The root of the matter: Non-Kannada movie stars and their Karnataka connection

Karnataka's contribution to the world of cinema extends beyond just the film industry for the state serves as the birthplace to a significant number of movie stars across the country. Many of us would be aware of the fact that the mighty Guru Dutt was born in the village of Padukone in Karnataka before his tryst with cinema began in Mumbai, Aishwarya Rai was born in Mangaluru and so were Shilpa and Shamita Shetty while Suniel Shetty, one of Bollywood's top bills in the '90s, was born in a Tulu speaking family in the town of Mulki. The list, as enunciated, contains a number of big names but there are a few surprises in there too that most of us may not be aware of. So, let's take a quick look at the list of actors who you did not know had a connection with the lovely land of Kannada - these stars found success on "foreign waters", per se, but were born in Karnataka before their journeys began elsewhere. Here we go:

Image Courtesy: Facebook

The legendary Jamuna (birth name - Jana Bai) was born in the historic town of Hampi in the year 1936 before her family moved base to the Guntur District in Andhra Pradesh. It was here that she met fellow superstar Savitri who nudged her into the world of acting and changed the course of her destiny forever. Reportedly, Jamuna's mother tongue in Kannada.

Image Courtesy: Twitter

Known as The Cowboy of Bollywood, Feroz Khan was born Zulfiqur Ali Shah Khan to an Afghan father and a mother with Persian ancestry in Bengaluru. Feroz Khan remained in the city until he cleared high school (an alumnus of Bishop Cottons and St. Germain) before he chose Mumbai and the glittery world of Hindi Cinema as his true calling. Interestingly, Feroz Khan returned to his Bengaluru farmhouse at the time of his illness in 2009 but unfortunately succumbed to lung cancer a few days later. He is buried near his mother at the Hosur Road Shia cemetery in Bengaluru.

Image Courtesy: Facebook

Feroz Khan's younger Sanjay Khan too was born in Bengaluru in the year 1941. Sanjay, unlike his brother, would grow in Delhi until the Mumbai Calling came along sometime during the late '50s, where his pursuits as an actor eventually began in 1964. However, Sanjay Khan's connection with the city of Bengaluru ceased to go away as many years later he would invest in a sprawling 14-acre property on the city outskirts to construct a luxury hotel.

Image Courtesy: Facebook

The very talented actor might have found success in Hindi and Marathi cinema predominantly but his roots go back to the beautiful city of Belagavi in Karnataka. Born in Belagavi in 1965, Atul's acting stint began as a stage actor after pursuing a degree at the National School of Drama in Delhi but his movie debut came about with a Kannada-Hindi bilingual 'Bhoomi Geethe'. Despite being a Hindi actor, per se, Atul Kulkarni continued to explore Kannada and other cinemas of the south and found veritable success through the years. He has close to ten acting credits in Kannada alone to his name.

Image Courtesy: Facebook

Dino Morea's birth stands as a true testament to Bengaluru's cultural vibrance for the actor, and former model, was born in the city to an Italian father and Malayali mother. Dino would spend the first seven odd years in Italy before moving back to Bengaluru and graduating eventually from St. Joseph's College.

Image Courtesy: Facebook

The southern bombshell Raai Laxmi was born in Belagavi of Karnataka in the year 1989 to Ram and Manjula Raibagi. Raai Laxmi would turn actor at the young age of 15 with the Tamil film 'Karka Kasadara' after being reportedly spotted by the director in a Kannada short film titled 'Valmiki'. Interestingly, Laxmi would make her Kannada debut with a film of the same name alongside Shiva Rajkumar in 2005.

Image Courtesy: Facebook

Popular Telugu and Tamil actor Suman was born in a Tulu-speaking household in Mangaluru. Owing to his parents' professions, Suman grew up in Chennai and would later foray into Tamil cinema before Telugu films too beckoned him. He made his Kannada debut in 1997 with the film titled 'Jackie Chan'.

Image Courtesy: Facebook