Dr Ramandeep Mahal reviews 'Kalki 2898 AD

For many days the scenes of the movie kept spinning in my head, the reason being futuristic scenes and the background music of Naag Ashwin’s Kalki 2898 AD. Watching this movie is like being on a rollercoaster ride. It’s a challenge for any director to take Mahabharata’s mythological stories as a background for a movie. But this epic comes forward in a beautiful futuristic way. Kalki 2898 AD is not an interpretation of the Mahabharata per se but Naag Ashwin has picked up a moment in mythical time, pirouetted around it and spun many tales in innumerable directions. The film has a jaw dropping spectacles, so rousing that you cheer loudly but the problem lies with the narrative which is too long and flat. The visuals are reminiscent of movies like Star Wars and Dune.

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The world of Kalki is divided into two halves, the rich and powerful that live in the beauty of a floating inverted triangle called the Complex and the poor and oppressed that live below in Kashi. The first city in the world is also the last. The holy Ganges has dried up and the currency is known as Units. Anyone who wants to enter the Complex needs to have one million units. Here comes the interesting part, God is banned in Kashi. The world is dictated by someone who looks like an ancient sage known as Yaskin. Now this Yaskin floats and has tubes hooked in his back. In this dystopian society, women capable of reproduction are systematically executed, while the men are subjected to enslavement. Perhaps the only source of optimism is Bhairava (Prabhas) and a diverse group of rebels from Shambhala who manage to save one of the individuals from the Complex, SUM80 later renamed as Sumathi (Deepika Padukone), who is believed to be the mother of long-awaited Kalki.

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Naag Ashwin who has written the screenplay, story and the dialogues has the humongous task of setting up the Kalki universe which has three distinct worlds, and he had to juggle various character arcs and four superstars that include Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Hassan, Prabhas and Deepika Padukone and somehow, he has to find time for other characters like Saswata Chatterjee, Pasupathy, Disha Patani, Bhramanandam, Anna Ben et al. The cinematic experience is futuristic and the VFX effects have been used to create almost every aspect of these different worlds. Everything from food, weapons to clothes has been considered and created. Naag Ashwin has interwoven comedy and music into this epic saga about the ending of kalyug and birth of a new world. He has added the theme of ‘Maa” because maybe he believes that a good mother serves as the backbone of Indian cinema.

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This is Naag Ashwin’s third feature film but perhaps it is the first film where he has taken a huge risk, experimenting with the story, visual effects and montage. Production designer Nitin Zihani Choudhary, Cinematographer Djordje Stojiljkovic and editor Kotagiri Venkataswara Rao have helped to hone Naag Agwin’s vision. Composer Santosh Narayan’s music adds depth to the movie scenes especially in the interval and the climax. With great skill Naag Ashwin ramps the visuals and the background music to such a crescendo that the viewers are left with goose bumps. The only flaw in the film is that he is unable to sustain the culminations and ascensions. Naag Ashwin’s writing is unable to keep pace with the three creative worlds. There are so many elements that needed to be kept together but that does not happen which is why the narrative appears to lack coherence. Bujji (played by Keerthi Suresh) and Bhairava (played by Prabhas) are like a couple who are constantly bickering but eventually they are each other’s protector and companion. It’s a fun thread but the dialogues lack depth. Roxy played by Disha Patani dives in the movie but later she disappears never to be seen again. Deepika Padukone has remarkable self-control and expertise in portraying a restrained character that is fated to someday become powerful. One thing the viewer thoroughly enjoys is Amitabh Bachchan's character of Asthwatthama who turns into an angry old man as he is doomed to immortality and now seeks redemption. I would rate this movie 7.5 out of 10. If you want to get into a world of great fights between gods, good, and evil, this is the film for you. But watching the film will certainly tax your patience.