Tamil Superstar Rajinikanth has appealed for water conservation on a war footing as he marks his TV debut after 43 years of cinema via Discovery channel’s Into The Wild with Bear Grylls. “This war (water conserving) has to be led at all levels including government, community as well as on the individual front. I believe this show is a perfect platform to take the message of conserving water to every home across the country,” said the actor.
The 69-year-old Southern superstar shot for the programme in Karnataka’s Bandipur Tiger Reserve. It’s an 874 sq km national park, formed by integrating most of the forest areas of erstwhile Venugopala Wildlife Park established in 1941, and later enlarged to its current state in Chamarajanagar district, about 220 km Southwest of Bengaluru. The tiger reserve lists 28 species of mammals to be thriving in the forest, including royal Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, common leopard, bonnet macaque, Indian pipistrelle and barking deer, among others.
In August 2019, Grylls had hosted Prime Minister Modi in the Man vs Wild show, which was shot at the Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand in February 2019. Other international icons who featured in the show include United States President Donald Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama, Titanic star Kate Winslet, Tennis virtuoso Roger Federer and Hollywood great Julia Roberts and others.
“Into The Wild is a truly unique show, at one level it offers adrenaline pumping action, while at another, the show lends itself beautifully to driving a specific purpose for the larger good of society,” said Rajinikanth.
“Bear Grylls has tested the survival skills of multiple celebrity guests, pushing them to their limits. I look forward to the survival challenge in the mesmerising wilderness of India,” he added. Also focussing on water conservation in the new programme, Megha Tata, managing director, Discovery, South Asia, said that the channel wanted to add a layer of purpose with each episode.
“Last year, the show featuring Modi, generated much desired attention on conservation of wildlife. We are confident that the forthcoming episode will sensitise each one of us about conservation of water,” Tata said.
Grylls heaped praise on Rajinikanth, saying that the actor is a phenomenon, who has captivated the audience across the world with his work both on screen and off screen.