Case No. 18/9

Case No.18/9 (ಕೇಸ್ ನಂ. ೧೮/೯) is a 2013 Indian Kannada language film directed by Mahesh Rao, a remake of the Tamil film Vazhakku Enn 18/9 (2012). The film stars Niranjan Shetty and Sindhu Lokanath. The supporting cast features Abhishek, Shweta Pandit and Rangayana Raghu.

Cast

 * Niranjan Shetty as Mahadeva
 * Sindhu Lokanath as Lakshmi
 * Abhishek as Sandy
 * Shweta Pandit as Kavya
 * Rangayana Raghu as Revanna
 * Girija Lokesh
 * Kari Subbu
 * Karthik Sharma
 * Mico Nagaraj
 * Marina Thara
 * Rekha V. Kumar
 * Koli Ramya
 * Apoorva
 * Kuri Prathap
 * Victory Vasu
 * Girish
 * Girish Jatthi
 * Gowda Kondajji
 * Shailashree
 * Joseph
 * Master Goutham
 * Manjula
 * Vijay Simha
 * Harshika Poonacha as an item number

Production and marketing
The film was announced in September 2012, as the remake of the 2012 Tamil film Vazhakku Enn 18/9. Niranjan Shetty and Sindhu Lokanath were signed to play the lead roles. Shweta Pandit was signed to play the role of a school-going girl in the film, in October 2012. Reports came out in March 2013, that Harshika Poonacha would be making a cameo appearance in the film, in an item number. The song was filmed at a pub in Bangalore at an estimated cost of inr 35000.

The trailer of the film featuring sequences of action and romance, was released on YouTube on 30 April 2013. Prior to 2 weeks of the film's release, its satellite rights were secured by the TV channel Suvarna, for over inr 15700000.

Soundtrack
The music for the soundtrack was composed by Arjun Janya, also writing the lyrics for the track "Yakbekithappa Mobile Phonu". The other tracks had lyrics were written by Ghouse Peer, V. Nagendra Prasad, Mahesh Rao, Vikas Chandra and Hrudaya Shiva. The album consists of seven soundtracks.

Critical reception
Upon theatrical release, the film received generally positive reviews from critics. The performances Niranjan Shetty, Sindhu Lokanath, Shwetha Pandit and Rangayana Raghu, and the film's direction, screenplay and narration received praise from critics.

G. S. Kumar of The Times of India reviewed the film giving it a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote, "Armed with an excellent script, director Mahesh Rao has handled the sequences very well with good narration". He concluded crediting the performances of all the lead characters, and the cinematography and music. Bangalore Mirror, in its review called the film "a laudable effort" and praises the performances of Niranjan Shetty, Sindhu Lokanath, Shwetha Pandit and Rangayana Raghu, and credits the screenplay and music. Writing for Deccan Herald, B. S. Srivani gave the film a 3-star rating and wrote, "Case no. 18/9 stands out for several reasons. Sabha Kumar’s camerawork is excellent, Arjun Janya revives spirits with his score and Deepu S Kumar is so mindful of his scissors, the impact created by the secondary leads is maximised, leading to a rather tame climax, which appears so mainly because it comes out so naturally!" and concluded writing, "Nirranjan’s lament, Sindhu’s shining eyes, Abhishek’s sneer, Shwetha’s body language and Raghu’s quiet competence linger long after the case is closed." Sify.com gave the film an average rating and said the film "original essence of the movie (Vazhakku Enn 18/9) has been retained from the start till the end." It also added that the performances of Raghu stand out and credited the director's "technical brilliance, grip over narration and impressive film-making."

Award nominations

 * 3rd South Indian International Movie Awards
 * Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Kannada) – Sindhu Lokanath
 * Best Male Debutant (Kannada) – Niranjan Shetty