The next big South Indian release Kantara: Chapter 1, prequel to the blockbuster Kantara (2022) hitting screens on October 2. The team is wrapping up promotions, and Rishab Shetty flew to Hyderabad for a pre-release event with Jr. NTR as the special guest.
But soon after the event, Rishab Shetty’s speech went viral on Telugu social media – and not in a good way. He is receiving heavy hate, not because he said anything offensive, but because he delivered his entire speech in Kannada.
Many Telugu movie fans are upset that he didn’t say even a single word in Telugu, despite eyeing the Telugu market and its box-office revenues. Some also pointed out that he didn’t even attempt English, which they see as a deliberate choice to speak only in Kannada. They argue that if he was uncomfortable speaking Telugu, he could have at least done what other non-Telugu actors do – switch to English.
Fans are also comparing his behavior at other events: he spoke Kannada at the Kannada event, Tamil at the Tamil event, and even Hindi during Hindi promotions. But at the Telugu event, he spoke entirely in Kannada, which is fueling the backlash.
Adding to the anger is the ticket price hike for the Telugu dub version of Kantara: Chapter 1. Many are questioning why a dubbed film gets such a price hike and feel Telugu audiences are being taken for granted because of their love for cinema.
Whether Rishab Shetty anticipated this backlash or not, his choice to speak only in Kannada has sparked an unusual reaction from Telugu audiences. Typically, Telugu movie fans do not get involved in language debates, unlike Tamil or Kannada fans, but this time they have joined the bandwagon and are even trending calls to boycott Kantara.
However, most agree that this boycott talk will not affect the film’s performance. If Kantara Chapter 1 delivers real strong word-of-mouth, it will still open big and likely become another blockbuster.
