'Kantara: Chapter 1': Rukmini Vasanth Joins The Rishab Shetty Film
The actress will be seen as Kanakavathi in the anticipated Kannada film.
Popular Kannada film actress Rukmini Vasanth will be part of Rishab Shetty's upcoming film Kantara: Chapter 1, a prequel to his popular 2022 film Kantara. Hombale Films, the makers of the title, made this announcement on X on Friday. "Introducing @rukminitweets as ‘KANAKAVATHI’ from the world of #KantaraChapter1," its post read, along with a poster of the actress decked in finery.
Apart from Rishab Shetty and Rukmini, the film's principal cast hasn't been revealed yet. The pan-Indian production recently wrapped up filming. The makers recently released a video anchored by Shetty's voice, taking us through the efforts that went behind the making of this prequel. "I had a dream. To share the story of my soul with the world. Our village, our people, our beliefs. When I chose to pursue that dream, 1000s of people stood with me," his narration begins, adding that the making took three years of hard work and 250 days of shoot. "No matter the challenges, the daiva never let go of me." He goes on to thank the producers and the entire team behind the film.
Produced by Hombale Films, the Rishab Shetty directorial is a prequel to his sensational Kannada production Kantara (2022), a film set in a village of Dakshina Kannada, weaving a powerful tale of the nature vs human conflict. The film starred Sapthami Gowda, Kishore Kumar, and Achyuth Kumar. The prequel, which will explore the reign of the Kadambas from Karnataka, is written and directed by Rishab Shetty (with Anirudh Mahesh and Shanil Guru serving as co-writers), and has music by B Ajaneesh Loknath.
It will be released on October 2 in Kannada, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu, Bengali, and English. Rukmini Vasanth, who rose to fame for her role in the Sapta Sagaradaache Ello (2023) movies, was last seen in Tamil film Ace (2025).