"Kannada audience took Kantara to the world and it changed the industry's image", says Rishab Shetty

He credited the Kannada audience for turning the film into a cultural wave.

At a grand trailer launch event of Kantara Part 1 in Mumbai, filmmaker and actor Rishab Shetty about the journey of the film, its phenomenal rise, and the vision behind the second part.

Reflecting on the script’s beginnings, Rishab Shetty recalled, “So, I think I explained it in two minutes, I explained the story in two minutes. He said, go ahead. So, I think in another 3–4 months, we finished the script.”

He credited the Kannada audience for turning the film into a cultural wave. “After the release, the Kannada audience, the people who appreciated us so much, by giving such a big wildfire to a spark, by spreading that sound, that voice to the world, that a film called Kantara has come to our industry… After that, every state, from Karnataka to Kerala, Telugu audience, Tamil audience, and Hindi audience, whoever came here, their image also changed.”

Rishab expressed gratitude to distributor. “He distributes only blockbusters. So, I was very happy to say that he is taking our film. Because it will reach more audience.”

The filmmaker revealed how the idea for a second part began. “Next was a huge challenge, because I got an idea, that with this content, we can do another part. Because for the first time, we put an announcement poster in Mumbai. It was a circle. Actually, in that circle, there was a well. So, in the second chapter, we got a poster, which was inside a well, and outside, there was a circle. So, there is such a connection.”

Promising an even richer cinematic experience, Shetty said, “This will entice people. And the mystery will be more than that. Humor will be more. The cinematic experience will be more. We will try to do as much as possible. The audience who has given so much love and blessings, we will not take that success as a success. We will take it as a responsibility.”

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He also spoke about the collective effort. “When you talk about me, I feel that thousands of people, I can’t say it, there are people behind me, there are people with me, because of them, we have achieved this. I hope it will entertain you.”

On the essence of Kantara, Rishab Shetty concluded, “To make a film like Kantara, we need the right producer. It’s not enough to get a producer who will invest money. They should believe in this, because it’s not just cinema, for me and for our team, which is Indian culture, our rooted story, our belief system, they should have a belief in it.”