Parkour athlete shares video of Prabhas shooting fight scene amid flak for using body double in The Raja Saab
One of the biggest criticisms of The Raja Saab, since the film’s release this Friday, is Prabhas’ extensive use of a body double. Amidst criticism, a parkour athlete who worked on the film posted a behind-the-scenes video of a fight scene, which shows the actor on set and shooting for it. (Also Read: New scene of Prabhas in old look added to The Raja Saab amid criticism, makers say it was missed due to ‘server issue’)
Parkout athlete shares Prabhas’ video from The Raja Saab shoot
The athlete named Pavan posted a behind-the-scenes video from the shooting of The Raja Saab on his Instagram, writing, “Grateful to be part of a Prabhas anna film.” The beginning of the video shows Prabhas getting his makeup touched up before giving a shot.
However, in some of the other clips included in the video, the use of a body double is evident. A man sitting on a suitcase is dressed exactly like Prabhas and is pulled on a trolley from behind. Other shots show him doing parkour and being hoisted on a rope in a key action sequence from the film.
Pavan also posted a clip of the fight scene he had taken while watching the film, writing, “My team stunts in #RajaSaab. Theatre cut went crazyyy. Feeling sooo grateful to witness Prabhas anna LIVE on the big screen. True fanboy moment — cinema hits different when passion meets big screens.”
When Maruthi spoke about using body double for Prabhas
A few days ahead of The Raja Saab’s release, Maruthi’s comments on the matter amid growing criticism for Prabhas using body doubles for the simplest scenes had circulated online. The actor had received similar criticism for his previous films, including Saaho and Radhe Shyam.
In an interview with Great Andhra, the filmmaker reasoned that most heroes use a body double and that they cannot be ‘inconvenienced’ for every shot. Calling Prabhas’ performance and scenes ‘precious’, he said, “Nobody today strains heroes to do every scene. Keeping aside their health, these artists are like diamonds. People worship them like gods. I don’t think we should be inconveniencing them. They don’t need to be for things that can be achieved with technology.”
The Raja Saab collected ₹112 crore worldwide on its opening day. New scenes have been added to the film from Saturday, after a lukewarm response.
