Girish Karnad’s Ondanondu Kaladalli (1979), a tale of conflict in a pastoral village, has not been sufficiently studied for its richly layered representation of Indian martial arts, historical perspective of peasant mercenaries, and non-Kshatriya heroism. Karnad, whose legendary genius often sought history and myths to embellish narrative approaches, brings an auteur’s sensibility to a Kannada film that needs to be acknowledged as one of the best films in India rather than just be known as a “martial arts” film.
