Adipurush

Baahubali star Prabhas recently said that he hoped that audiences would like his portrayal of Lord Ram in ‘Adipurush’, director Om Raut’s big screen adaptation of ‘Ramayana’, which the actor said that the film has been made with ‘a lot of love and respect’.

The makers of the multilingual period saga released the trailer for the film on May 9, six months after the teaser stirred controversy over the depiction of Ravana and Hanuman as well as the quality of its visual effects (VFX).

Prabhas, who along with the crew chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Jai Siya Ram’ at the press event, said that he felt grateful to portray such an iconic character.

“I should thank Om for giving me this opportunity. We have made this film with a lot of love and respect. I hope you all like it,” he said.

‘Adipurush’ courted controversy, including boycott calls, over the depiction of Hindu deities and the buzz cut sported by Saif Ali Khan’s Lankesh when the teaser was released in October last year.

The 3.19-minute trailer mostly focuses on Ram’s journey from Raghav to Adipurush as he braces for war with demon king Lankesh.

Saif Ali Khan was not present at the trailer launch and the team, including Prabhas, actor Kriti Sanon, producer Bhushan Kumar of ‘T-series’, director Om Raut and lyricist Manoj Muntashir, shared their experience of working on the project. But they did not take any questions from the press.

Om Raut, known for the National Award-winning film ‘Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior’, dedicated the film to ‘Ramleela’ artists, who have been bringing to life the epic tale in varied forms across the country for many years.

“I want to dedicate the film to each and every artist who has been a part of ‘Ramleela’. I feel the story of ‘Ramayana’ has always been there for years and it is like a bus. We have boarded this bus and we will continue for some years. Then we will get down and somebody else will board the bus. But the journey of ‘Ramleela’ will continue. We will continue to see ‘Ramleela’ in different ways as long as there is India,” he said at the trailer launch.

The trailer begins with Raghav (Prabhas), Janki (Sanon) and Shesh (Sunny Singh) leaving the Ayodhya palace for 14 years of exile and traversing through the jungles, where Janki is propelled to cross the ‘Lakshman Rekha’ as Khan’s Lankesh appears in disguise as a sage.

It then transports the viewers to Lanka, gives a glimpse of Bajrang’s (Devdatta Nage) meeting with Janki in Ashok Vatika and Raghav’s quest to crush evil forces as he travels across the sea with the army of monkeys and bears, led by Hanuman, to rescue his beloved wife.

“Today, don’t fight for me! Fight for that day when people will bow down with respect when they will read your name in history. So, let’s march ahead and pierce our egos with the saffron flag of victory. (Aage badho aur gaadh do ahankaar hi chaati main vijay ka bhagwa dhawaj),” said Prabhas’ Lord Ram as he led the forces to Lanka.

Saif Ali Khan makes a brief appearance in the trailer, which ends with the demon king contemplating abducting Janki, but his look as Lankesh remains hidden from the audience in the trailer.

Kriti Sanon said that sharing the trailer with audiences globally is an ‘emotional’ moment for her.

“I have goosebumps right now. ‘Adipurush’ is more than a film to all of us. I’m grateful for the experiences we have had during the making of this movie. There are very few actors who have had the opportunity to play a character like this. So, I feel very blessed.”

She said that she has tried to play Janki with ‘full respect and devotion’.

“I had respect and admiration for this character, but it all got amplified as I shot for this movie. I could understand this character in detail. For me, Janaki represented the combination of a pure, kind soul with a strong mind. I’ve given my 200 percent. They were gods and we are mere humans. So, if there’s any kind of shortcoming, please forgive me,” the actor added.

Bhushan Kumar dedicated the film to studio founder and father Gulshan Kumar, known for popularising devotional music in the 1990s.

“I’m very happy that today my father’s dream is coming true. This is a very emotional moment, as you know that he was a very devotional individual.”

‘Adipurush’ was initially set to arrive in cinema halls on August 11, 2022, but the release date was pushed to January 12, 2023.

In a recent interview with the top news agency, Om Raut said that they have utilised the additional time to improve the VFX of the film.

The film is now slated to hit the cinema screens in 3D on June 16, with its international premiere on June 13 at the 2023 edition of the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.