The mega gangster flicks 'KGF' and its sequel directed by Prashanth Neel and starring Yash as Rocky Bhai became worldwide hits and collected over 1500 Crores for producer Hombale Films. The success put the Kannada film industry on the world map and the same production house followed it up with another critically acclaimed global hit 'Kantara'.

'Kantara' directed by and starring Rishab Shetty dealt with the rooted tale of the importance of deities in Indian culture from time immemorial and showcased the pain of modernization displacing tribal people's habitats and snatching away their true identities. The film was lauded throughout the globe and Indian doyens such as Kamal Haasan praised “A film like Kantara stays in your mind and blossoms. I am a godless man, yet I understand the need for one in most. I truly believe compassion is lacking in gods depicted in most of our mythology. We of the Dravidian stock are a matriarchal society. That is seen in the last scene of your film, where the god behaves like a mother, rather than a testosterone father that he started off as."

Superstar Rajinikanth went one step further and invited Rishab Shetty to his home in Chennai and gifted him a large gold chain in appreciation of his work. He also wrote on Twitter "Rishab hats off to you as a writer, director and actor. Congrats to the whole cast and crew of this masterpiece in Indian cinema." Speculations arose that the duo would be teaming up soon for a project.

Rishab Shetty recently announced that he will be making 'Kantara 2' soon and it will be a prequel to the original. He also hinted that it will be a different genre and will pack huge surprises. In his most recent interview with the press the actor-director was asked if the rumour about Rajinikanth being a part of the project true. Rishab Shetty kept mum and neither confirmed nor denied the buzz. Hence film analysts are of the opinion that there is a high chance of Rajini playing a major role as a deity. Lets see how this pans out.

Rajinikanth is on the verge of completing his current film 'Jailer' directed by Nelson and costarring Shivarajkumar, Mohan Lal, Jackie Shroff, Sunil and Tamannaah. His next films are 'Laal Salaam' directed by Aishwarya Rajinikanth and 'Thalaivar 171' directed by T.J. Gnanavel.