PremiumRakshit Shetty: The greatest need of the Kannada film industry is more stars and directors
Actor-filmmaker Rakshit also believes that just like a bunch of filmmakers from the Kudla region have made a mark, there have to be storytellers from all corners of Karnataka
Last Updated: 10.52 AM, Aug 08, 2023
Over the last few years, Rakshit Shetty, Rishab Shetty and Raj B Shetty have established themselves as a formidable trio in the Kannada film industry not only as actors, but, more importantly, as storytellers. Much of the strength of their stories came from their rooted settings, with the three Shettys delving into the culture and folklore of the home ground – the coastal belt, predominantly Mangaluru and its surroundings. Between the three of them, they have made immense contributions to the growth and development of the Kannada film industry, but for that to continue, Rakshit reckons that there are two major needs.
At the recent trailer launch of Toby, Rakshit had spoken about how there should be more filmmakers from, say, north Karnataka, telling stories of the place they’ve grown up in and represent that part of the state, instead of an outsider like him attempting to do that. In fact, Rakshit said that if he were to do a film on north Karnataka, he’d have to live there for a considerable amount of time to be able to grasp the nuances of the place.
In the same vein, during a recent promotional interview for Sapta Sagaradaache Ello with an online Kannada channel, Rakshit added that for the betterment of Sandalwood, the need of the hour is to have a lot more stars and filmmakers. Citing the example of a short film that featured a dialect from north Karnataka, Rakshit said that he was so enamoured by the language, that he asked the maker to work on a feature film script. Should that work out, Rakshit would be more than happy to produce the same. The actor-filmmaker added that he’s keen to produce a film that truly represents the culture of north Karnataka. Rakshit also noted that while the Mandya dialect has been a part of Kannada cinema, tales from that region have not been explored often and that story-tellers should emerge from every corner of the state.
As for the actors, Rakshit reckons that every tier should have at least 10 notable names, and not the 4-5 that each has today. Also of equal importance is a bank of good supporting actors to feature in the films of these tier 1, 2 and 3 stars, he said.