Exclusive: I christened him Shimoga Subbanna: Chandrashekhara Kambara

When I was making my Kaadu Kudure, I was looking for a singer. I was sure that I didn't want a singer from Madras, but someone from here, as the song has North Karnataka Kannada. I chanced upon Shimoga Subbanna, and I was impressed with his voice. It was then that we recorded the song - the title track of Kaadu Kudure - that won him a National Award. It was his first film song and my first film.We began our journey together, in that sense.
Shimoga Subbanna was a very good friend and I was in touch with him till the very end. Subbanna and I, along with Lakshminarayan Bhatta, formed a trio of friends. Incidentally, he was not known as Subbanna by all. His name was Subramanya. When I was giving his name to the record company for credits, I chose to give it as Shimoga Subbanna, as that was what we called him in a friendly manner. From that day on, he was christened with this new name, and that's how he began to be known in his singing career. He used to quiz people about and credit it to me.
I am happy with the way he used his career to help people know of the works of our famous poets and writers. His loss leaves a big void in music, literature and culture.