Ravi Varma's tribute to Dr Rajkumar

The stuntmaster-turned-director will release the motion poster of his directorial debut, Rustum, starring Shivarajkumar, on the legend’s birthday
Ravi Varma's tribute to Dr Rajkumar

It’s Dr Rajkumar’s 89th birth anniversary today and stuntmaster-turned-director Ravi Varma marks the occasion by unveiling a motion poster of his debut film Rustum, starring the matinee idol’s son Shivarajkumar. 

“The name Rajkumar is synonymous with cinema. I needed to seek the legend’s blessings before starting on a venture and could not think of a better day to hold the muhurath shot. He was one of the best human beings I have met, and the finest actor Karnataka was gifted with. My parents used to hold him up as an example for us to follow,” says Ravi Varma, who adds that the legend’s birthday has a “sacred significance”. “Like New Year, certain festivals mark a new beginning and Dr Rajkumar’s birthday is a perfect day to begin my new career,” he says.

Ravi Varma’s golden memories with Rajkumar
The filmmaker says that it was sheer luck that got him an opportunity to work with Dr Rajkumar in his last film Shabavedhi. “It was the early stages of my career, and I considered it a blessing to be part of the legend’s project. We all know how he encouraged Kannada artistes. On the sets, I would often hear Rajkumar telling everybody to try and promote artistes and technicians from Karnataka.”

Cinema Express caught hold of a few photos of Shivarajkumar’s look in Rustum. The actor, who is playing a cop in the film, has had a makeover and sports an impressive moustache.

The film also features Shraddha Srinath. The U Turn heroine will share screen space with Shivarajkumar for the first time. As, too, will Mayuri, who plays the role of his sister. The film also marks the debut of Arjun Gowda and actors from other industries including Harish Uthaman and J Mahendran.

A stunt master who started off in Kannada, Ravi Varma is now a well-known name in south India and Bollywood. He has worked on more than 100 films, including ones starring Pawan Kalyan, Rana Daggubati and Vikram, and Hindi actors such as Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, Shahid Kapoor and Tiger Shroff.

Rustum has music by Anoop Seelin and cinematography by Mahendra Simha. The shooting of the film, produced by Jayanna Combines, will start from mid-May.

Here is the motion poster of Shivarajkumar's Rustum:

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