The death of Puneeth Rajkumar, considered one of the most bankable stars of Kannada cinema, is a big hit to an industry already floundering from the impact of the pandemic.
“Over The Top platforms have accentuated the difficulty of drawing audiences to theatres for Kannada cinema. Among the present crop of heroes, Puneeth had an appeal across centres, age groups and regions. While there was immense craze about him among the youth, family audiences and even senior citizens came to theatres for his films. His death has left a big vacuum in this space,” said K.V. Chandrashekhar, president of Karnataka Film Exhibitors’ Association.
In some ways, Puneeth filled the vacuum after the death of Vishnuvardhan, who had a similar cross-sectional appeal and an ability to bring family audiences to cinemas, a senior producer said. “I don’t see anyone who can fill this vacuum just now,” he said, adding that this also meant a further hit on the business prospects and the baseline of the industry. Puneeth was also on the cusp of challenging and reinventing himself as an actor, collaborating with independent film-maker Pawan Kumar of Lucia fame, he pointed out.
Since 2019, as a producer, Puneeth had produced eight films — three under production, including a documentary on marine life off the Karnataka coast, and all new-wave indie films providing a platform for new talents such as Danish Sait and Hemanth Rao. Several other projects were in the discussion stage.
A great hope
His production house PRK Productions had emerged as a hope for many indie film-makers, as he was approachable. He also brought professionalism to both production and business aspects to the table, say industry insiders. With his death, the future of the production house is uncertain. “The production house had slowly emerged as the best platform to produce indie films since it not only meant funds, but also professionalism, assured business, and marketing, all of which are uphill tasks,” said film-maker Sandeep Kumar.
Mr. Pawan Kumar said, “Puneeth had a larger vision to take Kannada cinema to the global stage with international standards. Sadly, that dream is now cut short.”
Mr. Chandrashekhar said that the loss of promise he had shown was hard to digest. “Like the industry mourns Shankar Nag even today, speculating how he would have led it to newer heights if he had lived longer, it will lament Puneeth’s passing,” he said.
