Sometimes it is impossible to know where you are headed without reflecting on where you came from. But after bagging the Special Jury Award for his movie Kantara at the 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), actor-writer-director Rishab Shetty (aka Prashanth Shetty) knows exactly where he is heading in the world of entertainment.
Barely 10 hours after receiving the award and releasing the first look of his prequel Kantara: The Legend Chapter 1, the teaser has been a gargantuan success with over 15 million views. The teaser shows a muscular Rishab (Shivan) with bloodshot-eyes standing in the middle of a circle of fire in a dark forest. “Good content transcends language barriers. The Indian film industry is undergoing a revolution. Our local stories are going global and appeal to the international audience,” says Rishab.
The 40-year-old Kannada film industry actor firmly believes that Kantara clicked with audiences across the country because it was connected to the culture of Bharat (India). “It is an authentic film. Kantara is a tribute to traditional Kola dance and the community that performs it. I believe in the rituals and I worship this God,” he elaborates. However, the actor came down heavily on OTT platforms, saying, “They are biased and still not open to the Kannada film industry. There is very little exposure and that is causing a big loss to the industry. We must give back to Kannada cinema,” Rishab asserts. Rishab, prefers directing over acting.
