Baahubali 2: What’s in store?

Apart from figuring out why Kattappa killed Baahubali, obviously? The story is king apparently. S S Rajamouli, director of the magnum opus said in a recent interview that the emotional ties the characters share, and the way in which the story progresses is what will keep the audience transfixed to the screens in the second part of the movie.

Baahubali is a story that has been told on a scale unlike any other. Right from the thrilling VFX sequences, to the well etched characters and the intriguing locations and storyline, it managed to captivate Indian audiences unlike any other movie has. Also, stories in such genres had not been explored in a while when it came to the screens. The novelty of re-surfacing the genre, international grade technicians, the raw appeal of a “once upon a time” story, and most certainly the hype generated around it – were all crucial factors that contributed to the success of the first installment. Rajamouli goes on to say that though there have been no previous associations with Dharma productions and Karan Johar, their partnership most certainly helped – especially in ensuring reach in the northern belt of the country. He says that though he does not share similar film making sensibilities with Johar, they both have an undying love for cinema, which proved to be a big uniting factor.

The director calls the experience of making the movie “both exhilarating and exhausting” and the same time. His biggest challenge, he says, was having to sustain the energy levels through an incredible 380 days of shoots. He believes that the whole unit derives energy from the director, and having to keep the team spirits high, especially towards the last few months was a mammoth task – given he himself for exhausted by then! Also, the number of people involved and the logistics efforts that needed to go in just to make things happen was huge, and the director gives full credit to his producer and line producer for managing the crew and ensuring there were no unforeseen problems.

‘Baahubali: The Beginning’ was just the introduction, as he puts it. He has only managed to etch his characters and set the stage for the story. What happens between them, their emotional connects, the reasons for why they do what they do (yes – including why Kattappa killed Baahubali) and the progression of the story – this is what will form the crux of part 2, ‘Baahubali – The Conclusion’. It is not just the visual effects that will keep viewers ‘trasfixed’, he says; though the effects will also have a significant role to play. He likes to believe that the story of the movie, written by his father – was inspired by him! His father thinks of him as a great filmmaker, and probably wanted to come up with a grand story worthy of being brought to the screen by his son. Rajamouli himself has nurtured thoughts of telling stories that appeal to all sections of the audience, irrespective of language, location or any other such barriers. He strongly believes that when the story talks about basic human nature and emotions, it will transcend all barriers, and appeal to audiences everywhere. More than anything else, it is this sense of belief that drove the director and gave him confidence to take on a project of this magnitude. His faith does not seem to have been misplaced, given the success the movie has enjoyed all over the country.

The expectations from the second part at going to be huge and it certainly will be bigger than the first part – says Rajamouli. Part 1 has set the bar pretty high in all departments – special effects, storyline as well as characterization. Rajamouli and team have a lot to live up to, and the hype is only getting bigger and bigger.

It can’t be that an interview such as this will wrap up without the most obvious question being asked – ‘why did Kattappa kill Baahubali?’.

Rajamouli obviously has no intention of revealing the pièce-de-résistance of his creation. Why did Kattappa kill Baahubali?
“Because I told him to do so”, he says – as he laughs it off!

The interview has been uploaded onto the official Youtube channel of Dharma productions.

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