Legendary filmmaker Singeetham Srinivasa Rao, who passed away at 94 on October 04, 2026 (Sunday), had a cherished association with thespian Dr. Rajkumar and his family.
This bond was so strong that Dr. Rajkumar chose Singeetham to direct the debut films of his two sons - Shivarajkumar (Anand, 1986) and Raghavendra Rajkumar (Chiranjeevi Sudhakara, 1988), while the ace director is also credited with popularising his third son Puneeth Rajkumar as a child actor. Singeetham also directed Dr. Rajkumar’s 200th film Devatha Manushya (1988).
He made his Kannada debut with Halu Jenu (1982), starring Rajkumar, Madhavi, and Roopa Devi. The classic became a structural template for tragic-comedies in Kannada cinema. Chalisuva Modagalu (1982), the second Rajkumar-Singeetham combination, was also a massive blockbuster. The marital drama, layered with a courtroom conflict, has the famous song ‘Kaanadante Maayavadenu’ sung by a young Puneeth Rajkumar. The screenplays and dialogues for Singeetham’s popular Kannada movies were penned by the legendary Chi. Udayashankar.
Singeetham played a major role in establishing Puneeth as a popular child actor. After winning the Karnataka State Award for Chalisuva Modagalu, Puneeth, credited as Master Lohith, bagged the award again for Eradu Nakshatragalu (1983). Singeetham earned praise for extracting a convincing performance in dual roles from a seven-year-old Puneeth in the movie.
After Amoghavarsha Nrupathunga, a historical film, got shelved, Singeetham directed Devatha Manushya (1988), Rajkumar’s 200th movie. “The movie failed to meet the expectations at the box office. Rajkumar was cast in an age-appropriate role, but perhaps fans still wanted to see their star as this charming, romantic hero,” said historian K. Puttaswamy about the film, which has evergreen songs by Upendra Kumar.
Singetham’s personal bond with the Rajkumar family continued with Anand, which marked the debut of Shivarajkumar, Rajkumar’s eldest son. The college drama, which has the peppy number ‘Tuvvi Tuvvi’, ran for 38 weeks in theatres. “You gave me the start of my 40-year journey in films with Anand,” wrote Shivarajkumar on X (formerly Twitter). “You inspired the whole world by directing a film (Sing Geetham) at 94 years. You’re the best example of the adage ‘age is just a number’.
Humour was Singeetham’s forte, and in Kannada, his Bhagyada Lakshmi Baramma (1986), starring Dr. Rajkumar and Madhavi, was his most successful attempt at comedy. “Beneath its laugh-out-loud humour, the movie observes a changing world and the socio-economic realities of the time, while giving us a strong female character,” Vijeth Balila, writer and cinephile, told The Hindu.
“Despite having Dr. Rajkumar at its centre, the film never feels like it is playing to the gallery or merely serving its superstar. That freedom, imagination, and refusal to be conventional are what make it one of the finest films of the Rajkumar-Singeetam combination.” Singeetham, a master technician, also composed the music for the movie.
Pushpaka Vimana
Singeetham, one of the most experimental filmmakers in Indian mainstream cinema, directed Pushpaka Vimana (1987), a silent film. The film has a strong Karnataka connection, with producer Shringar Nagaraj being a Kannadiga and the movie mainly shot at Bengaluru’s Windsor Manor hotel. When asked why he attempted a silent film, Singeetham said, “Why should somebody go to the top of Everest and hoist a flag? It’s a challenge, and that’s why people attempt it. There is nothing like doing something that others feel odd.”
The ITC Windsor Manor has cemented its place in pop culture thanks to Pushpaka Vimana, with generations of viewers remembering the unique bridge approach, spacious lobby, and the overall architecture. “Many cab drivers have told me that they remember the film whenever they cross Windsor Manor,” Kamal Haasan, the movie’s protagonist, said during his visit to Bengaluru in 2022.
Singeetham, who revelled in the commercial film genre, also had a parallel film association. He was the executive director for filmmaker Pattabhirama Reddy on Samskara (1970), the landmark Kannada film that spurred the parallel-cinema movement in Kannada cinema. In total, the iconic director’s filmography has 12 Kannada movies.