For Vijay Raghavendra, Rudrabhishekam began with a question: “Why me?” Writer director Vasanth Kumar’s film required him to play a Veeragase artist in a dual role, portraying both father and son. The actor admits that he had doubts about taking on a character so closely connected to divine ritual and Karnataka’s folk tradition. “The last time I felt that kind of internal terror was when I did Puttakkana Highway,” he says, adding that playing a Veeragase artist is about more than getting the costume right. “It is an art form that carries spiritual weight, one that is slowly fading from the mainstream cultural eye.”
The actor recalls one incident during the look test that made him take the role even more seriously. The traditional crown placed on his head slipped and fell five times. “In our culture, you don't brush aside things like that,” he says. Vijay stopped, offered a prayer to Lord Veerabhadra and put the crown on again. From then until the end of the schedule, he says, it stayed firmly in place.
The film draws from the lore of Lord Veerabhadra and the Veeragase tradition, connecting an incident from the past to the life of a man in the present. Vijay describes the story as one involving bloodlines, devotion and the protection of Lord Shiva. The actor was part of a demanding 50 day schedule for nearly 23 days, with the dual role adding to the physical challenge.
Vasanth Kumar says the decision to build a film around Veeragase came from a belief that audiences would respond to a tradition presented with sincerity and scale. “Cinema audiences today are hungry for authenticity,” he says. For the director, the folk form has enough energy and history to move beyond temple festivals and reach a wider audience through cinema.
The shoot also came with its share of unusual incidents, according to the director. He recalls Vijay dealing with back pain before an intense sequence that required him to climb a steep hill and return. By the time the actor came down, the pain had disappeared, which the team took as a blessing from Veerabhadra Devaru.
The film has another unusual story behind its making. Nine farmers from Vijayapura, N Jayaram, Manjunath KN, K Venkatesh, B Chidananda Murthy, Suresh Babu, BK Ashwath Narayan, Shivakumar, KS Ravikumar and Kusuma Vasanth Kumar, have backed the project under Fan India Creations. Vasanth calls them the film’s “Navaratnas”, saying they took the decision because they believed in the cultural subject. Rudrabhishekam is now set for a release across more than 100 screens in Karnataka, with distribution backed by Vijay Cinemas.
Priyanka Thimmesh also takes on a dual role, with the two characters placed at opposite ends of the social and cultural spectrum. One is a traditional village woman with strong devotion, while the other is modern, independent and cosmopolitan. “It’s my first time playing two entirely different shades within the same canvas,” she says.
Veteran composer V Manohar has handled the music and songs, while also appearing on screen in a new look. “The director pulled me in front of the camera as well,” he says, adding that the music draws from native rhythms and devotional sounds. Thriller Manju, meanwhile, has designed two major action sequences for the film, keeping the stunts grounded in the world of the story and its Veerabhadra connection.
Also featuring Bala Rajawadi, Manu, Sanath, Bullet Vinu and Mamatha Thuruvekere, Rudrabhishekam is set to hit theatres on September 25.
