The Best Kannada Film Performances of 2025

It wouldn’t be wrong to call 2025 an eventful year for Kannada cinema. Granted, only two films were able to make a dent at the box office, but the range — the glittering period fantasy Kantara: Chapter 1 and a small village drama Su From So — is perhaps indicative of how far the industry has come. Let’s take a look at five of the performances that made us hopeful for the better days to come.

Rishab Shetty, Kantara: Chapter 1

We go into Kantara: Chapter 1, the prequel to 2022’s exquisite Kannada land drama, knowing what we’re going to see. But the prequel, which comes with additions of characters and plotlines, still manages to surprise us. Its grasp on the VFX, opulence and intricate plotting blows us away. And the jig isn’t really up. One of the main reasons behind that is Shetty. As opposed to the original, the actor plays two main characters here: Berme, the messiah of his forest community, and Mayakara (Shetty is unrecognisable here), the indestructible elder who leads Berme to light. Shetty’s Daiva portions are undoubtedly the highlight of the film, but his hold on the film’s world and its potential make Berme a brilliant coming-of-age hero.

Athish Shetty, Mithya

Sumanth Bhat’s Kannada feature is a moving meditation on grief. And it's hard to believe that the leading man evocatively anchoring the film is a child actor. The film follows the life of Mithya (Athish Shetty), who is suddenly displaced from his hometown after a sudden personal tragedy. Too young to understand the death of his parents, but too old to start afresh in a new city, Shetty reflects the uncomfortable truth and solitude of Mithya’s adolescence with staggering depth.

Shaneel Gautham, Su From So

Shaneel Gautham aces the classic toughest softie aesthetic in Su From So. The horror comedy depends so much on community humour that it’s easy to slip under the radar in the midst of such a talented ensemble. But Shaneel’s Ravi Anna will arguably go down in history as the most memorable small-town guy. Shaneel Gautham plays Ravi Anna with so much depth and effortlessness, almost instantly making us fall for his bashfulness. He takes on many roles in Su from So: village grump, bitter bachelor, fun drunk, unofficial sarpanch, and, biggest of all, a late bloomer who learns to give love a second chance. 

Rukmini Vasanth, Kantara: Chapter 1

The incredible grasp of Rukmini Vasanth over Kanakavathi, the coy princess, could be comprehended perhaps only after a second viewing of the Kantara film. When the big reveal comes, we feel cheated. But a second after that, we also go, “Of course she’s the bad guy,” immediately revisiting the signs we missed. Kanakavathi is a tough nut to crack. A few notes askew, her character could’ve come undone, but Rukmini makes sure she isn’t reduced to a vixen hexing curses. While her backstory could've been done with a lot more time, she ensures we stay transfixed with the time that she has in the intricate film. 

Raanna, Elumale

Underneath layers of romance, action, and a terrific one-night thriller template, Elumale is a story about the kindness of the human heart. And Raanna, whose story acts as the beacon for the film’s subject, fills us with sympathy and respect almost as soon as we see him. The film revolves around Harisha (Raanna), a man running against the clock to reunite with his lover, and runaway bride Revathi (Priyanka Achar). But the moment they pick, in the borderlands of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, is politically charged and awfully wrong. Harisha and Revathi hardly come together on screen, but we feel their love, angst and desperation in their individual agony of being apart. Raanna is especially convincing as the lovesick young man who doesn’t just have to make it in time to see his lover, but also needs to get out of an unfortunate prison mix-up.