Okay, it's been ages since I have seen a Kannada movie; probably decades. Not because there is a dearth of Kannada releases in theatres, but because of the dearth in quality.
But this one came with a huge reputation and good word of mouth; I was enticed.
Apparently it is a remake of a Malayalam film, but it is more like Cheeni Kum meets Beladingala Baale; the former was about old age romance in the backdrop of cooking, which this film is, and the latter - a Kannada film - had a young female fan expressing her love over the phone to an ageing chess player, which this film resembles to a certain extent.
I am not entirely sure about the title though - Oggarane = thadka, or the final spicy seasoning which many Indian foods have - suggests that one of the principal characters is a cook. But the cook is a supporting actor; the main character is a foodie, and there is not a lot of oggarane going on! In fact, the lead characters share a recipe of a triple layer cake in the middle of the film!
But there is a lot of cooking going on in the film, and the title track and sequence are about people downing eatables in various settings, all of which form a culinary backdrop to what's actually cooking in the main story - a mature love story.
There is a subplot going on about the lead character involving himself in a adivasi - a tribal guy's secret Ayurvedic formula, which some cronies want very badly. What this has to do with the main story is mystifying, as this plot ends abruptly towards the latter half of the movie and doesn't even figure in the climax.
There are some good moments though; such as the lead pair's trials and tribulations related to a lonely, partner-less existence, a gay person lamenting about having to remain single, etc. The support cast is excellent, although the leading lady's associate, played by Urvashi, is supposed to belong to a Malayali Christian community, but has a distinctly Tamil accent.
Leave out the trivialities, and you have a fine film, quite distinct from the usual slam-bang Kannada films. And we have to thank Prakash Rai - yes, it is RAI - not Raj! - for bringing this to us through his production house.
Rai's political leanings may be unfortunate, but - I believe in giving credit where it is due - his acting abilities are first-rate. Oggarane is his show all the way, as the camera celebrates his awesome screen presence and towering performance.
It is refreshing to see him in a 'normal' role; quite a relief from the stereotyped Hindi film badman roles that he has been essaying by the dozen.
Image source: http://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bjkx0KtCYAAjOHM.jpg:medium
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