It has been 43 years since the release of director Mani Ratnam's Pallavi Anu Pallavi, starring Anil Kapoor, Lakshmi, and Kiran Vairale in important roles. Earlier this Wednesday, Anil took to social media to reminisce about the film, which marked his debut in Kannada cinema. Sharing a clip where his character can be heard performing the Ilaiyaraaja song ‘O Premi O Premi’, lip-syncing to SP Balasubrahmanyam's voice, Anil wrote, “43 years ago, I took my first step into the Kannada film industry. From then to now, it’s incredible to see how Kannada cinema is booming and redefining Indian cinema globally.” The film originally hit theatres on January 07, 1983. According to Anil, Kannada cinema has evolved by leaps and bounds over the years.
The actor credited the likes of Yash, Prashanth Neel and Rishab Shetty for the evolution of the industry. According to him, the KGF films, directed by Prashanth and starring Yash, and director-actor Rishab's Kantara franchise have played a part in raising the standards of filmmaking in Kannada cinema.
The actor ended his note by saying that he would like to work more in Kannada. “Hopefully not my last association with this amazing industry,” he wrote, expressing his desire to extend his presence in the industry beyond Pallavi Anu Pallavi.
While the film allowed Anil Kapoor to make his entry into Kannada, it marked the directorial debut of Mani Ratnam as well. The film has a dubbed version each in Telugu and Tamil. While the Telugu version has the same title, the one in Tamil is titled Priya Oh Priya.
