The entire nation has been eagerly waiting for ‘Kalki 2898 AD’. Starring Prabhas, Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone in the lead roles, this film is directed by Nag Ashwin who made superb films like ‘Evade Subramanyam’ and ‘Mahanati’ in the past. Made on a budget of around 600 crores, this film set in dystopian backdrop has arrived in theatres worldwide with huge expectations. Let us see how it turned out.
Story:
Kashi is known as the first city in the world but after a few centuries, it ends up as the last city on the earth. The resources including air and water is taken by the ‘Complex’. It is a beautiful city built on top of Kashi and people need 1 million units to enter that city. Supreme Yashkin (Kamal Haasan) is responsible for all this. Every person in Kashi aspires to go to Complex and Bhairavaa (Prabhas) is one of them. He is a bounty hunter who tries his best. Supreme Yashkin and his team conducts experiments on pregnant women to get a serum that makes him stronger. One of those women is Sumathi (Deepika Padukone). She escapes from there and rebels for hail from Shambala region protect her. Along with them, Ashwatthama (Amitabh Bachchan) too becomes her and her child’s protect. Bhairavaa decides to hand her over to Complex as he gets a huge bounty that will open doors for him at the complex. Who will win this fight? Why is Ashwatthama protecting Sumathi and her child? How will Bhairavaa disrupt his plans? Who will rescue this world from Supreme Yashkin? Answers to these questions will form the rest of the story.
Analysis:
There is not enough drama in the life of every person to make a movie. That is why it is tough to take real life stories and bring out the emotions. Nag Ashwin is one young talent who showed his worth through films like ‘Mahanati’ and ‘Evade Subramanyam’. While it is a biopic, the other one is a movie that teaches you about life. He showed how to create drama and makes you emotionally attached to the characters. Such a director decided to make a futuristic fantasy film set in the dystopian era with Prabhas as the lead. This made everyone curious. While Nag Ashwin has a specific skill set, people were not sure whether he extracts good visuals and comes up with huge action scenes that suit Prabhas. But Nag Ashwin cleared all those downs through this visual marvel on the big screen. He even surpassed Rajamouli in terms of grandeur and the action set pieces were brilliant. But he failed to show his strength when it comes to creating drama. His efforts were successful in creating a massive movie but it lacked emotional connection. But the movie is on the level of Hollywood films when it comes to technical ability.
The situation of people should be shown in a dire manner so that everyone prays for Kalki’s arrival. But the director did not show what the villain did to take over the entire world. Also, the reason for Bhairavaa being hellbent on reaching Complex is not well established as well. It will take time for the audience to get into the movie and his three worlds are not showcased in a detailed manner. He might have thought that people need to be explained every minute details and they can understand everything but it is not the case. Apart from Amitabh’s role, none of the characters were not established properly and we need to watch the movie more than once to connect the dots at many places. The drama did not work out a lot and the emotional connect is missing from this film. Despite all that, the makers took us to a new world for three hours and will make your jaws drop.
Their behaviour and language make you feel that they are in a separate world and Prabhas is showcased quite later as the first preference is given to the story establishment which is quite good. The movie picks up pace when Prabhas appears on the screen. The first half has its ups and downs but the interval point is staged in a terrific manner. In the second half, there is one action scene after another. Mainly, Prabhas and Amitabh’s fight scenes are a delight to your eyes. Apart from a few dull moments in Shambala, the movie goes at a decent pace in the second half. The last 30 minutes is the biggest highlight of the movie. Nag Ashwin has exceeded everyone when it comes to giving high class visuals during those episodes.
The historic touch given to Prabhas’ character will make you go wild in theatres. Despite people being unhappy over the film leaving us midway, it makes you curious about the next ones from this world. ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ is something we have never seen on Indian scene till date but more drama and emotion would have made it a classic. Don’t miss it on the big screens!
Performances:
After ‘Baahubali’, this is the best look of Prabhas. He appeared quite active in ‘Kalki’ as well. He played a character that suits his larger-than-life image. With a touch of negativity, he is yet to enter the hero phase. He has less significance in the story till the climax. But he entertains the audience in every scene he appears. Prabhas becomes the relief in a completely serious drama. The action sequences are designed in a manner that suits his stature. The mass audience will go crazy in these scenes. But he is on the sidelines during the main conflict scenes throughout the movie. His role will have even more significance and screentime in the next part.
Despite the short screen time, Amitabh Bachchan leaves a strong impact. Only he could have pulled off this role and his screen presence is immaculate. He steals the show in a few scenes. Deepika Padukone plays the main character as everything revolves around her. She did a fantastic job and makes you feel for her. Kamal Haasan appears in just two scenes but makes sure that he establishes himself as the most powerful villain. His voice is enough to give goosebumps and his makeup is terrific too. Sashwat Chatterjee too did a fine job in a negative character. Sobhana was impactful while Rajendra Prasad gave good introduction to the plot. The rest of the actors are okay. There are a lot of guest appearances. While some make you go crazy, the other ones are just okay.
Technicians:
‘Kalki 2898 AD’ is a true world class movie. All the technicians have given their best. Santosh Narayanan stood as the backbone for this film. His background score is very intense and he gave what was necessary for that scene without being too loud. The songs are passable but his re-recording is truly exceptional. The cinematography is fantastic. All the frames look astonishing and the color scheming is applause-worthy. The visual effects are brilliant and there are no two ways about it.
It feels amazing to have such visuals in a Telugu film. The production design and costumes deserve a special mention as they created a whole new world in a fantastic manner. Vyjayanthi Movies should be appreciated for taking the risk and going all out for making such a project. Nag Ashwin’s vision is out of this world. Imagining scenes and shots is one thing but bringing them onscreen with the same impact is wonderful. He did a superb job in ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ but the storyteller who made ‘Mahanati’ took a backseat this time. The story had a lot of layers and it needed to be explained more in detail. He could have added more emotion to the film. Nonetheless, he delivered a product that everyone can be proud of.
Verdict: ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ – Jaw-Dropping Yet Feels Incomplete!
