Now, a Kannada historical on Basavanna

Just days after a Kannada film called Basava, starring Upendra, was announced and set Gandhinagar into a tizzy over whether it would be a film about the 12th century social reformer, comes news that Ramesh Aravind is all set to play the iconic figure from Karnataka’s history in an upcoming film. The actor had tweeted that he was “reading Basavanna’s bio & vachanas for a role,” so we asked him about it.“Basava, we hear, is a modern-day take on the story. Ours is a 12th century tale. I will be playing Basavanna in Mahasharana Haranaiya, which will look at some of the biggest reforms he championed, including inter-caste marriage; his relationship with King Bijjala, and more. It’s a very interesting role,” says Ramesh. What drew the actor to the film is the crux of its story —the inter-caste marriage between a cobbler’s (Haranaiya) son and a Brahmin girl. “That was the first recorded inter-caste marriage, which was inspired by Basavanna’s ideals. I believe in a lot of what he professed, including equality of sexes," adds Ramesh. The film, directed by BA Purushottam, will not be the first Kannada movie on Basavanna on the big screen or TV. “In the past, matinee idol Rajkumar and TV Srinivasamurthy have brought their interpretations of the tale to audiences. This will be my chance. Incidentally, this is my first historical,” says the actor. Mahasharana Haranaiya will star Sridhar in the role of the cobbler. Will such a tale strike a chord with audiences? “Why not? Basavanna is one of the most well-known and respected figures in the history of Karnataka. For me, it’s a great honour to be able to play him,” says Ramesh.