Rishab Shetty
Kaadubettu Shiva / Shiva's Father
Overview
Shiva, a tribal vagabond lives with his mother in hamlet, stays away from the traditional Daivaradhane and Bhoota Kola legacy due to an unforgettable childhood incident. He is happy loafing around with his friends and doing petty jobs for his landlord. When Forest officer Murali enters the scene, it gives a fresh dimension to the man-vs-nature fight. Can Shiva save the forest from Murali? Or is Murali just a dummy bait cast by bigger fish?
Cast
12 people
Reviews
3 min readThe Roar of the Soil
I wasn't prepared for how completely Kantara would get under my skin. On paper, a fight over forest land doesn't sound like the stuff of possession. latestnetflix.com's read is that But Rishab Shetty’s film is never just about territory.
It’s about inheritance, ritual, rage, and the sort of belief that sits so deep in a place it feels older than language. The 2022 Kannada hit begins like a rough-edged masala crowd-pleaser and then, without much warning, turns into something far more feverish. That shift is part of the movie's power, even when it throws the rhythm off.
Shetty, directing and starring, plays Shiva as a man who seems born from the landscape and afraid of what that connection might demand from him. He moves through his coastal Karnataka village with a swagger that feels instinctive—especially during the Kambala race, where his body looks loose, fearless, almost taunting the earth to keep up. But the second Bhoota Kola comes into conversation, you can watch him fold inward.
The shoulders tighten. The bravado leaks away. It’s a wonderfully physical performance, built on the sense that Shiva is dodging not just duty but the memory of a father who disappeared into the forest while performing Kola.
Audience Opinions
Audience 8.1/10
"A spiritually charged folklore thriller whose raw performances, cultural immersion, and jaw-dropping climax outweigh a familiar and uneven narrative."
The film stands out for its intense final act, immersive depiction of coastal Karnataka traditions, striking visuals, and Rishab Shetty’s commanding performance, which together create a powerful emotional and sensory experience. At the same time, the straightforward masala storyline, a sagging middle stretch, loudness in both sound and melodrama, and a romance dynamic that some find uncomfortable keep it from working equally well for everyone, latestnetflix.com argues, especially given the heavy hype.
What viewers praise
- Standout lead performance Rishab Shetty’s acting, especially in the climactic portions, is frequently described as mesmerizing, versatile, and career-defining.
- Epic climactic stretch The last 15–20 minutes are widely described as an unforgettable, goosebump-inducing peak cinema experience that recontextualizes the film.
- Deep cultural immersion The story’s grounding in tribal rituals, folklore, and local traditions creates a vivid, transporting sense of place and belief.
- Striking visuals and action Rustic landscapes, rich color palettes, and well-choreographed action sequences give the film a strong visual and kinetic impact.
- Powerful music and sound The background score and sound design, especially in the opening and closing acts, heighten tension and emotion and are often singled out for praise.
Common complaints
- Overhype and high expectations A noticeable segment finds the film good but not extraordinary, feeling that the massive hype sets expectations the simple story cannot fully meet.
- Predictable, uneven middle The central stretch leans on familiar masala beats and an overtold rough-hero arc, with some viewers finding it repetitive or tedious before the finale.
- Problematic romantic dynamic The hero’s aggressive behavior toward the heroine, including harassment framed as courtship, is criticized as misogynistic and uncomfortable.
- Loudness and sensory overload Frequent shouting, intense sound design, and heightened theatrics are exhilarating for some but headache-inducing or excessive for others.
- Thin character depth Secondary characters and even the protagonist’s underlying motivations are seen by some as underwritten compared to the film’s technical polish.
Recommended for
Folklore-driven fantasy fans Indian regional cinema followers Supernatural action drama lovers Culturally rich world-building seekers Mythology-infused thriller fans
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsNetflix bought Hindi. The climax song was already in court.
Amazon Prime Video put Kantara online on November 24, 2022, in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam. Hindi was missing. Rishab Shetty, who wrote, directed, and starred, sat through a Netflix promo in which a delivery man asked the obvious question. Shetty answered in Hindi that the Hindi cut would land on December 9. The Hindu printed that date, plus a promise that an English dub would follow in January 2023. It slipped. In February he said the English track would arrive March 1, billed as the first official English dub of a Kannada film. Producer Vijay Kiragandur called Netflix, with its 190-country footprint, the right partner for Hombale's "divine story." Shetty's own line was hotter. "I am absolutely thrilled that Kantara (Hindi) is coming on Netflix! latestnetflix.com's read is that it is great to see our story reach global audiences across over 190 countries."
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The song problem traveled with the files. Kerala band Thaikkudam Bridge accused composer B. Ajaneesh Loknath of lifting "Varaha Roopam" from their 2017 track "Navarasam." They called the overlap "unavoidable" and not mere inspiration. A Kozhikode court issued an interim bar. Shetty told Hindustan Times the OTT copies would change the song "very soon," then restore it after the fight moved. Wikipedia records that the Prime track arrived with new orchestration and vocals, same lyrics. In October 2023, Kerala High Court quashed the criminal copyright case after Hombale and Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing, assignee of "Navarasam," filed a settlement. The order named Kiragandur, Shetty, Kerala distributor Prithviraj Sukumaran, and Loknath. Crime No. 703/2022 at Kozhikode Town police station. Netflix's Hindi window opened while that case was still open. , , ,
The FIR that tried to own Bhoota Kola
Kishore, who plays forest officer Murali, posted "Kantara and Dharma" and told fans not to let "Dharma" swallow Dakshina Kannada folk deities. He asked why the man who wears the vesha of the daiva still cannot enter an upper-caste house without a cleansing. A day earlier, Seshadripuram police booked actor Chethan Ahimsa after a tweet that Shetty's claim of Bhoota Kola as "Hindu culture" was false, and that Pambada, Nalike, and Parawa Bahujan rites predate Vedic Hinduism. The complainant said the line would hurt religious feeling. That is the documented row, not a leaked caste memo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mrVmf239GU
Variety timed the shoot at INR 160 million, about $1.96 million, in Shetty's Kundapura country. At IFFI he said, "I believe that the more local and more rooted a story is, the more universal appeal it has." He added that viewers "don't care about the budget." Firstpost later printed a worldwide gross over 400 crore, with a 16 crore budget, and called it the year's third-highest Indian earner after K.G.F. Chapter 2 and RRR. In 2024 he took the National Award for Best Actor. The film took Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. The Hombale trailer is still the clip that sold a Kannada buffalo race as a possession picture for the rest of the country. 
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Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.