Dhananjay (actor)

Dhananjay (Kannada: ಧನಂಜಯ್) is an Indian film and theater actor working in Kannada film industry.^[1] After acting in a host of theater acts, he made his feature film debut in Director's Special in 2013. He fetched the debut actor award at the SIIMA Awards for his performance in the film.^[2] He is endearingly referred to as "Special Star"(for Director's Special), "Classical Star"(for Theater Works and classical selection of movies).^[3]

Early life and family

Dhananjay was born in Kalenhalli village in Arasikere, Hassan district. His childhood in India was mostly spent by watching and acting in dramas in the village along with his father. He moved to Mysore to pursue his Engineering degree in Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering and subsequently passed out as a rank student. This lead him to a good job offer from Infosys company in Mysore. However, his interest was set in acting and he used to frequently visit the popular Rangayana theater group in Mysore. Eventually, he landed up with many acting assignments in the same theater group. He also underwent an acting workshop at Germany facilitated by Germany-based theater director Christian Stuckl.^[4]

Film career

Dhananjay, with his frequent visits to the Rangayana theater in Mysore, fetched him many character roles in the regular dramas held there. It was director Guruprasad who noticed his acting skills and gave him an important role in his feature film Director's Special.^[5] The film took three years in the making and finally released in 2013 to mixed and negative response at the box-office. However his performance was lauded and many film makers approached him for the roles in their films. Seeing the rushes of this film, director Om Prakash Rao cast him in his next Huccha-2 but later dropped due to creative differences.^[6] He then was cast in A. P. Arjun's next film Rhaatee opposite Shruthi Hariharan under musician V. Harikrishna's debut production. His next was Preetham Gubbi's film Boxer,produced by the Jayanna Films banner, which brought him wide accolades. He was known for his fit boxer's body, which he had achieved by rigorous training.^[7][8] He then eassyed the role of 12th C saint poet Allama Prabhu, with elan, undergoing harsh training to master the musical instrument Mridanga and also classical dance. Dhanajaya is donning the villain's role for Director Duniya Suri's film Tagaru, starring Shivarajkumar. His rugged look has already become sensational. He has completed Guruprasad's film Eradane Sala. Meanwhile, he is shooting for Pannaga Bharana's film Happy New Year in which he plays a suave Radio Jackie.

Filmography

References

External links

• Dhananjay Hat Trick
• Dhananjay's fan club at Facebook
• Dhananjay Rediff interview