Kaakana kote - One of my favourite movie. Lokesh plays the protagonist Kaka in this movie penned by Masti Venkatesh Iyengar.
A little on the subject - Kaakana kote (Kote = Fort in Kannada) Kakanakote is situated at a distance of 73 km from Mysore in karnataka in the midst of the Nagarahole forest (aka Rajiv Gandhi National park......this name sucks). There are no huge ramparts or walls to make it look like a fort, it's actually a place with dense vegetation and looks impenetrable. This acted as a natural fort for the forest dwelling Kuruba tribe. This place was christened as Kaakana Kote by the Maharaja of Mysore who was impressed by the bravery of this tribe's leader named " Kaka ".
Masti has beautifully depicted the haadyas (group of dwellings) ,lifestyle of the Kuruba's, the oppresion of the Hegde clan against these tribals, the shrewdness, planning and bravery of Kaka intertwined with the love story between Kaka's daughter and the son of Hegde. Hegde's are the palegaars (local chieftains) working for the Mysore kings and collect taxes in form of honey, ivory tusks and other forest produce from these tribals in the forest region. They misuse the order of the King and collect more from the tribals but give the King only the stipulated amount, pocketing the rest themselves (Now we know where our policitcians and babus learnt all the corruption from....). Kaka in his growing up years worked in the royal stables of Mysore and knows the ways of the corrupt officials. On his return to his village He proclaims himself the Chieftain and refuses to pay taxes to the Hegde. This prompts the Hegde to use muscle power to bring down the uprising. The clever Kaka attacks the Hegde's camp at night and kidnaps his only son. With his only Son held @ ransom the Hegde does not dare to attack kaka. In this the Hegde's son falls in love with the daughter of Kaka. When there's resistance for their marriage they decide to runaway and get married. Meanwhile Kaka sends an emissary with a letter written by the priest seeking intervention from the Maharaja but is disappointed as the emissary does not get an audience with the king. As a last resort the Hegde decides to attack putting his son's life in jeopardy. The King shows up at the last moment and "All's well that ends well".
A little on the subject - Kaakana kote (Kote = Fort in Kannada) Kakanakote is situated at a distance of 73 km from Mysore in karnataka in the midst of the Nagarahole forest (aka Rajiv Gandhi National park......this name sucks). There are no huge ramparts or walls to make it look like a fort, it's actually a place with dense vegetation and looks impenetrable. This acted as a natural fort for the forest dwelling Kuruba tribe. This place was christened as Kaakana Kote by the Maharaja of Mysore who was impressed by the bravery of this tribe's leader named " Kaka ".
Masti has beautifully depicted the haadyas (group of dwellings) ,lifestyle of the Kuruba's, the oppresion of the Hegde clan against these tribals, the shrewdness, planning and bravery of Kaka intertwined with the love story between Kaka's daughter and the son of Hegde. Hegde's are the palegaars (local chieftains) working for the Mysore kings and collect taxes in form of honey, ivory tusks and other forest produce from these tribals in the forest region. They misuse the order of the King and collect more from the tribals but give the King only the stipulated amount, pocketing the rest themselves (Now we know where our policitcians and babus learnt all the corruption from....). Kaka in his growing up years worked in the royal stables of Mysore and knows the ways of the corrupt officials. On his return to his village He proclaims himself the Chieftain and refuses to pay taxes to the Hegde. This prompts the Hegde to use muscle power to bring down the uprising. The clever Kaka attacks the Hegde's camp at night and kidnaps his only son. With his only Son held @ ransom the Hegde does not dare to attack kaka. In this the Hegde's son falls in love with the daughter of Kaka. When there's resistance for their marriage they decide to runaway and get married. Meanwhile Kaka sends an emissary with a letter written by the priest seeking intervention from the Maharaja but is disappointed as the emissary does not get an audience with the king. As a last resort the Hegde decides to attack putting his son's life in jeopardy. The King shows up at the last moment and "All's well that ends well".
The movie has been entirely shot in the forests with soulful songs "Nesara nodu" "Kari Haidha" composed by Ashwath.
All in all it's a treat to watch this simple movie.
Niri
