Fraught with danger

Unprepared stunts

The drowning of Kannada actors Raghava Uday and Anil Kumar in Thippagondahalli reservoir during the shooting of  ‘Masti Gudi’ brings to the fore the lack of safety measures taken during the filming of such dangerous sequences.

Actors, directors and stuntmasters in the Kannada film fraternity can’t comprehend how such a risky scene could have been shot without sparing a thought for the safety of the artistes.

Stunt master Thriller Manju says, “At a time when technology can be effectively used to shoot such scenes, I wonder why actors were asked to do real stunts.
These stunts should have been done by experts in the field and not actors themselves.”

Manju also points out that both Uday and Anil had earlier said that they didn’t know how to swim and were concerned about the act.

“If they were apprehensive about pulling off such a stunt, then why were they asked to do it?” questions Manju.

“Even if the script demands such a scene, provisions should have been made for wires or safety harnesses to be tied to the actors . If the actors were required to go bare-chested, then life jackets could have been fitted around the waist or even concealed in their pants. This would have kept them afloat for a while.”

Director Suri remembers Uday and Anil to be very energetic actors, who were happy and content in their small world. “There is something called preparedness and foresight that is required before taking dangerous shots. Even if an actor is required to stand near a bridge, the crew has to be prepared to handle any eventuality.

Common sense and foresightedness was clearly missing in this case,” he adds. He says effective use of technology could have saved two precious lives.

“There’s something called Green Mat Technology where water ( or even people) can be created with the help of technology. Looks like the producers didn’t want to invest money towards sprucing up safety,” he adds.

He also points out that no amount of money or donation for the family of the deceased can compensate for the loss of lives.  When asked about whether a different treatment is meted out to senior and junior artistes while performing
such stunts, he says they should be given the same treatment.

Some junior artistes in the Kannada film industry, who play small roles, feel that they aren’t being treated as well as the senior actors.

Sharing his thoughts on the recent mishap, a junior stunt artiste, who didn’t want to be named, says that he is isn’t surprised that precautions were not taken during the
recent shoot.

He elaborates, “There have been times when I’ve worked on daring stunts but haven’t been provided with safety gear.  Once, I had to ride a motorcycle through a ring of fire for a shot and was not provided a safety jacket. When I asked the producer for the same, he told me that I could either do the role or leave and that they would find a replacement. This is the only job I know and it is my livelihood. I found his comment quite insensitive,” he says.
     
Shooting dangerous scenes is not new in Kannada cinema but  are the producers making sure that all precautions are in place before risky scenes are planned?
Stunt master Shivu, who shot to fame after jumping off a double-decker bus in the film ‘Lock Up’, says the first step before shooting any dangerous stunt is to survey the place.

“The director and the producer must first analyse the scene and look out for
possible mishaps and take the necessary precaution. In this case, the junior actors weren’t given any life jackets and there weren’t enough boats. There should have been at least five or six fully operational boats around the place where the stunt was being shot,” he says and adds, “We wouldn’t have lost two precious lives had there been better foresight and planning.”
   
‘This could have been avoided’
Actor Yash, who has worked with Anil in ‘Masterpiece’ and ‘Mr and Mrs Ramachari’ and with Uday and Anil in  ‘Santhu Straight Forward’, says that the news hasn’t sunk in. “No dangerous stunts should be done without  safety measures. There was no  planning involved and I cannot understand why Uday and Anil weren’t given life jackets,” says Yash. Sharing his experience of doing a water stunt in ‘Modala Sala’, Yash says,“On TV, I noticed Uday and Anil wearing boots. When you jump into water with boots on, it gets heavy and increases the chances of drowning. This could have been avoided.”