Film stunt goes wrong, 2 Kannada actors jump from chopper and drown

Bengaluru: In a tragic turn of events, two Kannada actors have died after a movie stunt went horribly wrong at Tippagondanahalli Lake in Bengaluru.

The actors were filming the stunts for an upcoming film ‘Masti Gudi,’ which stars Duniya Vijay in the lead role.

While filming the scene, Vijay and the two actors, Anil and Uday, jumped into the lake from a helicopter. While the lead actor swam ashore, the other two didn’t surface for a long time, post which a search party was immediately dispatched.

The incident, which took place around 3 pm on Monday, allegedly happened due to inadequate safety precautions. Reportedly, there had been no prior rehearsal to gauge the safety risks, either.

While a team of expert swimmers tried to recover the two actors, they could not retrieve anything. A safety harness was provided to the lead actor but none were provided to the other two. The two had even confessed to not being good swimmers before going into the shot. No ambulances or speedboats were on standby during the shoot.

The two actors are said to have been extremely skeptical, having no confidence in their ability to swim through and the safety measures being implemented.

"The rescue operations are still going on. We will be booking case against those responsible and also inquire into all aspects - whether all adequate measures and permissions were taken or not," Ramanagara Superintendent of Police Dr Chandragupta told PTI.

Speaking to a Kannada news channel before performing the stunt, Uday had said he was "scared" of the stunt and was not good at swimming.

"I'm very scared first of all. I have not done (such stunt) so far, nor have I seen anyone performing such stunt so far, so I'm scared. Whatever safety is done there is always a fear within oneself, despite that the situation is that I have to perform it... He also said he was not good in swimming. "...I'm not that good in swimming, I can fall (into water) and come out, but I have never fallen into water from such a height, so there is some sort of fear within me."

Stating that precautionary measures had been taken by the team, he said "preparation is what they have done, they have said that once we fall they will come (in boat), we are dependent on it, if there is anything above it, there is God."

Previously, yesteryear’s Malayalam superstar Jayan had also died in a helicopter accident in 1980 during the making of the film, ‘Kolilakkam’. Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan had also incurred a near fatal blow, rupturing his intestines, while filming a crucial action scene for his cult film, Coolie.