# Huccha Venkat

Venkataram Laxman know by his stage name of Huccha Venkat, is an Indian actor and filmmaker who works in Kannada cinema.

## Career

Venkat made his acting debut with a supporting role in the 2005 film Mental Manja. His next role was a supporting role in the 2009 film Swathanthra Palya, which he also directed. In the 2014 film Huccha Venkat, that he also directed and produced, he starred as the eponymous lead; the film received negative reviews.
Before his film's release in 2014, Venkat was mostly a nobody. He soon rose to fame after media outlets released a viral video, in which he blamed Kannadigas not showing up to watch his film as the main reason for its failure on the very first day of its release. Following the debacle and subsequent re-release of his 2014 film Huccha Venkat, Venkat has been a regular guest in television talk-shows such as Bengaluru Benne Dose and Divided. He often appears on news channels while drunk. In October 2015 he appeared as a contestant on the reality television series Bigg Boss 3 aired on Colors Kannada. Venkat clashed with other participants on the show, primarily due to his insistence that his female contestants were dressing inappropriately; he also fought with Pratham even after the show completed. This eventually led to his eviction from the house after he assaulted another contestant, Ravi Mooruru. Venkat also challenged Sudeep, later withdrew the challenge and didn't want to talk to Sudeep ever.
Huccha Venkat fans have also created an Android app Huccha Venkat to get updates on their favorite actor. Senior journalist Ganesh Kasargod has written a book, "Huchcha Venkat...Huchchu Manasina nooru mukhagalu", which was released in January 2016.

## Other work

In 2018, Huccha Venkat contested in the Assembly elections from Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Bengaluru as an independent candidate. Huccha Venkat was unsuccessful in his first political venture.

## Filmography

| Year | Title | Credited as | Credited as | Credited as | Credited as | Credited as | Notes |
| Year | Title | Writer | Actor | Director | Producer | Singer | Notes |
| 2005 | Mental Manja | No | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 2009 | Swathanthra Palya | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | |
| 2014 | Huccha Venkat | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2016 | Parapancha | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Cameo appearance as Auto driver in the song "Huttida Ooranu" |
| 2017 | Porki Huccha Venkat | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2018 | Thikla Huccha Venkat | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2018 | Dictator Huccha Venkat | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2018 | Durahankari Huccha Venkat | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2018 | O Premave | No | Yes | No | No | No | Cameo appearance |
| 2020 | Mayabazar 2016 | No | Yes | No | No | No | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Channel | Notes |
| 2015 | Bigg Boss Kannada season 3 | Contestant | Colors Kannada | Ejected on Day 21 |
| 2021 | Life Ok | Host | Siri Kannada | Co-hosted with Murali |

## Controversies

Venkat is frequently seen as a controversial person in the Kannada media. One of his most notable controversies center around things he said while promoting his 2014 film Huccha Venkat, where he made claims that he was married to the Kannada actress Ramya and gave an expletive-laden rant to a television interviewer. Ramya responded to Venkat's claims by filing a police report and publicly refuting his statements, to which Venkat did not issue any response – although he did stop claiming Ramya was his wife and after that he started saying that he liked his partner, Rachana at the television show Super Jodi. Sushma refused to love him so he drank phenol in 2017. Venkat's rant, which was sparked by the poor opening turnout for his film, quickly went viral on YouTube and spawned several parody videos.
Venkat made other controversial statements in November 2015, in a television appearance where he allegedly made derogatory remarks towards B. R. Ambedkar while taking part in a panel discussion. After the appearance, several students viewing the discussion lodged complaints against Venkat and the news station, who they claimed provoked Venkat into making the offensive remarks. These complaints were followed by several protests and blackened Venkat's face. Venkat was arrested on 19 November 2015, and was held in judicial custody until 4 December 2015. Venkat was sent to Bangalore Central Prison where was held in judicial custody. Venkat's attorney has claimed that Venkat suffers from schizophrenia. As a growing concern, Venkat's remarks in TV channel is said to be discussed in Karnataka Legislative Assembly. On 25 November, a Bangalore city civil court issued conditional bail to Venkat. Venkat was not released until the surety amount was paid and the bail formalities completed. He was released on 3 December with conditional bail. Huccha Venkat has also claimed he will become Prime Minister of India, one day.