Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru

Bengaluru, Oct 31: The Karnataka government will confer its prestigious Karnataka Ratna award posthumously on legendary actors Dr Vishnuvardhan and B Saroja Devi on November 19, Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj S Tangadagi announced on Friday.

Addressing a press conference, Tangadagi said chief minister D K Shivakumar would present the awards at a grand ceremony to be held in front of the iconic Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru.

The government is planning to invite superstar Rajinikanth for the event, the minister said, highlighting his close bond with Dr Vishnuvardhan. He also said the government intends to invite actresses Suhasini or Lakshmi, who acted alongside Vishnuvardhan in several films.

“Rajinikanth shared a close bond with Dr Vishnuvardhan. We intend to invite him for the ceremony. We also plan to invite actresses Suhasini or Lakshmi, who acted in many films with Vishnuvardhan,” he said.

B Saroja Devi, popularly known as ‘Abhinaya Saraswathi’, and Vishnuvardhan, fondly remembered as ‘Sahasa Simha’, remain among the most celebrated personalities in Kannada cinema. Both actors made significant contributions to the film industry and appeared in several films across multiple languages.