Hemanth M. Rao is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works in Kannada cinema. He rose to fame following the success of his directorial debut Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu (2016). Rao took to films after completing his graduation in engineering and brief stint with journalism, in 2005. He worked as an assistant director with Girish Kasaravalli in the latter's 2008 film Gulabi Talkies, before working with Jacob Varghese in Savaari (2009) and Prithvi (2010). He made his directional debut in 2016 with Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu, that tells the story of a son who goes about searching for his missing 66-year-old father, that had Rakshit Shetty and Anant Nag playing the respective roles. Talking about his what inspired him to choose such a subject, he said, "As a kid, I used to watch the missing reports on television news. The following day, I used to wonder what happened to those who had gone missing the previous day - were they found? When I started meeting people who have had people go missing in their family, I realized that, for the family, the lack of closure about the person who has gone away is the most important aspect. While this was one thread of the story, the other important element is the relationship between a father and a son, something that I have always been fascinated with." The film was received well by audiences and critics alike.