Not chasing success with every film, want to offer unique experience: Rishab Shetty

Mumbai: More than chasing success, “Kantara” star and director Rishab Shetty says he aims to present stories with a novelty aspect to the audience.

“Kantara”, a 2022 Kannada blockbuster, explored the intricate connection between humanity and nature through its folklore-based storytelling. The period action thriller, produced by Hombale Films, had amassed over Rs 450 crore worldwide at the box office.

“I don’t want to prove myself to anyone. That’s the biggest burden if you try to do so. I don’t think I’ll be able to work honestly if I take the burden of the success of ‘Kantara’. I can’t work under pressure. My focus is to offer a unique experience to people.

“I don’t have expectations and all. I am not chasing success with every film, that was not the intention even with ‘Kantara’. If I do so then I’ll deviate from my storytelling. My effort is to bring that novelty factor in a story to the audience,” Shetty, who also served as a writer on “Kantara”, told PTI in an interview.

The makers recently unveiled the first-look teaser of “Kantara A Legend: Chapter 1”, the prequel to “Kantara”. The new film will dig into the reign of Kadamba Dynasty, the ancient royal family of Karnataka.

The muhurat of the project was held recently at Anegudde Temple in Kundapur, Karnataka.

According to Shetty, “Kantara A Legend: Chapter 1” will explore the origins of the Panjurli Deiva and Guliga Deiva, which were a core element in the first film of the franchise.

It took about three months to write the prequel of “Kantara”, he added.

“We had everything ready… The script, dialogue, production, and everything else was ready in three months. We started work on the prequel soon after shooting ‘Kantara’ as we had plans to do a lot of things. A script like this takes a lot of time,” he said.

The shoot on “Kantara A Legend: Chapter 1” will begin by the end of December in the coastal region of Karnataka.

The 40-year-old said the team was discussing the idea of expanding the film’s universe while shooting for “Kantara”.

“I remember while shooting for ‘Kantara’, I had told my team, we can go forward or backward with the story but we had not taken a concrete decision about it.

“People often state that we are making part two when they get a sense that there’s good buzz around the film before its release. After the film was released, Vijay anna (Kiragandur, producer) and I sat together and decided that we should make a prequel and not a sequel,” Shetty added.

Produced by Vijay Kiragandur of Hombale Films, “Kantara A Legend: Chapter 1” will be released in theatres next year in Kannada, Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Bengali and English.