Fire erupts at famous Raj Kapoor Studio; set damaged, none injured

MUMBAI : A fire broke out at the iconic RK Studio in Mumbai’s Chembur on Saturday afternoon, completely gutting one of the sets being used for filming the reality show Super Dancers.

No casualties or injuries were reported as the shooting was not on but the studio suffered extensive damage.

The fire, officials suspect, was caused by a shot circuit, although the Mumbai fire brigade did not confirm this and said it would wait for a detailed investigation into the incident.

RK Studio houses the logistics of the RK Films production company, both established by and named after legendary Bollywood actor, director and producer Raj Kapoor in 1948 and is presently looked after by his son Rishi Kapoor.

Kapoor expressed his sadness over the incident in a tweet: “Sad A major fire broke out at RK StudiosWe have lost the iconic Stage 1 Thankfully no casualties nor injuries. All your concerns appreciated (sic).”

PS Rahangdale, the chief of the Mumbai fire brigade, said an alert call was received by the department around 2.22 pm and fire fighters reached the spot within five minutes. “The fire was confined to electric wiring, electric installation, decoration equipment in the 100x80 sq ft area on the ground floor of the building,” he said.

Six fire engines and five water tankers were pressed into service, and they brought the situation under control by 5pm.

An official from the fire brigade said, “There has been a lot of damage to lights, decorations, and the set is burnt. But the fire brigade cannot estimate the extent of the damage.” Eyewit- nesses present at the location said heavy sparks were seen in the electric wiring around the set, minutes before the fire started.

Saiprasad Salunke, who works in the building adjacent to RK Studio, said, “I saw sparks in the wiring around the building, and then smoke a minute later.” He said he saw the roof made from cement sheets crumble before walls of Stage 1 caved in. Another eyewitness, Kiran Lambachiya, who works as a driver, said, “I saw some people running out of the studio. As I went to check what had happened, we heard a loud noise and saw the building collapsing.” One of the staff members of the studio said on condition of anonymity that the shooting was usually held on weekends but the crew had finished shooting their day’s work by Friday midnight. The member said otehr sets had employees present at the time and they ran out upon seeing smoke.

Traffic from the Eastern HighwaytoVNPuravMargwas cordoned off.

THE FIRE, OFFICIALS SUSPECT, WAS CAUSED BY A SHOT CIRCUIT, ALTHOUGH THE MUMBAI FIRE BRIGADE DID NOT CONFIRM THIS