# Ninagagi (ನಿನಗಾಗಿ)
**Ninagagi** (ನಿನಗಾಗಿ; transl. *For You*) is a 2002 Indian Kannada-language romantic musical film directed by S. Mahendar, about a special friendship between a boy and a girl that grows into love. It stars [Vijay Raghavendra](https://www.edgepedia.org/vijay-raghavendra) in his first adult lead role and Radhika in her screen debut, and it is a remake of the Malayalam film *Niram* (1999).[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director / writer | Directed by S. Mahendar, who also wrote the screenplay and dialogue; IMDb credits Iqbal Kuttippuram as writer, while a Kannada film database credits the story to Kamal[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14691678/fullcredits/) |
| Source | Remake of the Malayalam film *Niram* (1999); the same story was also filmed in Telugu as *Nuvve Kavali* (2001)[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) • [3](https://chiloka.com/movie/ninagagi-2002) |
| Lead pair | Vijay Raghavendra as Tarun and Radhika Kumaraswamy as Madhu; his first film as an adult hero and her debut[3](https://chiloka.com/movie/ninagagi-2002) • [4](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/celebs/vijay-raghavendra.html) |
| Music | Composed by Gurukiran; six songs with lyrics by V Manohar and K Kalyan[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) |
| Release | 3 May 2002 in India; one database lists 28 March 2002, the same date as the censor certificate[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14691678/) • [3](https://chiloka.com/movie/ninagagi-2002) |
| Runtime / certificate | 147 minutes; certified U by the CBFC on 28 March 2002[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) |
| Box office | Listed among the mega hits of 2002 in Kannada cinema[6](https://archive.ph/COObv) |
## Production and crew
The film was produced by [Ramoji Rao](https://www.edgepedia.org/ramoji-rao) under the banner Ushakiran Movies, with A V Rao as executive producer.[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) [Ramesh Babu](https://www.edgepedia.org/ramesh-babu) handled cinematography, P R Soundar Raj edited the film, Ismail was the art director, and Dileepkar choreographed the songs.[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) Shashank served as co-director, with B J Sunil as associate director and Vardhaman L Rao and L Umesh as assistant directors.[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/)
The supporting cast included Vishal Hegde, Shilpa, Avinash, Ramakrishna, Chithra Shenoy, Vidya Murthy, Thara, Ashalatha, Sanketh Kashi, Sihikahi Chandru, Nagashekar, Indudhar, Bharath Bhagavathar, Shankar Bhat, Bhavana, and [Rekha Vedavyas](https://www.edgepedia.org/rekha-vedavyas).[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) IMDb lists specific roles for several of them: Avinash as Dr. Subramanya, Chitra Shenoy as Dr. Usha, Sihi Kahi Chandru as the principal, Sanketh Kashi as a lecturer, and Nagashekar as Sunil.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14691678/fullcredits/)
## Music
Gurukiran composed the score, and the soundtrack carries six songs. V Manohar wrote the lyrics for "Yammo Yammo", "Shukriya", and "Tin Tin Tin", and K Kalyan wrote those for "Hani Hani Seri", "Ellelli Naa Nodaliyellelli", and "Kanninalli Kannanittu".[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) Playback singers included K S Chithra, Rajesh Krishnan, Madhu Balakrishna, Anupama, Hemanth, Shamitha, and Gurukiran himself.[1](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/) A contemporary Kannada-language review singled out "Ellelli Naa Nodali" as the film's most appealing song.[7](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/reviews/0505ninagagi.html)
## Reception and place in 2002 Kannada cinema
The film was released on 3 May 2002.[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14691678/) Chitraloka's year-end roundup of 2002 placed *Ninagaagi* in the year's mega hit list, alongside *Appu*, *Thavarige Baa Thangi*, *Friends*, and *Dakota Express*; the same roundup noted that 22 of the year's 77 Kannada films were remakes, and that *Ninagaagi*, produced by Ramoji Rao, was one of them.[6](https://archive.ph/COObv) A Kannada film review published by Filmibeat called the film an energy tonic for a wave of newcomers then entering the industry and wrote that it could be watched by the whole family without embarrassment.[7](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/reviews/0505ninagagi.html)
The film's commercial success launched both leads. Vijay Raghavendra, born in 1979, had earlier won recognition as a child actor in films such as *Chinnari Muttha*; *Ninagagi* was his first film in a lead adult role and established him in the Kannada industry.[4](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/celebs/vijay-raghavendra.html) Radhika made her screen debut with the film and later became known as [Radhika Kumaraswamy](https://www.edgepedia.org/radhika-kumaraswamy); a Filmibeat Kannada news report describes *Ninagagi* as one of that year's highest-grossing films and notes that the Vijay Raghavendra and Radhika pairing became popular.[8](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/news/radhika-vijay-raghavendra-nimagagi-film-starts-shooting-017542.html) A Mysore University encyclopedia article on the Kannada film industry counts *Ninagagi*, together with *Appu* and the Telugu trendsetter *Chithram*, among the films that marked a new trend of introducing fresh faces in [Kannada cinema](https://www.edgepedia.org/kannada-cinema).[9](https://kn.wikisource.org/wiki/%E0%B2%AE%E0%B3%88%E0%B2%B8%E0%B3%82%E0%B2%B0%E0%B3%81_%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%B6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%A6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%AF%E0%B2%BE%E0%B2%A8%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%B2%E0%B2%AF_%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%B6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%95%E0%B3%8B%E0%B2%B6/%E0%B2%95%E0%B2%A8%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%A8%E0%B2%A1_%E0%B2%9A%E0%B2%B2%E0%B2%A8%E0%B2%9A%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%A4%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B0%E0%B3%8B%E0%B2%A6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%AF%E0%B2%AE)
## Related films
The title has been reused in Kannada cinema. Earlier films include *Ninagagi Nanu* (1975), directed by Sridhar with Srinath and Manjula,[10](https://kannadafilmlyrics.com/songs/Ninagagi--Nanu_1975) *Naniruvude Ninagagi* (1979),[11](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2013/06/20/naniruvude-ninagagi-1979/) and *Ee Hrudaya Ninagagi* (1997).[12](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2013/08/18/ee-hrudaya-ninagagi-1997/) Later films with related titles include *Endendu Ninagagi* (2014) and *Amma Ninagagi* (2018).[13](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/12/15/endendu-ninagagi-2014/) • [14](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2018/04/27/amma-ninagagi-2018/) A separate 2025 Kannada film titled *Yella Ninagagi*, directed by Kashi and starring Dhananya Ramkumar and Rahul Arkat, was announced for release on 11 July 2025.[15](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/movies/yella-ninagagi/story.html)
## References
1. [Ninagagi – ನಿನಗಾಗಿ (2002), Kannada Movies Info](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/ninagagi-2002/)
2. [Ninagagi (2002) – Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14691678/fullcredits/)
3. [Ninagagi (2002) Kannada movie: Cast & Crew, Chiloka](https://chiloka.com/movie/ninagagi-2002)
4. [ವಿಜಯ್ ರಾಘವೇಂದ್ರ biography, Filmibeat Kannada](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/celebs/vijay-raghavendra.html)
5. [Ninagagi (2002), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14691678/)
6. [2002 Year Round Up, Chitraloka (archived)](https://archive.ph/COObv)
7. [ನಿನಗಾಗಿ ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರ ವಿಮರ್ಶೆ, Filmibeat Kannada](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/reviews/0505ninagagi.html)
8. [Radhika, Vijay Raghavendra Nimagagi film starts shooting, Filmibeat Kannada](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/news/radhika-vijay-raghavendra-nimagagi-film-starts-shooting-017542.html)
9. [ಮೈಸೂರು ವಿಶ್ವವಿದ್ಯಾನಿಲಯ ವಿಶ್ವಕೋಶ/ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಲನಚಿತ್ರೋದ್ಯಮ, Wikisource](https://kn.wikisource.org/wiki/%E0%B2%AE%E0%B3%88%E0%B2%B8%E0%B3%82%E0%B2%B0%E0%B3%81_%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%B6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%A6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%AF%E0%B2%BE%E0%B2%A8%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%B2%E0%B2%AF_%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%B6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B5%E0%B2%95%E0%B3%8B%E0%B2%B6/%E0%B2%95%E0%B2%A8%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%A8%E0%B2%A1_%E0%B2%9A%E0%B2%B2%E0%B2%A8%E0%B2%9A%E0%B2%BF%E0%B2%A4%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%B0%E0%B3%8B%E0%B2%A6%E0%B3%8D%E0%B2%AF%E0%B2%AE)
10. [Ninagagi Nanu (1975) song list, Kannada Film Lyrics](https://kannadafilmlyrics.com/songs/Ninagagi--Nanu_1975)
11. [Naniruvude Ninagagi (1979), Kannada Movies Info](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2013/06/20/naniruvude-ninagagi-1979/)
12. [Ee Hrudaya Ninagagi (1997), Kannada Movies Info](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2013/08/18/ee-hrudaya-ninagagi-1997/)
13. [Endendu Ninagagi (2014), Kannada Movies Info](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2014/12/15/endendu-ninagagi-2014/)
14. [Amma Ninagagi (2018), Kannada Movies Info](https://kannadamoviesinfo.wordpress.com/2018/04/27/amma-ninagagi-2018/)
15. [ಎಲ್ಲಾ ನಿನಗಾಗಿ story, Filmibeat Kannada](https://kannada.filmibeat.com/movies/yella-ninagagi/story.html)
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*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 Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license