It’s no secret that mythologicals and epic stories are a hot favourite among filmmakers now. Storytellers have realised the immense scope of tapping technological potential to tell mythological stories in a way that appeals to the sensibilities of this film-watching generation. Adi Purush, where Prabhas plays Ram and Saif Ali Khan is cast as Raavan, was the biggest announcement in the genre recently. Filmmaker Om Raut is leaving no stone unturned to utilise the benefits of the motion-capture technology to mount the epic on a lavish scale.
Meanwhile, Gunasekhar has been extensively working on the pre-production of Hiranyakashipu, where Rana Daggubati is tipped to essay the lead role. Several Hollywood technicians are reportedly in talks for the project already. Before Hiranyakashipu goes on floors, Gunasekhar has planned to direct another epic, Sakunthalam, based on poet Kalidasa’s treatise Abhignana Sakunthalam, that features Samantha in the lead role. The experience of directing mythologicals and historicals like Bala Ramayanam and Rudramadevi will certainly come in handy for the filmmaker.
And, the long-delayed collaboration between Madhu Manthena and Allu Aravind to helm Ramayana as a multi-lingual seems to be finally taking shape. Mahesh Babu, Deepika Padukone and Hrithik Roshan have apparently been approached to star as Rama, Sita and Ravana in the epic respectively though no one has signed the dotted line yet. Ravi Udaywar is expected to direct the project. Actor Vikram is already working on Mahavir Karna that tells Mahabharatha through the eyes of Karna. Aamir Khan has also expressed his interest to retell the Mahabharatha as a series/film.
On the flipside, Kurukshetra, the Kannada 3D film, made with a massive star cast comprising Darshan, V Ravichandran, Ambareesh, Arjun and Sneha, bombed at the box office. The Mohanlal film Randamoozham, an adaptation of MT Vasudevan Nair’s book that narrates Mahabharata through Bhima’s character, failed to progress despite bombastic claims made by the producer about its Rs 900-crore budget. The truth of the matter in most of the mythologicals and epics are that the writing isn’t being given sufficient attention and the focus is more on the cast, technology. What’s the use of scale and big names when the content doesn’t suffice? Filmmakers can do well to remind themselves that even a film like Baahubali had a solid story besides the classy filmmaking.