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Bangarada Manushya

Bangarada Manushya (ಬಂಗಾರದ ಮನುಷ್ಯ; English translation: Man of Gold) is a 1972 Indian Kannada-language drama film directed by Siddalingaiah, starring Rajkumar as Rajeeva, a city man who gives up his urban career to help his widowed sister and her family in their village¹. Produced by R. Lakshman and Gopal for Srinidhi Productions, it was released on 31 March 1972 and became one of the biggest commercial successes in Kannada cinema, running for nearly four years in Bangalore¹^•².

Key fact	Detail
Release	31 March 1972, Kannada language, Eastman Color, CBFC U certificate dated 24 March 1972²^•³
Director / producers	Siddalingaiah (director and screenplay); R. Lakshman and Gopal, producers¹
Source	Based on the novel Bangarada Manushya by T. K. Rama Rao; dialogue by Hunsur Krishnamurthy³
Lead cast	Rajkumar (Rajeeva), Bharathi (Lakshmi), Aarathi (Sharavathi), Loknath (Ramachandra)⁴
Music	G. K. Venkatesh; the song "Nagu Nagutha Nali" was sung by P. B. Srinivas⁵^•³
Box office	Ran nearly four years in Bangalore; two years continuously at the States theater in Bangalore and 60 weeks at the Chamundeshwari theater in Mysore¹^•⁶
Budget	INR 250,000²

Spoilers

Plot

Rajeeva, an educated man living in the city, travels to his ancestral village to visit his sister Sharadha. On the way from the railway station he sings "Nagu Nagutha Nali", a song whose inspirational lyrics made it a major hit². He arrives to find that his brother-in-law has died and the family is in financial trouble, and he decides to stay and help them⁴.

The film is described in the Indian Panorama catalog as a ruralist melodrama in which the hero abandons his urban career to help his widowed sister and her impoverished family reestablish themselves. Overcoming the ingratitude of his elder brother Ramachandra (Loknath) and the self-serving opposition of several villagers, he builds a house symbolizing the family's success¹^•⁷. His wife Lakshmi (Bharathi), chased by a bull, falls into a well and drowns. Rajeeva is accused of bigamy with a woman (Aarathi) who is later revealed to be the illegitimate daughter of his late brother-in-law, whom he had secretly protected. In the end he renounces all worldly possessions¹.

The BIFFes festival catalog summarizes the film's themes as rural development, modern agricultural practices, and social unity⁵.

Production

The film was based on the novel Bangarada Manushya by T. K. Rama Rao, with a screenplay by Siddalingaiah and dialogue by Hunsur Krishnamurthy³. Lyrics were written by Hunsur Krishnamurthy, Chi Udayashankar, R. N. Jayagopal, and Vijaya Narasimha³. G. K. Venkatesh composed the music, D. V. Rajaram was the cinematographer, and P. Bhaktavatsalam edited the film⁵.

The cast included Rajkumar, Bharathi, Aarathi, Srinath, Advani Lakshmi Devi, Loknath, Dwarakish, Vajramuni, T. N. Balakrishna, and M. P. Shankar⁵^•⁴. Playback singers included P. B. Srinivas, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, and P. Susheela². The film was shot in Eastman Color, passed by the censor board with a U certificate on 24 March 1972 in 20 reels, and produced under the Srinidhi Productions banner with Rajkamal Arts as presenter³.

Release and box office

The film was released across Karnataka on 31 March 1972⁸. According to producer R. Lakshman's obituary in the Indian Panorama catalog, it ran for nearly four years in Bangalore and was declared the biggest hit at the time of its release¹. TV9 Kannada records that it screened continuously for two years at the States theater in Bangalore and for 60 weeks at the Chamundeshwari theater in Mysore, and ran successfully for a year in many other theaters⁶. The Indian Panorama catalog calls it the biggest hit of Rajkumar's career in the 1970s and one of the top grossers of Kannada cinema¹.

When re-released in 1988, the film ran for 25 weeks⁵^•⁶.

Awards

The film won Karnataka State Film Awards for Best Supporting Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematographer, and Best Editor⁵. IMDb lists 4 wins in total⁴.

Legacy

The film is credited with inspiring many people to return to their ancestral villages and take up agriculture⁵. The News Minute describes it as the longest-running Kannada film and the most successful Kannada movie of all time, and notes that it inspired many to take up farming⁹.

Its standing in Kannada film history is reflected in later references. The Indian Panorama catalog calls it "the epic film that changed the course of Kannada film history"¹. A 2017 film, Bangara S/O Bangarada Manushya, starring Shivarajkumar, built directly on the 1972 film's farmer-centric legacy, casting its hero as the son of the original film's protagonist and following a story about saving farmers from land acquisition¹⁰.

Siddalingaiah, who also directed Bhootayyana Maga Ayyu (1974), is considered one of the most commercially successful directors of the genre, with Bangarada Manushya his most popular work; he received the Puttanna Kanagal Award for his contribution to Kannada cinema as a director in 1993-94¹¹^•¹².

References

Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Indian films (individual works) › Kannada films before 2010

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026

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