Rishab Shetty’s Kantara: Chapter 1 is earning massive appreciation from all quarters, and this is reflected in its box office numbers. The film has broken several records in terms of collections. Now, National Award-winning filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar has praised the movie. Here’s what he shared about the Kannada film.
Madhur Bhandarkar calls ‘Kantara : Chapter 1′ ‘extraordinary’
After watching Kantara: Chapter 1 in theaters, Madhur Bhandarkar took to his social media account to express his thoughts. Sharing a post on his X account, he wrote, “Saw the film #KantaraChapter1 by @shetty_rishab, and I must say, Indian cinema has never seen anything like it before. It’s a raw, divine, and utterly captivating work of art. #RishabShetty delivers an extraordinary performance, expertly crafting & carrying the entire film.”The filmmaker further added, “The performances, including @rukminitweets, are outstanding. The background score, sound design, cinematography, production design, and VFX are world-class. Big congratulations to @hombalefilms for their unwavering support of this brilliant creative team. #KantaraChapter1.”
More about ‘Kantara: Chapter 1’
Rishab Shetty is the director and lead actor of the film. It is a prequel to the 2022 hit Kantara. Alongside Rishab, the film also stars Jayaram, Rukmini Vasanth, and Gulshan Devaiah. Just like the first film, the prequel explores the Bhuta Kola ritual prevalent around coastal Karnataka.According to Sacnilk reports, the film opened to a staggering Rs 61.85 crore at the box office and has collected Rs 255.75 crore in India so far.The movie was released in theaters on October 2, 2025. In the Hindi belt, it clashed with Shashank Khaitan’s Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari, starring Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, and Rohit Saraf. However, the box office numbers clearly show that Bollywood could not compete with the Rishab Shetty directorial.
