavraju will be conferred with the Dr. Vishnuvardhan Award.

For 2019, Director N.R. Nanjunde Gowda will be honoured with the Puttanna Kanagal Award, and Tulu filmmaker Richard Castelino will receive the Dr. Vishnuvardhan Award.

Each of these awards carries a cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh, a 50-gram gold medal and a citation.

Additionally, the State Government has selected C.H. Raghunath’s ‘Belli Tore – Cinema Prabhandagalu’ as the Best Book on Cinema for 2019, and ‘Gule’, directed by Srinath S. Hadagali, as the Best Short Film. Both will receive a cash prize of Rs. 25,000, a 50-gram silver medal,                                                          and a citation.