'Kantara': Rishab Shetty reacts to rumors about film being 'jinxed'
What's the story
Rishab Shetty, the star and director of the Kannada movie Kantara Chapter 1, recently opened up about the untimely deaths of three artists during the production period of the Kantara projects. In an interview with SCREEN, he called them "a huge loss" but insisted they couldn't be linked to the movie. The actor also pushed back on the rumors that the film is "jinxed."
Details
Two deaths not on set
Shetty explained that two of the deceased were junior artists, one of whom had not even reached the set when he died due to a heart attack. "We sent the manager there to take him to the hospital and get the post-mortem and other formalities sorted," he said. The second death was also not on set but occurred in another town.
Tribute
The death of a key artist
The third artist was Rakesh Poojary, a prominent character in Kantara Chapter 1. "Rakesh's loss was huge; he was like my brother. He was very committed right from the time of rehearsals," Shetty said. Poojary died of a heart attack 15-20 days after wrapping up shooting for the film while attending a friend's wedding. "Good people leave us soon; that's what happened."
Response
Shetty addresses the negative narrative
After the deaths, a narrative emerged on social media that Kantara Chapter 1 was jinxed. Addressing this, Shetty said, "Outside, a negative narrative got set about Kantara, a lot of people said a lot of things." "Rakesh had gone home 15-20 days after completing the shoot." "I took a risk that time; there was a possibility of the film getting negative publicity."
Filmmaking journey
On spending 5 years on 'Kantara'
Shetty has reportedly spent five years on Kantara's two installments, shooting at live locations for over 250 days. Despite the challenges, he remains committed to his work. "I am an actor and a director, but I don't have fan associations; I don't have the fanbase to trend on Twitter." "I am alone, working with my team," he said in response to the negative narrative surrounding his directorial. Meanwhile, Kantara Chapter 1 is now in theaters.