Vishnuvardhan
ActingAlso Known As
Sampath Kumar, Vishnuvardhan
Biography
Sampath Kumar (18 September 1950 – 30 December 2009), known by his stage name Vishnuvardhan, was an Indian actor who worked predominantly in Kannada cinema besides also having sporadically appeared in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Malayalam language films. Vishnuvardhan has a prolific career spanning over four decades, during which he has acted in more than 220 films. A popular cultural icon of Karnataka, and holds the status of a matinée idol among the Kannada diaspora. He is popularly called as Sahasa Simha, Dada and The Angry Young Man of Kannada Cinema. Vishnuvardhan's contributions to Kannada cinema have been praised by his contemporaries in the Indian film industry. The Government of Karnataka honoured him with the highest civilian awards of Karnataka State, the Karnataka Ratna Award in 2025, Rajyothsava Prashasthi in 1990 and the Dr. Rajkumar Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 for his contributions to Kannada cinema. He was called The Phoenix of Indian Cinema. In 2008, a poll conducted by CNN-IBN listed Vishnuvardhan as the most popular star in the Kannada film industry.
Movies
(150 total)
Naagarahaavu
as Ramachari
Kauravar
as Haridas I.P.S.
Aptharakshaka
as Dr. Vijay
Maathaad Maathaadu Mallige
as Hoovaiah
Viduthalai
as Amar
Ashaant
as Vishnu
Boothayyana Maga Ayyu
as Gulla
Bandhana
as Dr. Harish
Zaalim
as Inspector Mohan
Gandhada Gudi
as Anand
Sri Raghavendrar
as Sri Yogenthra Tirtha
Simhadriya Simha
as Narasimha Gowda and Chikka
Sahasa Simha
as Prathap
Hombisilu
as Dr. Nataraj
Sahodarara Savaal
as Kiran
Suryavamsha
as Sathyamurthy/Kanakamurthy (Dual Role)
Kotigobba
as Nanjunda
Yajamana
as Shankar/Ganesha (Dual Role)
Ee Bandhana
as Harish Raj