Rakshit’s furry, cuddly co-stars train hard for 777 Charlie

Rakshit Shetty is busy with Avane Srimannarayana, and will simultaneously be shooting for 777 Charlie. The film, being made as a joint venture between Paramvah Studios and Pushkar Films, marks the directorial debut of Kiranraj K. The first schedule is likely to start in mid June. Meanwhile, preparations are in full swing. Considering that the film  explores the relationship between a man and his dog, the three Charlies who will be accompanying Rakshit during various phases of the film, are now undergoing rigorous training. Staying 24/7 with the the Labrador female dogs — aged two months, five months and one-year-old - is trainer B C Pramod.

One-year-old Charlie is training to get fit. So much so that Charlie walks on the treadmill everyday for 10 minutes. “This kind of training is what we call ‘baby steps’, and we are doing positive reinforcement training wherein the dog obeys our commands and we treat them with food. Since dogs have  high blood pressure, she is only allowed to walk for 10 minutes,” explains Pramod. “The younger Labradors are into different kind of exercises, based on their age.  The other activities Charlie is training in are picking bowls, fetching helmets, asking for more food, along with watching TV,” Pramod laughs.

Training these dogs is very important before they go on sets, says the trainer. “Audiences who watch the film should feel that Charlie is a smart dog and natural actor.

Training to nail Charlie’s solo scenes

Pushkar Mallikarjunaiah, who is producing the film along with Rakshit Shetty, says it was necessary to invest in dog training. “The bond between Charlie and Rakshit is very strong. Charlie, who is one-year-old, has solo performances too and we couldn’t go ahead without training. Thankfully, we found the best trainer in Pramod.”

From engineer to full-time dog trainer

B C Pramod’s love for animals made him quit his high-paying IT job. This software engineer, who worked for five years, is now a full-time dog trainer. “This has been my passion from childhood. I always wanted dogs around me, and didn’t mind sacrificing my job to be surrounded by my furry loved ones,” he says.