2006 - year of flops for Kannada film industry

Bangalore, Jan 6 (IANS) Of the 66 Kannada films released last year, only six were box-office hits while five were able to get their investments back to the producers; the other 55 were major flops.

The successful films were - "My Autograph", "Jothe Jotheyalli", "Sirivantha", "Aishwarya", "Sevanthi Sevanthi" and "Hubballi".

Films released at the fag end of the year -- "Neelakanta", "Kallarali Hoovaagi" and "Mungaru Male" - were critically acclaimed, but it is too early to predict their fate at box-office.

Some films drew much attention when released, but flopped later on. These included "Kumara Rama", "Thandege Thakka Maga", "Oda Huttidavalu", "Uppi Dada M.B.B.S.", "Tirupathi" and "Thangigaagi".

It was a year of crises for the Kannada film industry, as the number of flops led to a virtual production stoppage. The problem was compounded by differences between Kannada Film Producers' Association and the workers. That has now been resolved, but industry watchers are waiting to see whether crowds return to cinema halls in 2007.