HYDERABAD: The shocking death of two Kannada actors, who drowned while shooting an action sequence for the movie Mastigudi on Monday, has shaken the film fraternity across the country, including the Telugu film industry.
Tollywood producers lament the lack of safety measures available for the stuntmen in the industry. “The safety measures are not upto the mark. We are not taking enough precautions. It’s been going okay so we think everything is fine, but we need to do something about it. This incident is an eye-opener and a warning for everybody,” admitted D Suresh Babu, producer and president of Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce.
In an age where visual effects (VFX) and technology is available for stunts, many are appalled to see the callousness towards stuntmen. “We don’t realise how serious a job it is. Just because things have been going smoothly, we tend to forget the risks that this job poses. In today’s age, we need to use technology to correct this. We need to get a better process, where it’s clear about who are the people used for the stunts, what safety measures are taken,” Suresh Babu observed. While nobody sets out to endanger peoples’ lives, lack of funds has often led to inadequate safety measures for stunts. “There are some fight masters and companies who are careful about this but sometimes due to budget constraints, they tend to compromise on the quality of the equipment. So we need to be careful about this as well,” the producer added.
Fight masters, while saddened the incident, have assured that they do not compromise the safety of stuntmen, says fight master duo Ram Lakshman, “To give you an example, while shooting a sequence in Race Gurram (2014), there was a high-octane scene involving a lorry. After that scene, the lorry was battered but that stuntman was unharmed since he was wearing a seat belt.”The duo are currently shooting for Pawan Kalyan’s upcoming film Katamarayudu.