Massive Flames Engulf Tenali Rama Set In Mumbai's Film City, Actor Dismisses Electrical Fault As Cause Of Fire | Exclusive

The set of Tenali Rama in Film City, Goregaon in Mumbai caught fire, resulting in panic among the 100-plus cast and crew members present there on Sunday noon. While many news reports claimed that the set fire was a result of an electrical malfunction inside the generator, actor Sohit Vijay Soni, who plays the role of Mani in the show, said that the forest near the set caught fire but was controlled by the team until the fire brigade arrived.

Soni revealed that flames entering the set were noticed by the workers and swift action was taken. He stressed that while the artists were rushed to the makeup rooms, the workers on set did not let the property catch the flames, or "it could have turned deadly". 

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"The fire that was lit in the forest was getting intense and had reached the set. Every artist had left the set but I came back and helped with dousing the flames. The market area of the set was in the open. The back part of the area is covered as the jungle portion of the film city is right behind it. The fire that was rising in the jungle was slowly engulfing everything. Had it not been doused at the right time and if anything from the property had caught the flames, then the whole set would have been in danger. It was a big fire," Soni, who was present on set when the fire broke out at 12 pm Sunday, shared.  

There were no casualties. Some sustained minor injuries while moving the property to keep it safe. Some unit members also got injured and tetanus shots had to be given to some, Soni revealed.

Soni added, Someone noticed the fire spreading and it was huge. Some of the properties that were near the big fire were pulled by us at the right moment. The artists were locked inside the makeup rooms to keep them safe. If the set had caught fire it could have been dangerous. There were huge flames that came from the jungle. Fire extinguishers and water that was available around were used by the unit members to douse the fire. It was difficult to control."

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Soni shared that the fire brigade eventually intervened and helped in controlling the fire portions of the set and in the nearby jungle. He also said that the shoot began later in the day after 4 pm in some portions of the Tenali Rama set and work resumed fully on Monday. According to the actor, some burning flames of a cigarette bud or matchstick helped ignite the fire in the jungle area, which later spread.  

"We were prepared but the things we had were not enough for the huge fire that had broken out near the set. It was eventually controlled by the fire brigade. We did not wait for the brigade to come. We limited the fire and stopped it from coming into the set. The 200 people helped. The fire was not allowed inside the set. The shooting had also started by 4 pm," Soni shared.

"If we had been shooting indoors and not alerted, something huge could have happened. The fire came from the jungle it is now burnt down completely," he concluded.