Singanalluru Puttaswamaiah Muthuraj, better known by his stage name Dr Rajkumar, was an Indian actor and singer who worked in Kannada cinema.
19 Facts About Dr Rajkumar
2.
Dr Rajkumar was honoured with Padma Bhushan in 1983 and Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1995.
3.
Dr Rajkumar died of cardiac arrest at his residence in Bangalore on 12 April 2006 at the age of 76.
4.
Dr Rajkumar's eyes were donated as per his last wish.
5.
Dr Rajkumar's movies were noted to include drama sequences where he performs various mythological, historical or literary characters such as Romeo and Babruvahana in Amma, Gautama Buddha in Uyyale, Echchamanayaka in Bhale Jodi and as Bhima in Havina Hede.
6.
Between 1954 and 1969, Kannada film industry produced 207 movies within a span of 15 years and Dr Rajkumar starred in 100 of those.
7.
Dr Rajkumar sang a complete English song called "If You Come Today" in the movie Operation Diamond Racket in 1978.
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Dadasaheb Phalke 8.
Dr Rajkumar recorded many devotional songs beginning in the 1970s for Columbia Recording Company starting with "Mantralayakke Hogona" in 1972.
9.
At the age of 24, Dr Rajkumar married his 14-year-old cousin, Parvathamma, on 25 June 1953 in Nanjangud.
10.
Dr Rajkumar's death occurred 12 days before his 77th birthday.
11.
Dr Rajkumar's eyes were donated to two visually impaired persons the same day.
12.
When Rajkumar completed 200 movies in lead roles in Kannada films, P Lankesh edited a special issue of Lankesh Patrike in 1988 titled Innooru Chitragala Raja dedicating to him.
13.
Dr Rajkumar's movies were praised for showing consistent interest in building a Kannada society and not a Kannada nation as such.
14.
Dr Rajkumar's presence was reported to have filled the void between the state and the nation which neither the litterateurs nor the politicians could accomplish.
15.
Dr Rajkumar's movies were largely credited for creating a unified Kannada cultural space after the formation of the state.
16.
Dr Rajkumar had refused to appear in a cameo for Amitabh Bachchan's 1983 Hindi movie Coolie as he did not want to appear in a non-Kannada movie.
17.
Dr Rajkumar's films have inspired many non-Kannadigas to learn the language.
18.
The director of the 2021 Kannada movie Akshi which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Kannada at the 67th National Film Awards had revealed that the act of eye donation by Dr Rajkumar was the inspiration for the plot of his movie.
19.
Dr Rajkumar's act of eye donation was likened to the role in his debut movie Bedara Kannappa where he plucks his eyes in the climax to replace the bleeding eyes of the Shivalinga.