Modern Masters: SS Ragamauli Review: It’s arguably the right time to celebrate filmmaker RRR and Baahubali’s journey, after their new direction made waves not only in India, but also in the U. S. The U. S. , Japan, and the world. Array A new documentary on Netflix India follows Rajamouli through the two countries, the Oscar campaign and the release in Japan. But it is also evident that his fame does not have his Oscar. Its greatness is already assumed, identified and highlighted whenever possible.
(Also Read – MM Keeravaani Says RRR’s Oscar-Winning Naatu Naatu Is Her “Best” Song: “Global Popularity Came. . . “)
In this sense, Rajamouli is treated through this documentary as he treats his heroes: with respect and respect. This isn’t one of those thoughtful directing documentaries that struggle to notice how their inner conflicts tell them their vision. For those who want to take a closer look, there is enough nuance, as well as there is a lot to read between the lines while watching Rajamouli’s films. There are elements about his influences, his flaws as a director and even his arrogance towards the profession, but only if you look too closely. In those fleeting moments, Rajamouli seems the most fragile, the most vulnerable, the most human: words that are not his first choice to describe the director or his cinema.
When Rajamouli once asked him if he made films for young people or for adults, he replied humorously that his films are for young people and that there is a latent child in every adult. The documentary doesn’t try too hard to highlight Rajamouli’s son, but that facet manifests itself magnificently and organically in the countless behind-the-scenes shots where Rajamouli himself performs the memorable stunts of his films to show them to his actors. It’s a contagious and enduring joy to watch him perform: wielding weapons, jumping on elephants, running with horses, or crawling on the ground. He knows exactly what he expects from his actors: they just want to imitate him.
The childlike enthusiasm also extends to his youthful stubbornness to be able to film exactly as he envisioned it. Some might call this his perfectionist tendency, but when Ram Charan and Jr NTR talk about the hell they went through while filming, RRR because Rajamouli kept asking. For the new shoots, one begins to wonder if each and every movie will be tackled, each and every day. As if we were going to war. The setting of the film then ceased to be a playground to become a battlefield. Because Rajamouli is not in a project to build sandcastles here: billions of dollars are being invested in those larger-than-life scenarios. Rajamouli explains in the documentary that even if he sympathizes with his actors and crew, his duty to manufacturers makes him a ruthless mastermind.
It is therefore logical that Rajamouli hired his long circle of family members into his core team. His father V Vijayendra Prasad is the screenwriter, his elder cousin MM Keeravani is the music composer, his wife Rama Rajamouli is the costume designer, his sister-in-law Srivalli. and his son-in-law SS Karthikeya are part of the production team and assistant director. His family is emotionally willing to take care of his relentless pursuit of perfection, as they believe something profitable would come of it. Baahubali star Prabhas shows that Rajamouli’s modest 3BHK compound in Hyderabad is filled at all times with his long circle of relatives, which only reflects how close-knit they are. This cottage industry technique also makes it possible to make a film that appeals to all age groups and tailor it to the tastes of the more family-oriented Indian audience.
On the other hand, having so many members with the same background and the same pricing formula on the core team also runs the risk of turning every task into an echo chamber. The documentary briefly addresses the complaints directed at Rajamouli’s films, particularly the major ones. hits, namely Baahubali and RRR, according to which they are partly sexist and right-wing in the photographs they evoke. Rajamouli confronts the first complaint head-on when he claims that the woke public fails to see the symbolic meaning of superficially problematic things. scenes. “They don’t perceive the narrative,” he concludes haughtily.
But the complaint is currently being approached with more corroboration than confrontation. Rajamouli confesses that although he believes in the Sanatana Dharma, he is a self-proclaimed atheist. He maintains that it is conceivable to be both, as he believes in Karma Yoga: be the one who acts instead of the one who worships. His agreement with God is not conditional. Although he does not believe in God, his task as a director is to remain faithful and, above all, to value the script written through his father, a sensible believer. They have a mutual respect for each other’s beliefs, which doesn’t hinder their way of functioning as an artistic team, despite their father-son dynamic. Rajamouli says that it is the cashew nut of his father’s upma: while his father bureaucrats the base, the former raises it with his characteristic touches.
Rajamouli also states that he loves Ravana more than Rama. Their villains like Bhallaladeva (Rana Daggubati in Baahubali) will have to be as strong, menacing, and righteous as their heroes. He argues that everyone sees Rama as a hero in their childhood, but when they grow up and approach the epics more academically, they stop seeing them as binary. Rajamouli himself is a living, breathable example of the energies of Rama and Ravana. He embodies his characters with an innocence and purity that can only arise from a child’s imagination. But he also cracks the whip mercilessly to make sure his vision isn’t dishonored. While the documentary manages to give a great picture of Rajamouli’s genius, we would have liked it to delve deeper into his flaws. Unlike Rajamouli, he rarely tends to become a slave to the subject and not to the story.