Kannada literature owes a great deal to the Haridasa tradition. Director Madhusudan Havaladar has been introducing the lives and contributions of great Haridasas to audiences through cinema. He has directed and composed the music for ‘Kakhandaki Sri Mahipatidasaru’, based on the life of another renowned Haridasa of Karnataka.
The story and dialogues are written by Dr. Krishna Kolhar Kulkarni, while the screenplay is by J.M. Prahlad and Madhusudan Havaladar. A technical screening of the film was recently held, attended by Karnataka High Court judges V. Sreeshananda, Satya Dhyanacharya Katti and Syed Shah Sani Zainul Abideen, along with Dr. Vasudeva Agnihotri, Dhruva Kulkarni, Sudhindra Venkatesh, Gururaj K. and other dignitaries. After the screening, the guests praised the film and its portrayal of Mahipatidas.
Havaladar said, “After Sri Jagannathadasaru, I have continued making films on great Haridasas. Kakhandaki Sri Mahipatidasaru is my fifth film on a Haridasa, and I have also composed its music.”
Produced under Matambuja Movies, the film stars Vijayanand Nayak as Mahipatidas The film portrays Mahipatidas as a successor to Purandaradasa and Kanakadasa in the Haridasa tradition. Influenced by Bhaskar Guruji and the Sufi saint Shanung, Mahipatidas, who was once a prime minister in Adil Shah’s court, later became a Haridasa through his spiritual practices. His sacred place is in Kakhandaki of Vijayapura district.
The film is ready for release and is expected to hit theatres in October. Havaladar said the technical screening was organized to allow experts and dignitaries to point out any historical or technical corrections before release. He added that the appreciation received from everyone who watched the film had left him deeply satisfied.
