The "Yona" Greek king of India Menander (160–135 BCE). Inscription in Greek: "BASILEŌS SOTĒROS MENANDROU", lit. "of Saviour King Menander".

"Yona" is a Pali word used in ancient India to designate Greek speakers. Its equivalent in Sanskrit, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil is the word "Yavana" and "Javanan" in Bengali. "Yona" and "Yavana" are both transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" (Homer Iāones, older *Iāwones), who were probably the first Greeks to be known in the East.

The Yavanas are mentioned in the Buddhist discourse of the Middle Length Sayings, in which the Buddha mentions to the Brahman Assalayana the existence of the Kamboja and Yavana people who have only two castes, master or slave. The direct identification of the word "Yavana" with the Greeks at such an early time (6th-5th century) can be doubted.^[1] However, in the Hindu epic Mahabharata, the word "Yavana" is used to identify the Greeks.

Direct identification of these words with the Greeks include:

• The mention of the "Yona king Antiochus" in the Edicts of Ashoka (280 BCE)
• The mention of the "Yona king Antialcidas" in the Heliodorus pillar in Vidisha (110 BCE)
• King Menander and his bodyguard of "500 Yonas" in the Milinda Panha.
• The description of Greek astrology and Greek terminology in the Yavanajataka ("Sayings of the Yavanas") (150 CE).
• The mention of "Alexandria, the city of the Yonas" in the Mahavamsa, Chapter 29 (4th century CE).

Old World usage[link]

This usage was shared by many of the countries east of Greece, from the Mediterranean to India:

• Egyptians used the word j-w-n(-n)-’
• Assyrians used the word Iawanu
• Persians used the word Yauna or Yavanu
• Indians - used the word Yavana in Mahabharata and other historic texts.
• Sri Lankans - used the word Yona in Mahawamsa and other historic texts.
• In Biblical writings, the word was Yāvān (and still is, in modern Israeli Hebrew - יוון)
• In Arabic, Turkish, Persian and Urdu it is Yunan

Indian references[link]

In Indian sources, the usage of the words "Yona", "Yauna", "Yonaka", "Yavana" or "Javana" etc. appears repeatedly, and particularly in relation to the Greek kingdoms which neighboured or sometimes occupied the Indian north-western territories (which is now Afghanistan or part of Pakistan) over a period of several centuries from the 4th century BC to the 1st century AD, such as the Seleucid Empire, the Greco-Bactrian kingdom and the Indo-Greek kingdom. The Yavanas are mentioned in detail in Sangam literature epics such as Paṭṭiṉappālai, describing their brisk trade with the Cholas in Tamilakam.

After Alexander's invasion, the Greek settlements had existed in eastern parts of Achaemenid empire, north-west of India, as neighbors to the Iranian Kambojas. The references to the Yonas in the early Buddhist texts may be related to the same.

Role in Buddhism[link]

Edicts of Ashoka (250 BC)[link]

Buddhist proselytism at the time of king Ashoka (260–218 BC).

Some of the better known examples are those of the Edicts of Ashoka (c. 250 BC), in which the Buddhist emperor Ashoka refers to the Greek populations under his rule. Rock Edicts V and XIII mention the Yonas (or the Greeks) along with the Kambojas and Gandharas as a subject people forming a frontier region of his empire and attest that he sent envoys to the Greek rulers in the West as far as the Mediterranean, faultlessly naming them one by one. In the Gandhari original of Rock XIII, the Greek kings to the West are associated unambiguously with the term "Yona": Antiochus is referred as "Amtiyoko nama Yona-raja" (lit. "The Greek king by the name of Antiochus"), beyond whom live the four other kings: "param ca tena Atiyokena cature 4 rajani Turamaye nama Amtikini nama Maka nama Alikasudaro nama" (lit. "And beyond Antiochus, four kings by the name of Ptolemy, the name of Antigonos, the name of Magas, the name Alexander").

Dipavamsa and Sasanvamsa[link]

Other Buddhist texts such as the Dipavamsa and the Sasanavamsa reveal that after the Third Buddhist Council, the elder (thera) Mahárakkhita was sent to the Yona country and he preached Dharma among the Yonas and the Kambojas, and that at the same time the Yona elder (thera) Dharmaraksita was sent to the country of Aparantaka in western India also. Ashoka's Rock Edict XIII also pairs the Yonas with the Kambojas (Yonakambojesu) and conveys that the Brahmanas and Sramanas are found everywhere in his empire except in the lands of the Yonas and the Kambojas.

Mahawamsa[link]

The Mahawamsa or Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka refers to the thera Mahárakkhita being sent to preach to the Yona country, and also to the Yona thera Dhammarakkhita, who was sent to Aparanta (the "Western Ends").^[2] It also mentions that king Pandukabhaya set aside a part of the city of Anuradhapura for the Yonas.^[3] Another Yona thera, Mahádhammarakkhita, is mentioned as having come from Alexandria in the country of the Yonas, to be present at the building of the Ruwanweliseya.^[4]

Milindapanha[link]

Another example is that of the Milinda Panha (Chapter I), where "Yonaka" is used to refer to the great Indo-Greek king Menander (160–135 BC), and to the guard of "five hundred Greeks" that constantly accompanies him.

Invasion of India[link]

The Vanaparava of Mahabharata contains verses in the form of prophecy complaining that "......Mleccha (barbaric) kings of the Shakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Bahlikas etc. shall rule the earth (i.e India) un-righteously in Kaliyuga..." .^[5] This reference apparently alludes to chaotic political scenario following the collapse of Mauryan and Sunga dynasties in northern India and its subsequent occupation by foreign hordes of the Yavanas, Kambojas, Sakas and Pahlavas etc.

There are important references to the warring Mleccha hordes of the Shakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc. in the Bala Kanda of the Valmiki Ramayana.^[6]

Indologists like Dr H. C. Raychadhury, Dr B. C. Law, Dr Satya Shrava and others see in these verses the clear glimpses of the struggles of the Hindus with the mixed invading hordes of the barbaric Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc. from north-west.^[7] The time frame for these struggles is 2nd century BCE downwards. Dr Raychadhury fixes the date of the present version of the Valmiki Ramayana around/after 2nd century CE.^[8]

The other Indian records describe the 180 BCE Yavana attacks on Saketa, Panchala, Mathura and Pataliputra, probably against the Sunga empire, and possibly in defense of Buddhism. The main mentions of the invasion are those by Patanjali around 150 BCE, and of the Yuga Purana, which, like the Mahabharata, also describes Indian historical events in the form of a prophecy:

"After having conquered Saketa, the country of the Panchala and the Mathuras, the Yavanas, wicked and valiant, will reach Kusumadhvaja ("The town of the flower-standard", Pataliputra). The thick mud-fortifications at Pataliputra being reached, all the provinces will be in disorder, without doubt. Ultimately, a great battle will follow, with tree-like engines (siege engines)."^[9]

"The Yavanas (Greeks) will command, the Kings will disappear. (But ultimately) the Yavanas, intoxicated with fighting, will not stay in Madhadesa (the Middle Country); there will be undoubtedly a civil war among them, arising in their own country (Bactria), there will be a terrible and ferocious war."^[10]

The Anushasanaparava of Mahabharata affirms that the country of Mathura, the heartland of India, was under the joint military control of the Yavanas and the Kambojas.^[11]

From the references noted above, it appears certain that the Yavana invasion of Majjhimadesa (Mid India) was jointly carried out by the Yavanas and the Kambojas. The Greek Yavanas were apparently a minority foreigners in India and naturally may have obtained, in this invasion, the military support of their good neighbors, the warlike Kambojas. The evidence from the Mathura Lion Capital inscriptions of Saka great Satrap (Mahakshatrapa) Rajuvula also lends strong credibility to this view.

The Mid India invasion was followed by almost two centuries of Yavana rule which in the light of evidence presented above, appears to have been a joint Yavana-Kamboja rule.

Scientific abilities[link]

There is a claim by proponents of the Aryan invasion theory that some Indian literature praises the knowledge of the Yavanas, or Greeks, as superior. Such claims are being re-examined by scholars with more concrete backgrounds in both spoken Sanskrit and Vedic temple rituals for greater cultural accuracy.

For example, one claim holds that a version of the Mahabharata describes yavanas as "sarvajnaa", or omniscient. Such superlatives, dispersed throughout the epic, were a common Sanskritic means of announcing characters, tribes, or families and paying due literary respect. For instance, the hated antagonist of the epic, Duryodhana, is in many verses renamed "Suyodhana", the prefix "su" meaning good, beautiful, and excellent.^[12]

Historically, people of barbaric civilizations were termed "mlecchas", with impure knowledge. "Barbarian" itself is derived from the Sanskrit "barbarah", meaning unpolished, lowly, fool or blockhead, while "sanskrit" refers to perfect action, polished, and cultured.^[13] This is consistent with Sanskrit's reputation across even present-day India as "deva bhaasha", or divine language.

References to "mlechha" teachings having any profound effect on India's enormous body of knowledge are discarded in serious academic circles. A more accurate description of Greeks may be from the "Brihat-Samhita", where the mathematician Varahamihira says: "The Greeks, though impure, must be honored since they were trained in sciences".^[14]

Other references[link]

On the 110 BCE Heliodorus pillar in Vidisha in Central India, the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas, who had sent an ambassador to the court of the Sunga king Bhagabhadra, was also qualified as "Yona".

The Mahavamsa also attests Yona settlement in Anuradhapura in ancient Sri Lanka, probably contributing to trade between East and West.

Buddhist texts like Sumangala Vilasini class the language of the Yavanas with the Milakkhabhasa i.e. impure language.

The Yonas and other northwestern invaders in Indian literature[link]

The Yavanas or Yonas are frequently found listed with the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas and other northwestern tribes in numerous ancient Indian texts.

The Mahabharata groups the Yavanas with the Kambojas and the Chinas and calls them "Mlechchas" (Barbarians). In the Shanti Parava section, the Yavanas are grouped with the Kambojas, Kiratas, Sakas, and the Pahlavas etc. and are spoken of as living the life of Dasyus (slaves). In another chapter of the same Parava, the Yaunas, Kambojas, Gandharas etc. are spoken of as equal to the "Svapakas" and the "Grddhras".

Udyogaparava of Mahabharata^[15] says that the composite army of the Kambojas, Yavanas and Sakas had participated in the Mahabharata war under the supreme command of Kamboja king Sudakshina. The epic numerously applauds this composite army as being very fierce and wrathful.

Balakanda of Ramayana also groups the Yavanas with the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas etc. and refers to them as the military allies of sage Vishistha against Vedic king Vishwamitra^[16] The Kishkindha Kanda of Ramayana locates the Sakas, Kambojas, Yavanas and Paradas in the extreme north-west beyond the Himavat (i.e. Hindukush).^[17]

The Buddhist drama Mudrarakshasa by Visakhadutta as well as the Jaina works Parisishtaparvan refer to Chandragupta's alliance with Himalayan king Parvatka. This Himalayan alliance gave Chandragupta a powerful composite army made up of the frontier martial tribes of the Shakas, Kambojas, Yavanas, Parasikas, Bahlikas etc.^[18] which he utilised to defeat the Greek successors of Alexander the Great and the Nanda rulers of Magadha, and thus establishing his Mauryan Empire in northern India.

Manusmriti^[19] lists the Yavanas with the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas, Paradas etc. and regards them as degraded Kshatriyas (members of the warrior cast). Anushasanaparava of Mahabharata^[20] also views the Yavanas, Kambojas, Shakas etc. in the same light. Patanjali's Mahabhasya^[21]) regards the Yavanas and Sakas as anirvasita (pure) Shudras. Gautama-Dharmasutra^[22] regards the Yavanas or Greeks as having sprung from Shudra females and Kshatriya males.

The Assalayana Sutta of Majjhima Nikaya attests that in Yona and Kamboja nations, there were only two classes of people...Aryas and Dasas...the masters and slaves, and that the Arya could become Dasa and vice versa. The Vishnu Purana also indicates that the "chatur-varna" or four class social system was absent in the lands of Kiratas in the East and the Yavanas and Kambojas etc. in the West.

Numerous Puranic literature groups the Yavanas with the Sakas, Kambojas, Pahlavas and Paradas and refers to the peculiar hair styles of these people which were different from those of the Hindus. Ganapatha on Pāṇini attests that it was a practice among the Yavanas and the Kambojas to wear short-cropped hair (Kamboja-mundah Yavana-mundah).

Vartika of Katayayana informs us that the kings of the Shakas and the Yavanas, like those of the Kambojas, may also be addressed by their respective tribal names.

Brihat-Katha-Manjari of Kshmendra ^[23] informs us that king Vikramaditya had unburdened the sacred earth of the Barbarians like the Shakas, Kambojas, Yavanas, Tusharas, Parasikas, Hunas etc. by annihilating these sinners completely.

The Brahmanda Purana^[24] refers to the horses born in Yavana country.

The Mahaniddesa^[25] speaks of Yona and Parama Yona, probably referring to Arachosia as the Yona and Bactria as the Parama Yona.

Later meanings[link]

The terms "Yona", "Yonaka" or "Yavana" literally referred to the Greeks. However were termed as "Mlechas" probably due to the barbaric behaviour as invaders. Indian languages did not address the difference based on religion early on but after the arrival of Islam to the subcontinent, more than Mussalaman or Muslim, appellation Yavana along with Turuka, Turuska, Tajik, and Arab came to be used for invaders professing Islam as their religion.^[26]

Contemporary usage[link]

The word Yona, or one of its derivatives, is still used by some languages to designate contemporary Greece, such as in Arabic (يونان), in Hebrew (יוון), in Turkish ("Yunanistan"), in Assyrian (Yawnoye ܝܘ̈ܢܝܐ), or the Pashto, Hindi, Urdu, Malay and Indonesian languages ("Yunani").

See also[link]

• Yavana Kingdom
• Greco-Buddhism
• Names of the Greeks
• History of Buddhism
• Kambojas

Footnotes[link]

References[link]

• The shape of ancient thought. Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian philosophies, by Thomas Mc Evilly (Allworth Press, New York 2002) ISBN 1-58115-203-5

External links[link]

• Pali dictionary definition of "Yona"

"Yona" is also a common transliteration of the Hebrew form of the given name commonly given to both men and women, Jonah

K. J. Yesudas
K. J. Yesudas
Background information
Birth name	Kattassery Joseph Yesudas
Also known as	Gana Gandharvan, Dasettan
Born	(1940-01-10) 10 January 1940 (age 72) Fort Kochi, Cochin, Indian Empire
Origin	Kochi, Kerala, India
Genres	Indian classical music, playback singing, music director[1]
Occupations	Singer, composer
Years active	1961–present
Website	www.yesudas.com

Kattassery Joseph Yesudas (born 10 January 1940) is an Indian classical musician and playback singer.

Yesudas sings Indian classical, devotional, and popular music. He has recorded more than 50,000 songs in many languages including Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu, Bengali, Gujarati, Oriya, Marathi, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tulu, Malay, Russian, Arabic, Latin and English during a career spanning five decades.^[2][3] He has performed in most Indian languages except Assamese, Konkani and Kashmiri.^[4][5] He also composed a number of Malayalam film songs in the 1970s and 1980s.^[1] Yesudas is fondly called Gana Gandharvan (English: The Celestial Singer)^[6][7]

He has won the National Award for the Best Male Playback Singer seven times (the most by any Indian singer) and the State Award for the Best Playback Singer 43 times, which consists of awards by the state governments of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and West Bengal. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1975 and Padma Bhushan in 2002 by the Government of India for his contributions towards the arts.^[8]

In 2006, he sang 16 film songs in four South Indian languages on the same day at AVM Studio, Chennai; the 16th song won him a Kerala State Award.^[9]

Early life and background[link]

K. J. Yesudas was born at Fort Kochi,in the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin, into a Latin Catholic family to Augustine Joseph and Alicekutty. His father, who was a well-known Malayalam classical musician and stage actor, was his first guru. Later he joined the R.L.V. Music Academy at Thrippunithura and underwent training. Later he studied at Sree Swati Thirunal music college, Thiruvananthapuram under the late Semmangudy Sreenivasa Iyer. But he could not complete his studies due to financial constraints. For a brief period, he was with Sri Vechur Hari Hara Subramania Iyer, after which he took advanced training from Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar.In 2011 he completed his 50 Years as a Play Back Singer.

• Completed the Ganabooshanam course at R.L.V. Music Academy, Thripunithura, Cochin
• Graduated from the Sree Swathithirunal Music Academy, Trivandrum
• Trained under K. R. Kumaraswamy (former principal of the Music College, Kochi), Kunjuvelan Aasan (a disciple of Nadaswara Vidwan Rajaratnam Pillai), Augustine Joseph (his father), Dekshinamoorthi Swamikal V. Dakshinamoorthy, Ramankutti Bagavathar, Sivaraman Nayar, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar.

Playback singing career[link]

Debut and Early career: In 1960's[link]

The first song sung by Yesudas is Jaathi Bhedam Matha Dwesham (music: M B Sreenivasan) on 14th Nov 1961, which he usually sings on all the special occasions in front of the audience. Yesudas began his career in playback singing in the Malayalam movie Kaalpadukal^[3] and Tamil movies in the early 1960s.

He got the first break in his music career with the hit malayalam film named Bharya ( music by G. Devarajan and lyrics by Vayalar Ramavarma). He sang in Tamil for Bommai first (music: S. Balachander), but the first released movie was Konjum Kumari (music: Veda).^[10]

The trio combination of Salil-Yesudas -Prem Nazir (the evergreen hero of Malayalam Cinema) took the Malayalam Cinema Industry of the 70's by storm. It was generally agreed that Yesudas's voice was the most suited one for Prem Nazir.^[11]

In 1970 he was nominated to head the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy and was the youngest person ever to occupy the post.^[12]

Bollywood entry: In 1970's[link]

By the 1970s Yesudas entered Bollywood.The first Hindi song he sung was for the movie Jai Jawan Jai Kissan (1971), but the first released movie was Chhoti Si Baat. He has sung Hindi songs for many leading actors in Hindi cinema including Amitabh Bachchan, Amol Palekar and Jeetendra. He has sung many evergreen Hindi film songs for music directors including Ravindra Jain, Bappi Lahiri, Khayyam, Rajkamal and Salil Chowdhury.^[13]

Yesudas's most popular Hindi songs are in the 1976 movie Chitchor, with music given by Ravindra Jain. The greatest tribute to Jesudas was paid by Ravindra Jain, in an interview wherein the blind music director confessed that if ever he happened to regain vision, the first person he would like to see would be Yesudas.^[11]

Prominence over the world[link]

Yesudas has performed in many major cities around the world. In 1965, he was invited by the Soviet Union government to perform at music concerts in various cities in the USSR and also sang a Russian song over Radio Kazakhstan.^[12][14] Yesudas became one of the senate members in the International Parliament for Safety and Peace.^[15] On November 14, 1999, Yesudas was presented with an honorary award by UNESCO for "Outstanding Achievements in Music and Peace" at the "Music for Peace" event in Paris.a concert held to mark the dawn of the new millennium and whose attendees included artistes such as Lionel Richie, Ray Charles, Montserrat Caballé, and Zubin Mehta.^[16]

In 1971, during the Indo-Pakistani War, Yesudas traveled all around Kerala with his musical troupe to raise funds for the Indian Prime Minister's National Defense Fund.^[13]

In 2001 he sang for album Ahimsa in Sanskrit, Latin and English and in a mix of styles including New Age and Carnatic.^[17] In his music concerts in the Middle East he sings Arabic songs in the Carnatic style.^[18] He frequently serves as a cultural ambassador for India through his performances abroad, promoting Indian music.

In 2009 Yesudas began a cross-country musical campaign against terrorism in Thiruvananthapuram, with the motto 'Music For Peace'.^[19] Kavita Karkare, wife of Hemant Karkare, handed over the torch to Yesudas to mark the launch of the 'Shanthi Sangeetha Yatra'.^[20]

Personal life[link]

Yesudas is married to Prabha. They have three sons, Vinod, Vijay and Vishal. The second son Vijay Yesudas is a budding musician who won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer in 2007. The family is currently settled in Chennai and Trivandrum. He also owns estates in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA and Flower Mound, TX, USA for personal and business reasons.^[21]

Role models[link]

Sree Narayana Guru’s great message, "One caste, One religion and One God for all humanity", influenced young Yesudas in his dealings with his fellow men. He had his own heroes among the musicians too. Mohammed Rafi, Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, Mukesh and Balamurali Krishna are the ones he admires the most.^[22]

Spiritualism[link]

For the past 30 years Yesudas has been visiting Kollur Mookambika temple, Udupi, Karnataka on his birthday to sing keerthans of Saraswati devi, the Goddess of knowledge, music and the arts. The music festival started on his 60th birthday. The nine-day music festival begins every January at Kollur Mookambika Temple. On Sunday, January 10, 2010, he celebrated his 70th birthday (Sapthathi) at Kollur Sri Mookambika Temple with ‘Sangeetharchana’ (classical devotional songs), along with 70 singers before goddess Mookambika. The Sangeetharchana included "Pancharatna Gayana" of Thyagaraja’s poems. He also took part in the Vidyarambha function. All India Radio broadcasted the special Sangeetharchana all over Kerala.^{[23] [24] [25] [26]}

Music company[link]

In 1980 Yesudas established the Tharangani Studio at Trivandrum. In 1992 the office and studio were moved to Chennai, Tamil Nadu and the company was incorporated in the US in 1998. Tharangni Studio and Tharangni Records became a recording center in Kerala which, for the first time, brought out audio cassettes of Malayalam film songs in stereo. The record company also had a voice mixing studio in Studio27, Chennai. The studio continues to produce and present events of Yesudas both for film and Indian classical music concerts throughout the world.^[27]

Notable facts[link]

• After winning the Kerala State Award for Best Playback singer on numerous occasions, he asked that he be ruled out of contention so as to give his peers and newcomers a chance of winning the award. Despite his request, he was still given this award several times in the following years.
• Playback singer Unni Menon, who was singing track songs for other prominent singers, got a break when Yesudas, after hearing the track songs Unni Menon had sung for the Malayalam film Kadathu, asked the music director Shyam to record and release the songs as they were. Yesudas was of the opinion that the songs did not need to be rendered by him as Unni Menon had already done it well and there was no need for improvement.
• Harivarasanam, a devotional song musical version composed by G. Devarajan, recited before closing the temple at Sabarimala was sung by Yesudas. Though there have been many different renditions of this song by many different renowned singers, Sabarimala officially uses Yesudas' voice for Harivarasanam every day.^[2]
• Swaralaya Yesudas award is a prestigious award for music artists in recognition of their outstanding performance. The award is instituted jointly by Swaralaya, an organization that promotes music and Kairali Channel, based in Trivandrum, Kerala. Awards have been given annually since 2000. Yesudas presents the awards at a Gandharva Sandhya every January.^[28][29][30]

Awards and honours[link]

Yesudas has recorded over 50,000 songs and has won scores of accolades including the coveted Padma Shri (1975), Padma Bhushan (2002)^[31] and seven National Awards for Best Playback Singer. He is the only singer who has been accorded the title Asthana Gayakan (official singer) of Kerala State.

• National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer a record seven times by the Government of India
• Kerala State Film Awards a record 24 times for the best playback singer by the Government of Kerala
• Tamil Nadu State Film Awards five times for the best playback singer by the Government of Tamil Nadu
• Andhra Pradesh State Film Awards four times for the best playback singer by the Government of Andhra Pradesh
• Karnataka State Film Awards five times for the best playback singer by the Government of Karnataka
• West Bengal State Film Awards one time for the best playback singer by the Government of West Bengal
• Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1992)
• D. Phil by Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu (1989)
• D. Litt by Kerala University, Kerala (2003)
• D. Litt by Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala (2009)
• Swaralaya - Eenam Awards 2010 - Decade's Best Talent in Malayalam Music
• Swathi Sangeetha Puraskaram in 2011, highest music award given by Government of Kerala

Filmography[link]

As Actor[link]

Discography[link]

See also[link]

• List of K. J. Yesudas concerts
• Swaralaya Yesudas Award
• List of Carnatic singers

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: K. J. Yesudas

• "Site dedicated to yesudas: ‘kjyesudas.com’". The Tribune. June, 2001. http://www.kjyesudas.com. 
• "Article on Yesudas: ‘For me music is God’". The Tribune. October 15, 2005. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20051015/saturday/main1.htm. 
• Interview with Yesudas: "Religions and races should not be obstacles but challenges for us"
• K. J. Yesudas at the Internet Movie Database
• K.J.Yesudas Tamil Songs

Shivaraj Kumar (Kannada: ಶಿವರಾಜಕುಮಾರ) (born Putta Swamy) is a Kannada film actor.^[1] He is the son of Kannada thespian Dr. Rajkumar. After graduating in B.Sc. (Chemistry), Shivaraj Kumar made his debut screen appearance in Singeetham Srinivas Rao's Anand. Shivanna's first three movies Anand, Rathasapthami and Mana Mechchida Hudugi all completed silver jubilee thus earning him the title Hatrick Hero – Shivaraj Kumar.^[2] His movie Jogi and Om are a milestone and biggest blockbusters in the Kannada film industry.^[3]

Today with more than 100 Kannada films to his credit,^[1] Shivraj Kumar maintains the standards set by his father by not acting in remake movies.^[4] Shivanna has won year 2005 Best Actor award for his film Chigurida Kanasu. In 2010, he starred in the movie Sugreeva which was shot in 18 hours.^[5]

Family and early life[link]

Born on 12 July 1962 in Bangalore, in Karnataka, to Rajkumar and Parvatamma. He has two sisters and two brothers; his younger brother, Raghavendra Rajkumar is a film producer and a film actor, his youngest brother, Puneet Rajkumar is also a Kannada film actor.^[6]

After his graduation from Madras University in 1983, Shivaraj Kumar, on the insistence of Dadasaheb Phalke Award winner K. Balachander (a veteran tamil director), joined an acting school in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. After training in Kuchupudi dance at Vempetti Chinni Sathyam in Chennai during his college days, he made an entry into the Kannada film industry with a hit film Anand.^[2]

Shivaraj Kumar married Geeta, the daughter of Late Former Chief minister of the Karnataka S.Bangarappa. The couple have two daughters Niveditha and Nirupama.^[7]

Acting career[link]

He started his acting career with the film Anand in 1986, which was a silver jubilee hit.^[2] In his career spanning over 25 years, he acted in a variety of roles. A number of his movies completed silver jubilee. The most notable movies of his career are Janumada Jodi, Jogi, Anand, Rathasapthami, Nammoora Mandara Hoove, Om, and Chigurida Kanasu.^[2] He also acted in a movie Sugreeva, which was shot in 18 hours. His film Om, directed by Upendra, set a trend of gangster movies in Kannada and other film industries in India. It is one of the biggest hits and most popular movies in the industry, which manages a re-release every year with housefull shows even now.^[8]

His movie is shot in 7 wonders of the world and his another movie Tamassu^[9] directed by journalist and activist Agni Shridhar which deals with Hindu Muslims riots. His 100th movie Jogayya is the sequel to his blockbuster movie Jogi.^[10]

Awards and honours[link]

Shivaraj Kumar has won 4 filmfare and 4 state awards in the best actor category. He has also won numerous Cine-Express, Sirigannada, ETV awards. He has also been conferred various titles like Hatrick Hero, Shivanna among others.

Filmfare award[link]

• Om (1995)
• Nammoora Mandara Hoove (1996)
• A.K.47 (1999)
• Thamassu (2010)

State award[link]

• Om (1995)
• Hrudaya Hrudaya (1999)
• Chigurida Kanasu (2004)
• Jogi (2004–2005)

Other[link]

• Ujvala Express Award: Aanand (1986), Bhoomitaayiya Chochala Maga (1998)
• Chitra Rasikara Sangha Prashasti: Midida Shruthi (1992), Janumada Jodi (1996), A.K.47 (1999)
• Hero-Honda Express Award: OM (1995), Janumada Jodi (1996), A.K.47 (1999)
• AaryabhaTa Prashasti: Janumada Jodi (1996)
• Screen Award: Nammoora Mandara Hoove (1996)
• SICA Special Jury Award: Tavarige Baa Tangi (2002), Chigurida Kanasu (which was remade in Hindi as Swades in 2004)
• Hello Gandhinagara Award: Chigurida Kanasu (2004)

Filmography[link]

External links[link]

• ShivarajKumar fansite
• Discussion forum
• Interview with Shivraj Kumar

References[link]