How does one articulate a movie experience that leaves one dumbstruck, spellbound and groping for words? Jaw meets floor many, many times in Bahubali: The Conclusion, an exceptional cinematic experience that lives up to all the hype and frenzy drummed up ahead of its release.
Yes, Bahubali: The Conclusion, or Bahubali 2, is that rare film that’s better than its prequel, Bahubali: The Beginning. It’s a film that has had to bear the weight of that all-important question — “Katappa ne Bahubali ko kyon maara?” — that the open-ended climax of The Beginning threw up two years ago, but The Conclusion is much more than the answer to that question. It’s entertaining, it’s eyeball-grabbing and the moment you walk out of the theatre, you will want to walk right back in and watch it one more time.
Director S.S. Rajamouli — whose larger-than-life vision has translated the Bahubali films from script to screen — mounts The Conclusion on a bigger, make that massive, scale than The Beginning. Everything about Bahubali 2 is huge — set to story, costume to choreography, action to attitude. From that opening scene where Amarendra Bahubali (Prabhas) mounts the trunk of an elephant to tame it to submission to that shot towards the end where his son Mahendra Bahubali (also Prabhas) leaps into the air and plunges the sword into the ground in front of the tyrant king Bhallaladeva (Rana Daggubati), Bahubali 2 is a real spectacle. It’s seamless merging of story and special effects make it an unparalleled movie-viewing experience in India.
Bahubali 2 is a continuation of The Beginning, no doubt, but it holds its own as a standalone film. So much so that for those, like me, who watched Part 1 and rushed in to watch Part 2 for the answer to the burning question, that answer — though well executed and satisfying — will be reduced to a footnote. For Bahubali 2 becomes much more — a story of love and loss, bloodshed and betrayal, revenge and retribution, with Rajamouli mounting one brilliant set piece after another to tell his Amar Chitra Katha-inspired tale.
The Conclusion doesn’t begin from where The Beginning ended — yes, you will have to hold on till after the interval to know why Katappa did what he did. Instead, we have Amarendra Bahubali, the designated heir to the throne of Mashishmati, winning the hearts of his mother Sivagami (Ramya Krishnan) and his subjects with his bravery and simplicity. Sent to check on the well-being of the aam aadmi in his kingdom, Bahubali Sr and his trusted comrade Katappa (Sathyaraj) wander, in the guise of village bumpkins, into the kingdom of Kuntala, where Bahubali promptly falls for its spunky princess Devasena (Anushka Shetty). The love story takes off after a few bumps, but a conspiracy robs Bahubali of the throne and makes Bhallaladeva the king. A wedge is driven between Sivagami and Bahubali, culminating in a bloody end marked by betrayal for the hero, whose son Mahendra is born on the same day he’s felled.
Like the first film, Bahubali 2 takes some time to get going. The first half feels a little overstuffed, weighed down by Bahubali’s tomfoolery in Kuntala and his romance with Devasena. Katappa lightens things up with a stray joke or two, but the humour comes off overdone in parts. But Rajamouli quickly shifts gears to kick Bahubali 2 into action mode, skilfully executing a jaw-dropping set piece involving flying arrows and flaming cows, that sets the tenor for the rest of the film.
It is in Half Two that Bahubali 2 becomes the dazzling experience that guarantees enough bang for your buck (even with record ticket prices at the plexes). Seeking revenge for his father’s murder, Mahendra Bahubali rallies together a small army to take on Bhallaladeva’s mighty Mashishmati brigade. Ingenious ideas — one involving coconut palms as catapults — and a series of astounding visual effects in which Bahubali Jr and Bhallaladeva go fist-to-fist, drive The Conclusion towards a climax that’s, in one word, spectacular.
Even at a butt-numbing 168 minutes, Rajamouli scores by keeping his narrative tight and his action edge-of-the-seat. The performances — Ramya’s powerful turn as Sivagami, Sathyaraj’s assured act as Katappa, Anushka Shetty keeping it spirited and spunky as Devasena — take the narrative several notches higher. Rana Daggubati makes his Bhallaladeva that rare antagonist who has the aura and attitude matching up to — and sometimes, even overshadowing — the protagonist. But it is in Prabhas that Indian cinema has discovered a new hero — tall and strapping, with a screen presence unlike many and two distinct turns as father and son... yes, as Bahubali Sr and Jr, Prabhas scores — the body is different and so is the body language. This is a leading man who needs to be seen more… much more.
Grab your tickets for Bahubali 2 if you haven’t already. Our only grouse? The Conclusion, really?! This one calls for many, many more films. SSR, are you listening?
Priyanka Roy
I loved Bahubali 2 because.... Tell t2@abp.in
SPOILER ALERT
THE TOP MOMENTS
As Amarendra Bahubali strode, Mahendra Bahubali roared and arrows soared in Bahubali: The Conclusion, a hall-full of people at INOX (South City) clapped and cheered with abandon on Friday morning. Here are 10 ceeti-taali moments from the film that finally solves the mystery of “Katappa ne Bahubali ko kyon maara?”.
1 Rajmata Sivagami is on a spiritual walk to a temple, barefoot and carrying a bowl of fire on her head, for the well-being of Mahishmati. For the mission to be successful her feet cannot stop till she reaches the temple. So what happens when a rogue elephant goes on the rampage? Amarendra Bahubali smashes through a huge door pulling a giant Ganesh statue into the path of the charging elephant. The elephant stops in its tracks, Sivagami passes under the statue and completes her mission. The elephant is not only calmed, it even holds the bow that Bahubali uses to let loose a burning arrow!
2 When Devasena’s entourage is besieged by dacoits, she fights like a boss and leaves Bahubali smitten. He joins in the fight of course but he stabs, kills and sends them flying with a dreamy look and a stupid smile on his face. No wonder Katappa was worried about his own safety when Bahubali distractedly sent a tree crashing down to free Katappa from the dacoits!
3 Who thought the intense Katappa would provide such comic relief? Every time he cracked a joke, like when he told Kumara Varma “Aapko dekh ke poore jangal ka darshan ho gaya” while comparing his (non-existent) bravery to various animals or when he looks at two lovebirds and can only think how nice they would taste in a stew.
4 Devasena and Kumara Varma are on a wild boar hunt, and he brings Bahubali (pretending to be a stupid commoner) along. Every time Devasena and Kumara Varma aim for a boar, Bahubali pushes his arm to get his aim right and beat Devasena to the mark. The loudest cheers come when one of his arrows knocks Devasena’s one out in mid-air and brings a boar down.
5 Every single minute of the fight with the Pindaris is loudly cheered but two moments stand out. One is when Bahubali teaches Devasena to shoot three arrows at a time and then the two engage in a choreographed bow-and-arrow fight. The other is when bullocks with their horns aflame mow down the Pindaris and Bahubali cow-surfs (yes, that’s a thing) to reach the dam.
6 It might have been Bhallaladeva’s coronation but it is his senapati Bahubali who gets the loudest cheers from not just the subjects of Mahishmati but also the soldiers. Such is the roar of the crowd that it causes the earth to tremble. And when he says, “Amarendra Bahubali, main”, even the audience roars.
7 A pregnant Devasena has been imprisoned for cutting off the fingers of Setupati, Bhallala’s new senapati. When Bahubali learns that it was in retaliation for Setupati harassing women, he roars that such people shouldn’t have their fingers cut off but their heads... and beheads Setupati!
8 When Bhallala peers through the telescope (it is made indigenously) and sees Devasena walking towards Mahishmati with his son Bhadra’s head in her hand.
9 The climactic battle where Mahendra Bahubali uses palm trees to launch soldiers into the Mahishmati palace. Only they form a circle with their shields and turn into missiles while landing inside unscathed. Genius!
10 Thunder and lightning reveal clouds shaped in the likeness of Amarendra Bahubali as Mahendra Bahubali drives the sword into the ground in front of Bhallala in the final moments of the film.
Chandreyee Chatterjee
