What’s it about?
Rama (Prabhas), Janaki (Kriti Sanon), and Lakshmana live in forests as part of their Vanavasam. Ravana’s sister Soorpanaka is smitten by Rama’s good looks and wants him to marry her, but he declines. Then Lakshmana severes Soorpanaka’s nose. Ravana, enraged, descends to the jungle in a Sadhu avatar and kidnaps Sita.
With the help of the Vanara Sena, Rama goes to battle with Ravana.
Analysis
The Telugu film industry has produced numerous classics based on mythology stories, including the timeless “Mayabazar” and “Lava Kusa”. In fact, until the late 1970s, the majority of Telugu movies were based on mythical stories from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Many actors have gained fame for their portrayal of Lord Ram on screen, including NT Rama Rao, Sobhan Babu, and Haranath. After a long period, a top hero like Prabhas accepting the role of Ram created lot of hype. Om Raut’s “Adipurush” became popular for this very reason.
So, first things first. Although “Adipurush” is based on Valmiki’s Ramayana, it is not a literal translation of the epic but rather Om Raut’s own interpretation of the story. Om Raut is devoted entirely to the Ramayana’s climactic battle scene. His goal was probably to appeal to the younger generation who are currently into watching Hollywood super hero movies by making an epic story relevant to them. To make the Ramayana more accessible to a younger audience, he adopted the same cutting-edge filmmaking techniques seen in recent hits like “War for the Planet of the Apes” (2017).
Furthermore, the battle sequences and the overall setting remind Hollywood’s Marvel films and “Lord of The Rings” trilogy. Even Ravana’s “Lanka” is created more of the universe of the above said movies than the Lanka that we know from Ramayana. It was deliberate attempt from Om Raut to package it in Hollywood style to attract the younger audience.
This could elicit conflicting reactions. It’s possible that some readers of Ramayana, an Itihasa, will welcome these alterations, while others will not. However, Om Raut’s racy narrative works well in the film’s first half. He doesn’t squander the time until halftime. From the appearance of the golden deer until Rama’s construction of the bridge across the sea to enter Lanka, the story and its dramatic incidents are told in a rapid fashion. The first half of the film successfully draws us in and leads us into Raut’s imagination.
However, the second half of the film is a big stumbling block. The fight between Rama and Ravana takes up more than an hour of the film’s running time. All of the tricks from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and other flicks are present here. As a result, the film becomes less of a Ramayana and more of an imitation of those super hero movies. Plus, the visual effects are not effective in these portions.
It’s also puzzling that Rama is referred to as Raghava and Sita as Janaki. In the beginning, Ram is referred to as Raghava, but he is afterwards referred to as Sri Ram.
In terms of acting, Prabhas as Raghava aka Lord Rama does well. Prabhas is a good fit for the part of Lord Rama as an aggressive king. His charisma outweighs everything else. Kriti Sanon has less screen time as Janaki, but she makes her presence felt. Ravana, played by Saif Ali Khan, is another central character in the film. The portrayal of Ravana in this film does not sit well with anyone. Despite Saif’s best attempts, Om Raut’s depiction of Ravana as a super-hero villain falls flat. Devadatta as Hanuman is okay.
If there is one part of the film that excels, it is music. The “Jai Shri Ram” song is terrifically effective in the film. The background score uplifts the movie. The musicians have done a lot of good to this movie.
Bottom-line: “Adipurush” is an attempt to present it as a super-hero film in order to appeal to the generation Z audience. While the first half of the film is interesting, the second half and VFX work are subpar.
Rating: 2.75/5
By Jalapathy Gudelli
Film: Adipurush
Cast: Prabhas, Saif Ali Khan, Kriti Sanon, Sunny Singh, Devdatta Nage, Sonal Chauhan and others
Music: Ajay-Atul, Sanchit Balhara – Ankit Balhara
DOP: Karthik Palani
Editor: Apurva Motiwale Sahai, Ashish Mhatre
Producers: Bhushan Kumar, Om Raut, Prasad Sutar, Rajesh Nair,
Directed by: Om Raut
Release Date: June 16, 2023
