A tragic incident has struck the sets of Rishab Shetty's Kantara: Chapter 1, with the untimely passing of actor Kalabhavan Niju on Thursday at the age of 43 in Bengaluru, where he was shooting for the film. Reportedly, he complained of chest pain at the homestay arranged for the film’s artistes and was rushed to a nearby hospital, but could not be saved, and he died of a heart attack.
According to a report in OnManorama, mimicry artist Kannan Sagar confirmed the actor's death and shared that he was alerted about Niju’s demise in a WhatsApp group of the Mimicry Artists Association at around 10.30 pm. He said, "Members who knew about his demise were urged to contact a phone number. By 11 pm, someone from the location who knew me sent Niju’s photo and asked me to contact him. By that time, an artist from his native place had already contacted his family."
"Niju's house is located near the Vadanappally police station. "I met Niju on the sets of a comedy reality show. He was a member of the Mimicry Artist Association and had been part of comedy skits. Rest in peace, Niju,” said Kannan.
Rishab Shetty is yet to react to the tragic news of Kalabhavan Niju's death.
However, this is not the first loss the Kantara: Chapter 1 unit has suffered in recent times. In May, a 33-year old junior artiste named MF Kapil drowned in the Souparnika river near Kollur in Kundapur taluk in Karnataka during the shoot of the film.
Later, the makers clarified that the incident did not occur on the sets of Kantara. "No filming was scheduled on that day, and the unfortunate event would have occurred during his personal engagement outside the scope of any film related activity. We sincerely request the everyone drawing unverified associations with the film or its crew," read the statement.
