The producer, stunt director and director of a Kannada film have been charged with culpable homicide, one day after two of the movie’s actors drowned in a reservoir outside Bengaluru during shooting, The Times of India reported. The two, Anil and Uday, drowned after they jumped into the reservoir from a helicopter.
Police officials said their bodies were yet to be recovered, adding that they were not good swimmers. The three actors who made the jump were also not provided with life jackets, according to the officials.
Anil and Uday drowned after a motorboat meant to pick up the actors from the water did not start because of technical issues. The two were reportedly seen flailing in the water and struggling to save themselves. It is feared that they got stuck in parts of the water that were heavy with silt, which is usually made off-limits to the public, according to NDTV. They had also reportedly expressed their reservations about swimming before filming began.
The third actor, Duniya Vijay, managed to swim to safety. While the film’s crew had acquired permission to shoot at the reservoir, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board said the production unit had violated the approval by going into the water. A BWSSB official said the unit had claimed to have completed shooting and had then “illegally performed the stunt” after the officials overseeing the filming had left the site.
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