Kannada film industry has stood up in support of the ongoing protest of farmers, who are demanding the speedy implementation of the Kalasa-Banduri Nala Project. The entire film industry united for the cause at Hubbali on Sunday, 13 September.
A rally was organised at Kittur Chennamma Circle and Kannada superstars like Shivaraj Kumar, Ravichandran, Upendra, Puneet Rajkumar, Darshan, Ganesh, Duniya Vijay, Yash, Vijay Raghavendra, Sri Murali and many others were spotted in Hubbali.
Actresses like Bharathi Vishnuvardhan, B Saroja Devi, Hema Chaudhary, Jai Mala, Anu Prabhakar, Malashri and others joined the agitation after visiting Moorusavir math. But Kiccha Sudeep, whose marriage with Priya is heading for divorce, skipped the occasion due to personal reasons.
However, Sudeep had joined the protests recently and had requested the government to solve the issue soon.
Sandalwood has often responded to state's issues and showed its solidarity when required. But in the last few years, this is the first time the film industry has displayed its massive support for a cause. Their support has now intensified the protest even though people have criticised their time of arrival to the agitation, which started 60 days ago.
People gathered in 1000s to support the agitations. Initially, the rally was planned for 30 minutes but it took 90 minutes to complete it due to the massive turnout of people.
The stars had gathered in Huballi, demanding the centre for the speedy implementation of the Kalasa-Banduri Nala Project, which will solve the drinking water problems of Hubballi, Dharwad, Belagavi and neighbouring regions spread across four districts.
After being on paper for decades, the project got a nod from both the state and centre governments in 2001. But following opposition from the Goa government, it was withheld and now the issue is pending before a tribunal.