RRR anniversary: SS Rajamouli had predicted international acclaim for the film – Times of India

RRR was one of the most eagerly awaited films in recent times. Rajamouli’s passionate mastery of the language of mythology had already been proven in Baahubali. There was no doubt in the audiences’ collective mind that he would be equally successful at portraying pseudo-history in RRR.
RRR was grand. The action scenes and the drama are mounted on a dizzying scale, so dizzying that the director, the mighty merchant of marathon fantasies SS Rajamouli, seems to have lost balance. There is a distinct sense of imbalance in the presentation, far removed from the unwavering solid narration of Baahubali where Rajamouli climbed the exquisite incline of periodicity borrowed from Amar Chitra Katha comics, without stumbling even once.

There is nothing in RRR that is not massively massy. Rajamouli’s eye for spectacle is as unerring as the arrows that Ram Charan playing a character called, you guessed it, Ram shoots dressed up as, yes that’s right, Lord Rama. But that’s a good 2 hours and 45 minutes after the film’s wondrous whirligig has started.
RRR is three hours of non-stop hecticity. Rajamouli wants every frame to exhale a breath of flushed air. It’s all about size. And those who think otherwise are not familiar with the Rajamouli school of thought. His cinematic vision is many sizes larger than what an average blockbuster builder of Bollywood imagines to be epic in scope.

There are many extraordinary action sequences in RRR. Come to think of it, RRR is short of drama and emotions. Except for a potentially heartrending sequence at the preamble when a little tribal girl is snatched away by a villainous British couple who think they can take whatever catches their fancy.

Speaking in a past interaction, Rajamouli had said, “It has taken us more than 3 years to make this film. We’ve surfed two waves of the pandemic, we’ve tackled various problems, difficulties and injuries and we’ve come out with a great film.”

The audiences expectations did not worry Rajamouli. “Expectations do not intimidate me… In fact they strengthen me… To all the audiences who are expecting emotional experiences as good as Baahubali, brace yourselves because we have made a stronger film.”

Neither was he worried about Ram Charan and NTR Jr’s relative anonymity outside Telugu cinema. “It is not as if they’re unknown faces among Hindi audiences. Audiences all over the country have known their work through dubbed films which are regularly telecasted. Hindi audiences will be in for a treat since for the first time they’ve also dubbed for themselves in Hindi, and they’ve gone to great lengths to get the diction right. The sincerity and honesty with which they’ve portrayed their characters will definitely resonate with everyone. It is this integrity of theirs that I think will earn them more fans in the Northern belt.”

Unlike Baahubali which was entirely mythological, RRR was semi-historical. Rajamouli had to tread very carefully. “Though RRR is a fictional film, we delved into painstaking details to get the right look and feel. We went through thousands of photographs and the little footage of 1920s Delhi that we could find to create an accurate world. Special mention to Sabu sir (our production designer) for bringing his immense knowledge to paint the world of RRR.

Rajamouli was sure RRR would revive Indian cinema’s past glory. “I think the film industry can be revived to its previous glory without compromising on public safety. Tens of thousands of people in our country are directly dependent on this great industry of ours, and it is important for all of us that people come back to the cinemas. It would obviously be a matter of pride for us if this change begins with RRR. RRR is the first true-blue Indian multistarrer in a very long time. We have shot some fantastic action sequences which will make for a thrilling experience. But underneath all the star power and visual extravaganza there is an emotional story which will resonate with everyone. I would say that the story is the biggest USP of RRR. It will not be long before Indian film makers make a mark on international stage.” Rajamouli’s prophecy proved right.