Karan Tacker was thrilled about sharing screen space with father Kuku for a television commercial of an apparel brand. However, the actor had to turn down the lucrative offer when the brand officials, who had initially decided to shoot the ad remotely, altered their plans and asked the father-son duo to report to a Madh Island set.

While the brand had apparently initiated talks with the actor late last month, a source reveals that the production team intimated him of the revised plan last week. "Citing that multiple shoots had resumed across the city, they requested Karan and his father to film the commercial over an eight-hour shift at Madh Island. The actor told them in no uncertain terms that the shoot could pose a risk to his 67-year-old father who has underlying health issues, and bowed out of the commitment," says the source.

Though the unit was to undergo the mandatory Coronavirus test a day before the shoot, they did not adopt the bio-bubble model. In a chat with mid-day, Tacker says that he is willing to shoot with his father at studios in the current scenario only if the production teams follow the bio-bubble model and practise quarantine before and after the shoot. "I said no out of concern for my family, especially my father. He falls in the high-risk age bracket, and is more susceptible to contracting the virus. I am not comfortable with my father shooting at a studio until [the production unit] follows a mandate in terms of COVID risk-management on set. There [would have been] the compulsory testing before we go on floors. But they also need to contain everyone, who has been tested, till the shoot kicks off," he states.

Tacker had moved his family to a villa in Aamby Valley in July when multiple cases of COVID-19 were detected in his Andheri building. While the actor shot on and off during the lockdown, he practised 14-day quarantine before joining his family in the resort township following each shoot. "Now, producers too have become more sensitive towards those who stay with family," he adds.