Stuntman falls 20 ft to his death on sets of Karthi's Sardar 2; producers offer condolences

A stuntman named Elumalai met with a fatal accident on the second day of filming for Karthi-starrer Sardar 2. An investigation is currently underway.

A stuntman met with a fatal accident on the sets of PS Mithran’s Karthi-starrer Sardar 2 on Tuesday (July 16). The stuntman named Elumalai fell 20 ft from a rostrum while shooting an action sequence and was rushed to the hospital. (Also Read: Suriya to produce Karthi’s next film Meiyazhagan with Arvind Swamy: ‘One from our hearts’)

Karthi in a still from the 2022 film Sardar. A sequel is now in the works.

Stuntman dies on Sardar 2 set

The film’s shooting was taking place at LV Prasad Studios in Saligramam, Chennai. Virugambakkam police officials were informed about the accident, and an investigation is underway. Elumalai was 54-years-old, and he sustained serious injuries after the fall. He died due to an internal haemorrhage at 11:30 pm. The shooting of Sardar 2 has been halted.

Production house’s statement

Prince Pictures, the production house of Sardar 2 shared a press note that confirms the news, “We regret to report the death of Mr Elumalai, a member of the Stunt Union who worked as a stunt rig man on the sets of our film Sardar 2. On Tuesday evening July 16, after the stunt sequences were filmed, as we were wrapping up shooting for the day, Mr Elumalai accidentally fell from a rostrum of 20 feet high and sustained injuries.”

They added, “He was rushed to the neraby multi speciality hospital where he was treated by the team of doctors. However, at around 11.30 pm on July 16, 2024, despite the intensive medical treatment, Mr Elumalai unfortunately passed away. Our entire team extend our sincerest condolences to Mr Elumalai’s family and we stand with them in this time of grief.”

Karthi is yet to release a statement at the time of writing.

Sardar 2’s shooting

Sardar 2 was officially launched on July 12 with a pooja ceremony attended by Mithran and Karthi. Karthi’s father, actor Sivakumar, also attended the event. Shooting for the film commenced in Chennai on July 15 and the accident took place on the second day of shooting. The film is a sequel to Mithran and Karthi’s 2022 film Sardar, a spy thriller that saw the actor in dual roles.