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'Kantara: Chapter 1': Rishab Shetty Criticised For Speaking Kannada During Telugu Event
Rishab Shetty recently addressed the controversy at a press event.
During a recent promotional event of the Telugu version of his upcoming film Kantara: Chapter 1, Rishab Shetty took the stage and addressed his audience in Kannada. He began by saying that he would be helped by friend Jr NTR as he addressed his fans, but despite this, the fact that he did not speak in Telugu did not go down well with certain sections of the audience. Several fans took offence at how Shetty chose to speak other local languages during his multi-city promotions, but not Telugu. He had made the effort to speak partly in Malayalam, too, during a press meet in Kochi.
Shetty briefly addressed the criticism at a recent press event. "I think in Kannada. I have an interest to learn languages and I believe in respecting all languages when I go to different cities. But sometimes this also backfires," he says, adding that he faces criticism for speaking the local language in one city and not speaking the language of another.
This uproar also comes on the sidelines of the approval of the ticket hike for Kantara: Chapter 1 in Andhra Pradesh. This has stirred controversy among unhappy Telugu film fans. While soft calls for "boycotting" the film in Telugu states were echoed on X, Telugu superstar Pawan Kalyan encouraged fans not to target the film.
"Cinema, music, sports, and cultural arts have no boundaries of language, region, caste, or religion. Their core purpose is to entertain and connect people from all walks of life. It is unfortunate that some individuals, driven by personal agendas, have tried to block the screening of OG in theatres across Karnataka - just as a few other Telugu films have faced similar obstacles in the past. In response, some voices have now begun to suggest that Kannada films like Kantara should be restricted in our Telugu states. I do not support this thinking," he said in a press note.
Pawan Kalyan's latest film, OG, also faced controversies during release in Bengaluru, when fan celebrations for the film were restricted for not having proper permissions in place.
The prequel, which is produced by Hombale Films, co-stars Rukmini Vasanth, Gulshan Devaiah, and Jayaram in key roles. The film has cinematography by Arvind Kashyap and music by Ajaneesh Loknath. It's set to hit the theatres on October 2.