Sunil Kumar Desai is an Indian film director, writer and producer, known for his work in Kannada cinema. In most of his films, Desai blends art and commercial cinema. He has written and directed Thrillers and Romance films. He has won the Karnataka State Film Awards in the Best Screenplay & Best Dialogues categories. He has also won the Filmfare awards 4 times. Desai worked with South Indian musicians like Illayaraja, Hamsalekha and Gunasingh.

Karnataka State Film Awards are the most notable and prestigious film awards given for Kannada film industry in Karnataka, India. These are considered the highest awards for Kannada language films. They are given annually by the Government of Karnataka to honor the best talent and to provide encouragement and incentive to the Kannada film industry.