Twin accidents interrupt Varma's 'Agyaat' shoot

Mumbai, Feb 28 (IANS) Ram Gopal Varma had to halt the shooting of his next thriller after two accidents on the sets of 'Agyaat', a movie that is ironically about the misadventures of a film unit shooting in thick jungles.

'It was really weird,' said Varma, who had to return from Kerala to Mumbai midway with his 150-member cast and crew.

'First Priyanka's (Nisha Kothari) double (Anu) fractured her leg while showing Priyanka how to make a jump from one rock to another. Then when Priyanka attempted the stunt, she tore ligaments in her leg,' the filmmaker said.

After the accident, the schedule was cancelled and the entire unit returned to Mumbai.

'Agyaat' is about a supernatural creature attacking a film crew in the forest and has been extensively shot in Sri Lanka and Kerala.

'We can only go back to Kerala at the end of April after Priyanka's leg heals and I finish my schedule of 'Rann' in Mumbai which is already 30 percent complete. Luckily, we don't have to return to Sri Lanka. We needed a large waterfall for the climax. That we found in Kerala,' Varma told IANS.

Priyanka's double Anu has landed up with a fractured leg, which could keep her off her feet for a couple of months, bringing her earnings to a temporary halt.

'Every stunt performer is unprotected in the industry. But for a woman it's worse. The female stunt performers are intrinsically less robust and more prone to injury. While Priyanka's torn ligament gets talked about, poor Anu's fractured leg is brushed under the carpet,' said a source close to the unit.

Stunt director Eijaaz Khan, who had earlier orchestrated the fights for Apoorva Lakhia's 'Shootout At Lokhandwala', excels in realistic action sequences that focus on jumps from buildings and rocks rather than heroic somersaults. Hence, the fall by the waterfall.

'Agyaat', which stars mostly newcomers, is set to release in June.