Kantara actor-director Rishab Shetty revealed how filmmakers in India are too influenced by Hollywood and they try to work on those lines while forgetting their own audience.
Problem of Bollywood
The Kannada film Kantara has been a success story like no other. Based on regional Kannada folklore, Rishab Shetty’s film is a visual treat for the viewers. The film has shown remarkable growth at not just the Kannada box office but also in the Hindi and Telugu market. In just its Hindi version, the film has crossed Rs 50 crore Nett. Overall, it has collected more than Rs 310 crores at the box office.
While talking to Hindustan Times, writer, director, and lead actor of Kantara, Rishab Shetty opened up on how there is too much western influence in India which has led filmmakers to follow what Hollywood is doing.
“We make the film for the audience, not for ourselves. We need to keep them and their sentiments in mind. We need to see what their values and way of life are. We were there before we were filmmakers. But now, too much western influence and consumption of Hollywood and other content has led to filmmakers trying to do the same in India. But why are you trying that? People are already getting that in Hollywood, and they are doing it better in terms of quality, storytelling, and performances,” he said.
Western content on OTT
He further talked about all kinds of western content being available on OTT, but something like Kantara which is purely a regional story cannot be seen anywhere else.
“Now, on OTT, you are getting it (western content) on lots of platforms in lots of languages. But what you don’t get over there is my village’s story. That rooted, the regional story is something you don’t get anywhere in the world. You are a storyteller and your region has stories. That is what you need to bring to the people,” the Kantara star added.
Meanwhile, the blockbuster Kantara was released in the Kannada version and Hindi versions on 30th September and 14th October respectively. The film is written and directed by Rishab Shetty. Produced by Vijay Kiragandur and Chaluve Gowda, under Hombale Films, the film features Rishab Shetty, Sapthami Gowda, and Kishore Kumar G in pivotal roles.
