Kantara Chapter 1: Rishab Shetty’s Kantara The Legend Chapter 1 has become a huge success at the box office. After collecting more than Rs 100 crore in two days after its theatrical release, it has been widely praised. Directed and headlined by Rishab Shetty himself, the action-thriller features visual effects that have left a huge impact on audiences, and does not rely on star power alone.
Following the film’s success, filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma‘s reaction to Kantara Chapter 1 has gone viral. After expressing his love for Rishab Shetty’s movie on X (formerly Twitter), Varma could not stop after the gratitude Shetty shared. In the early hours of today, he took to X and replied, “To be frank, you are not a cinema lover, sir,” adding some fervent praises.
“You pioneered a movement of disruption leading to construction…leading to a new birth to a new kind of cinema,” he added in his post. The Internet could not help but find this post hilarious, while others compared the superhit Kantara 2 to Pawan Kalyan’s ‘They Call Him OG’. A netizen under the post commented on behalf of Shetty and said, “Is he praising me or scolding me?”
To be frank you are not a cinema LOVER sir , but u are a cinema FUCKER , because you FUCKED all of us FILM MAKERS by showing us how to really make CINEMA with your MAGNUM OPUS #KantaraChapter1 .. U pioneered a movement of DISRUPTION leading to CONSTRUCTION which basically means… https://t.co/3klHzM4Jx4
— Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) October 3, 2025
‘All filmmakers in India should feel ashamed’
This passionate praise follows his post on Kantara’s opening day success. He had compared Rishab Shetty to all the filmmakers of India. He wrote, “All filmmakers in India should feel ashamed after seeing the unimaginable effort,” praising Shetty and his team. He also lauded the background music, sound design, cinematography, production design, and VFX in the film.
“I can’t decide whether you are a greater director or a greater actor,” he added in the post.
Kantara Chapter 1 Box Office Summary
The intense action-thriller starring Rishab Shetty features the powerful lead embodied by Rukmini Vasant. Gulshan Devaiah and Jayaram are also key members of the Kantara 2 cast. After a record-breaking opening day collection of more than Rs 60 crore, it broke the record of several Bollywood high-grossers, including Chhaava and Saiyaara.
Including the Rs 20 crore advance sales collection, Kantara: Chapter 1 entered the Rs 100 crore club on Day 2 after grossing Rs 45 crore in India. Despite a 23% decline, the film is set to make even bigger waves over the weekend, becoming Kannada cinema’s one of biggest performers.