I take this very personally: John Abraham on Kannada actors’ death

Actor John Abraham, who has done many action films, says the death of two Kannada actors while performing stunts is horrific.

On Monday, when two actors Raghava Uday and Anil drowned while shooting an action sequence for a Kannada film near Bengaluru, John Abraham was extremely disturbed.

John says that one of the actors who drowned had apparently told the producers he couldn’t swim.

“I take this pointless death of the two actors very personally.This accident is horrific, shameful and avoidable. I belong to the same space where action scenes have often put me in very dangerous places.

“In fact I was off my feet for months recently after I fractured my leg doing a stunt for Force 2. I know what it is like to risk your life. Anything can happen to an actor who does these daredevil stunts,” says an emotional John.

On Tuesday morning, John posted a video online of himself and his injured foot. “After I heard about what happened to those poor unfortunate boys in Bengaluru I decided to post the video. I wanted people to see the pain that we actors have to go through when a stunt goes wrong.

“I got a friend to shoot the video secretly as we were not allowed to shoot in the hospital. But somewhere I wanted a record of the pain I went through for future reference,” says the actor, who finds the negligence appalling.

“I believe one of those boys who drowned clearly told the producers he couldn’t swim properly. There was no proper permission for them to jump in the lake, no safety measures. I think the producers should be held culpable. This is human lives we are talking about.How can someone’s life be taken so lightly?,” he asks.

Kannada actors Anil and Uday lost their lives while performing a dangerous stunt.

The action hero admits doing one’s own stunts is a non-negotiable option. “After I was laid up with a badly fractured leg while performing a stunt — I could’ve lost a leg — do you know what was the first I did after recovery? I had to kick in and break a door in Dhishoom….with the same leg that I had injured,” he says.

John feels action in our films need to be taken more seriously. “I don’t think stunts on our films can be taken lightly any longer. Gone are the days when heroes could do two back-flips and get applauded for it. Today’s audience is educated in world cinema. They know when we are faking a stunt. Body double nahin chalega. Besides in my case looking at my size finding a body double would be rather tough. So yes ,I’d rather do my stunts myself and ensure the risks are minimized,” says the actor, who pleads for action to be given its due status in our films.

“If you ask a lay person to name five choreographers he will rattle off six names. But ask him to name five action directors he will be stuck after Veeru Devgan, Sham Kaushal and Allan Amin.We guys who do daring action take risks with our lives. At least, grant us the respect we deserve.When we actors injured ourselves almost lose our lives for two minutes of thrill, what do we get in return? An anxious producer wanting to know when we can return to shooting,” says John.