Hombale Films’ Kantara (also referred to as Kantara: Chapter 1 or Kantara: A Legend – Chapter 1) emerged as one of the biggest winners at the South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA) 2026, taking home a total of nine awards.
The film, produced by Hombale Films, swept major categories in the Kannada section at the 14th edition of SIIMA, held on September 12–13, 2026, at Koramangala Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru.
Key Awards Won by Kantara
Best Film (Kannada)
Best Director – Rishab Shetty
Best Actor – Rishab Shetty
Best Actress – Rukmini VasanthBest Music /
Best Music Composer – B. Ajaneesh Loknath
Best Cinematographer
Best Lyrics / Best Lyricist
Additional honours including a special appreciation for costume design and other technical/performance categories
Rishab Shetty’s Double Honour
Actor-director Rishab Shetty had a particularly successful night, winning both Best Actor and Best Director for his work on the film. This adds to his earlier SIIMA achievements for the original Kantara. He celebrated the wins on social media, congratulating the entire team and dedicating the recognition to the cultural roots and collective effort behind the project.
Rukmini Vasanth also received the Best Actress award for her performance, further highlighting the film’s strong ensemble recognition.
Broader Context
Kantara has been widely praised for blending folklore, regional traditions, and powerful storytelling, helping elevate Kannada cinema to a wider pan-India and international audience. The SIIMA success continues Hombale Films’ strong awards run, following the banner’s previous successes with the KGF franchise, Salaar, and other projects.
The production house has also expanded into distribution, including overseas markets, while continuing to explore diverse genres and formats.
Celebration of South Indian Cinema
SIIMA 2026 celebrated excellence across Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam cinema. While other films such as Mirai (Telugu Best Film) and titles from Tamil and Malayalam also received major awards, Kantara stood out as the most awarded film of the evening in the Kannada category.
The wins reaffirm the cultural and commercial impact of Kantara and the growing influence of rooted, high-quality South Indian storytelling on the national stage.
Congratulations to the entire team of Hombale Films and Kantara for this remarkable haul at SIIMA 2026!