Anuradha (born 4 March 1971), known by her

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Tara, is an Indian actress, known for her work in

Kannada cinema Kannada cinema, also known as Sandalwood, or Chandanavana, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Kannada language widely spoken in the state of Karnataka. The 1934 film ''Sati Sulochana'' directed ...

and politics. She joined the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

(BJP) in 2009 and is currently a nominated member of the

Karnataka Legislative Council The Karnataka Legislative Council is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of Karnataka state in South Western India. Karnataka is one of the six states in India, where the state legislature is bicameral, comprising two houses: the Le ...

. Tara made her debut in film in 1984 with the

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

film ''

Ingeyum Oru Gangai ''Ingeyum Oru Gangai'' is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language romance film directed by Manivannan and produced by P. Kalaimani. The film stars Murali, Tara and Chandrasekhar. It was released on 10 August 1984 and emerged a success. The film was remad ...

''. Her Kannada film debut came in 1986 with ''Thulasidala'' and has since portrayed many author-backed roles. Her notable performances came in films such as ''Krama'' (1991), '' Munjaneya Manju'' (1993), ''

Kanooru Heggadithi ''Kanooru Heggadithi'' (''Kanooru Headwoman'') is a 1999 Indian film based on the 1936 novel " Kanooru Subbamma Heggadithi" by Kannada writer Kuvempu, and directed by playwright and film director Girish Karnad. Set in the Malnad region, the fi ...

'' (1999), ''

Munnudi '' Munnudi '' ( kn, ಮುನ್ನುಡಿ, ''The Preface'') is a 2000 Indian Kannada language film directed by P. Sheshadri, based on Bolwar Mahammad Kunhi's short story ''Muthucchera'', and starring Tara, H. G. Dattatreya, Shashikumar a ...

'' (2000), ''

Mathadana ''Mathadana'' ( kn, ಮತದಾನ) is a 2001 Indian Kannada language film directed by T. N. Seetharam, based on S. L. Bhyrappa's novel of the same name, and starring Anant Nag, Tara, Devaraj, Avinash and Hemanth Vasisht in pivotal roles. ...

'' (2001), '' Hasina'' (2005), ''

Cyanide Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...

'' (2006) and ''

Ee Bandhana ''Ee Bandhana'' is a 2007 Indian Kannada-language drama film written, directed and co-produced by Vijayalakshmi Singh. This marks her debut directorial project. It stars Vishnuvardhan and Jayapradha. While Darshan, Ananth Nag, Tara, Sharmiel ...

'' (2007). Her performance in ''Hasina'' won her the

National Film Award for Best Actress The National Film Award for Best Actress (officially known as the Rajat Kamal Award for the Best Actress) is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to an actress for the best performance in a leading role wit ...

. After joining BJP, she was elected as the president of the

Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy (English: Karnataka Film Academy) was formed by the Government of Karnataka in 2009 to promote film culture in Karnataka. The academy has taken up several projects to develop a healthy film culture in the state a ...

in 2012 and held the position for a year. In the same year, she was nominated as a member of the Karnataka Legislative Council, the

upper house An upper house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smalle ...

of the legislature of

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

. (

Career

Tara made her first appearance on screen for a Tamil film ''Ingeyum Oru Gangai'' directed by noted actor,

Manivannan S. Manivannan Rajagopal (31 July 1953 – 15 June 2013), better known by his mononym Manivannan, was an Indian film director, actor and activist who worked mainly in Tamil cinema and also worked in a few Telugu & Malayalam films. In a care ...

, in 1984 which also featured Murali in the lead. Followed by this, she featured in her first Kannada film ''Thulasidala'' in 1985. However, she got the big break of her career through a Rajkumar starrer ''Guri'' in 1986 and thereafter she has acted in several movies as a leading lady and mainly as supporting actress. Her performance in

Girish Karnad Girish Karnad (19 May 1938 – 10 June 2019) was an Indian actor, film director, Kannada writer, playwright and a Jnanpith awardee, who predominantly worked in South Indian cinema and Bollywood. His rise as a playwright in the 1960s marked the ...

's ''

'' brought her widespread recognition. She received her first ever award as best actress for the Kannada movie ''Krama''(1991), directed by debutant director Asrar Abid. In the late 1980s, she appeared in

Mani Ratnam Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam (born 2 June 1956), known professionally as Mani Ratnam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema and few Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films. Ratnam has won six Nat ...

's blockbuster Tamil films, ''

Nayakan ''Nayakan'' (; ) is a 1987 Indian Tamil-language gangster film written and directed by Mani Ratnam. Produced by Muktha Srinivasan, the film stars Kamal Haasan, Saranya (in her feature debut) and Karthika, with Janagaraj, Vijayan, M. V. Vasu ...

'' and ''

Agni Natchathiram ''Agni Natchathiram'' () is a 1988 Indian Tamil-language masala film that was written and directed by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Prabhu, Karthik, Amala and newcomer Nirosha, with Vijayakumar, Jayachitra, Sumithra, Tara, S. N. Lakshmi an ...

'', as a supporting actress. Tara worked with almost all of the leading male co-stars in the 1980s and 1990s including Rajkumar,

Shankar Nag Shankar Nagarakatte (9 November 1954 – 30 September 1990) was an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, and producer known for his work in Kannada-language films and television. A popular cultural icon of Karnataka, Nag is often referred to as ...

, Vishnuvardhan,

Ambarish In Hindu mythology, Ambarisha ( sa, अम्बरीषः, ) is an Ikshvaku king, and the son of Mandhata.Pargiter, F.E. (1972) 922 ''Ancient Indian Historical Tradition'', Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, p.92. He is believed to have conquered t ...

Ananth Nag Dr Anant Nagarkatte (born 4 September 1948) is an Indian actor whose predominant contribution has been in Kannada cinema. He has acted in over 300 films which include over 200 Kannada films as well as Hindi, Telugu, Marathi, Malayalam and Eng ...

Ravichandran Ravichandran is an Indian name. Notable people with the name include: * Ravichandran (Tamil actor) (1942–2011) * Ravichandran (Tamil film director) (born 1971) * N. Ravichandran (professor) (1955), professor at IIM Ahmedabad * N. Ravichandran, ...

Shashikumar Shashi Kumar (born 2 December 1965) is an actor and politician from Karnataka. He works predominantly in Kannada films. Acting career Shashi Kumar's first released film was ''Chiranjeevi Sudhakara'' starring Raghavendra Rajkumar. In 1989 h ...

Tiger Prabhakar Tiger Prabhakar (30 March 1948 – 25 March 2001), also known as Kannada Prabhakar, was an Indian actor known for his works predominantly in Kannada and Telugu cinema, with a few Malayalam, Tamil and Bollywood films. Career Prabhakar started hi ...

Shivarajkumar Nagaraju Shiva Puttaswamy (born 12 July 1962) known by his screen name Shiva Rajkumar, is an Indian actor, producer and television presenter, predominantly works in Kannada cinema.

Raghavendra Rajkumar Raghavendra Rajkumar (born 15 August 1965) is an Indian actor, singer and producer of Kannada cinema. He is the son of actor Dr. Rajkumar and film producer Parvathamma Rajkumar. He made his debut as a lead in the film ''Chiranjeevi Sudhakar'' ...

, Murali, Karthik, Sunil and

Devaraj Devaraj (born 20 September 1953) is an Indian actor and theatre actor who works in Indian film industry. He has largely featured in Kannada films performing various roles as a lead character, supporting character and villainous character. He ha ...

. She received her second "best actress" state award for the movie ''

'' and "best supporting actress" award for the movie '' Munjaneya Manju''. She also received critical acclaim for the female centric film ''

'', which received multiple

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

, including the Best Film on Other Social Issues. In 2005, she was cast by

Girish Kasaravalli Girish Kasaravalli (born 3 December 1950) is an Indian film director, in the Kannada cinema, and one of the pioneers of the Parallel Cinema. Known internationally for his works, Kasaravalli has garnered fourteen National Film Awards, including f ...

in his film '' Hasina'', for which she won a

National Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate ...

from the Indian Government. Subsequently, her role in the

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

movie '' Deadly Soma'' was appreciated. Then came another breakthrough performance in the movie ''

''. In 2007, Tara received her third Best Actress award. Beside acting, she produced ''Hasina'', directed by Girish Kasaravalli, and she has also announced an intention to direct films as well.

Personal life

Tara married the cinematographer

H. C. Venugopal H. C. Venugopal is an Indian cinematographer, who has worked in the Kannada and Tamil film industries. Career H. C. Venugopal is a cinematographer who has predominantly worked for Kannada films. He has been active since the late 1990s, regular ...

in 2005. They have a son (b. 2013).

Filmography

Television

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tara 1973 births Living people Best Actress National Film Award winners Actresses in Kannada cinema Indian film actresses Actresses in Tamil cinema Actresses from Bangalore Filmfare Awards South winners Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Karnataka 21st-century Indian women politicians 21st-century Indian politicians Actresses in Telugu cinema 20th-century Indian actresses 21st-century Indian actresses Recipients of the Rajyotsava Award 2003 Actresses in Malayalam television Women members of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly