A character actor who transitioned from stage to films in the mid-1960s, he had a brief period of success when his performances in social-dramas such as Gejje Pooje (1969), Sharapanjara (1971) and Seetha (1970) were noted.

[1] Gangadhar returned to stage in the 1980s after film opportunities failed to come his way; poor health condition led him to retire from acting in 1995, when he was aged 59.

[5] A makeup artist, Mahadevaiah, introduced Gangadhar to filmmaker G. V. Iyer, who cast him in Chowkada Deepa (1969) in the lead role.

[4] A popular collaboration during the time, the two went on to star together subsequently in Sotu Geddavalu (1971), Yaava Janmada Maitri (1972) and Bhale Adrushtavo Adrushta (1972).

Film historian Hariharapura Manjunath attributes it to the emergence of other leading men during the time such as Vishnuvardhan, Ambareesh and Shankar Nag among others.

[4] Gangadhar made occasional screen appearances in the 1980s; one notable role came in Bhakta Prahlada (1983), in which he played the Hindu deity Indra.

[3] In one of his last public appearances, the annual Kannada Film Directors Association event at the Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore, in April 2001, he teared up lamenting his deteriorating eyesight stating he was looking forward for his death.