Rains make it lean season for Kannada films

Bangalore, Aug 23 (IANS) The continuous downpour across Karnataka has certainly affected the collections of Kannada films. Though there have been several releases, no film has had a decent opening except for "News" and "Mental Manja".

In the coming days, many big-budget, star-studded films are expected.

The top five Kannada films are:

1. "Akash": The film, which has completed 100 days in many centres, continues its Bangalore run. Collections have been good in B and C centres and even better in major centres. Puneet Raj Kumar's box-office charisma has been responsible for the film's big success. This has indirectly increased the pre-release excitement over Puneet's next release "Namma Basava", directed by Veera Shankar.

2. "Gauramma": The film has completed 11 weeks in many major centres. Its success even in areas like northern Karnataka, where Upendra's films had not done so well in the past, has proved the star to be a big draw all over the state. This Upendra-Ramya starrer, directed by Naganna, is a remake of the Telugu hit "Nuvvu Naaku Nachchaav".

3. "Shastri": The film has completed 10 weeks in many centres. Though it had a terrific opening, it could not sustain its run. The action-oriented film, featuring Darshan, has now exhausted its audience in urban areas.

4. "News": This Upendra starrer opened well and was expected to turn out to be a big hit. But the continuous rains have had a dampening effect on the collections.

5. "Mental Manja": Surprisingly, a film like "Mental Manja", ignored by the trade and media, has done well in some major centres. Made on a budget of around Rs.5 million, the film has been able to recover half its investments in the first 10 days of its run in Bangalore theatres alone. The film is about an underworld don falling in love with a girl.