EXCLUSIVE: Won’t do Bollywood films: Kantara star Rishab Shetty reveals why he’s not keen on doing Hindi movies

The current arts scenario in the country presents a great time for Indian cinema as the lines and divisions between languages and industries have blurred. The audiences are no longer apprehensive of seeing films in other Indian languages if the story is relatable and it connects to them. The success of films like Pushpa: The Rise, RRR and KGF franchise are a proof to that. Joining this illustrious list is the Kannada film Kantara, starring Rishab Shetty who has also directed the film. The film has emerged a massive success even after not initially being released as a pan-Indian film. It has been over a month since the film’s release currently and it shows no signs of slowing down.

 

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A post shared by Rishab Shetty (@rishabshettyofficial)

Kantara has amassed a national fan following owing to its gripping storyline set in the legends of Indian heartland with people lauding Rishab Shetty for his performance as well as his vision as a director. Amidst all this success, Rishab got into an exclusive conversation with Bollywood Bubble where he shared the story of his life, his journey in showbiz, the success of Kantara and much more. Amongst the other topic of discussions was also the possibility of him entering Bollywood.

 

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When mentioned about his answer at a prior event to the possibility of him working in Hindi films, Rishab jumps in even before the question is completed, saying, “Nahi.” Explaining his point of view behind it, the actor-director shared, “Mujhe Kannada karna hai. (I want to work in Kannada.) I am a proud Kannadiga. I want to do films in Kannada because aaj main idhar hun Kannada industry ki wajah se, Kannda logon ke wajah se, Kannada cinema ki wajah se. To main mere ghar ko bhul nahi sakta hun. Mera jo agar ek film hit hua to mera jo family log ho, dost log ho wo change nahi hota hai na. Wo mera core udhar hi hai na. To wo bhi main nahi karna chahta hun aur nahi karna hoga. (I want to work in Kannada because I am here today due to the Kannada industry, Kannada fans and Kannada cinema. So, I can’t forget my roots and my home. If a film of mine has worked, that doesn’t change my family and friends. My core is still there. So, I can’t leave that and I wouldn’t.).”

 

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A post shared by Rishab Shetty (@rishabshettyofficial)

Taking the example of Kantara, he went on to elaborate, “Main har baar believe karta hun ki more regional is more universal. Jo wo regional content leke aake agar log pasand karte hain, idhar leke aake main present karta hun. Agar sirf wo Kannada mein release karna hai, udhar hi karta hun. Mujhe ek film aisa pan-India film ban gaya so wo bhi hum log nahi kiye the. Wo Kantara film khud pan-India karke release hua hai. Humko bhi pata nahi wo kaise hua kar ke. Sirf word of mouth spread hua to itna reach hua, wo plan bhi nahi tha. Agar aaj ye pan-India ban gaya to mujhe wo nahi hai ki next time aisa hi karna hai. Nahi, main udhar kahani batane ja raha hun aur wo mujhe zyada push karta hai and I really want to do films in Kannada. (I always believe that more regional is more universal. If people like my regional content, I present it here as well. But if I want to release it only in Kannada, I do that too. Kantara became a pan-Indian film on its own, we didn’t do that. We don’t know how it happened as it wasn’t our plan. It’s reach increased just because of the word-of -mouth. But now that this film became pan-India, it isn’t like I’ll do the same next time. I want to tell a story in Kannada next as that pushes me more.)”. 

It’s great to see how connected Rishab is to his roots and the place he comes from, but be it Hindi, Kannada or any other language, there surely is a lot of intrigue and excitement towards what he will do next after Kantara.

You can watch the entire conversation with Rishab Shetty on Kantara and more here:

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