RRR, KGF, Pushpa: Films from the South create a splash

Nonika Singh

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CELEBRITY director SS Rajamouli’s ‘RRR’ has taken just three weeks to cross the Rs. 1,000-crore mark globally, and is already the third highest grossing Hindi-dubbed film from South India. Not too long ago, yet another Telugu film, ‘Pushpa: The Rise’, defied expectations and boxoffice figures. It earned its way into cinematic history setting a new record for the pandemic era by raking in Rs. 173 crore within the first three days of its release.

Last weekend, the unthinkable happened. The release date of Hindi film ‘Jersey’, a remake of a Telugu hit and starring a fairly bankable Shahid Kapoor, was pushed by a week fearing competition from Kannada film ‘KGF: Chapter 2’. The crowd-puller Yash-starrer led to a frenzied craze in his home state. Even theatres in Chandigarh and around saw full house in nearly all of its 160-odd shows on the opening day.

Cinema from the South has always been standing tall. For decades, it has ruled both the boxoffice and the viewers’ hearts. But its reach has invariably been limited to native states. To imagine that a time would come when it would overshadow the big starry world of Bollywood would have been implausible, until a few years ago.

In 2015, a maker of epic proportions entered the scene, showing us not only how an entertainer such as ‘Bahubali’ is made, but also successfully navigating the language and cultural barriers. SS Rajamouli is today a household name better known than many superstars of the South. While he can take credit for single-handedly placing Telugu cinema on the national map, it implores a deeper look at the magic of his cinema and of others from the South who have made hit movies with a pan-India appeal.

Telugu cinema’s share in boxoffice revenues rose to 28 per cent in 2020-21, as compared to Hindi films’ 27 per cent and Tamil cinema’s 17 per cent. A report released at the FICCI Frames Summit in 2020 said Telugu and Tamil movie industry contributed 47 per cent to the Indian film industry’s overall revenues in the previous year.

Trade analyst and critic Taran Adarsh says cinema from the South, particularly Telugu movies, is at present giving Hindi cinema a run for its money because of “its pure entertainment value”. He adds, “While Bollywood has forgotten to make films that cater to the least common denominator and is busy gravitating towards realistic movies with limited appeal, the makers from the South have mastered the art of wholesome entertainment.”

Movie business analyst and the editor of ‘Complete Cinema’, Atul Mohan, agrees. “Bollywood is losing the magic of superstars. But the makers from the South are capitalising on the swag and style of stars with aplomb.” Thus, it is not just magnum opus ‘Bahubali’ that catapulted Prabhas on to national consciousness , a relatively dark horse, ‘Pushpa: The Rise’ had viewers rooting for Allu Arjun. The Hindi-dubbed version breached the Rs. 100-crore mark, and its music with four versions of each of the five songs in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam set new trends on the viral meter. And lest we forget, ‘Pushpa’ came in at a time when a week later mainstream movies like ‘83’ were struggling for cinema audience.

One of the reasons for India turning language agnostic is, strangely, what was perceived as the death of cinema in theatres — the OTT boom. During the long pandemic period, more and more viewers opened up to language films. If on one hand they were lapping up international cinema, on the other they were avidly consuming regional films. Tamil superstar Suriya’s ‘Jai Bhim’ became one of the most popular films on OTT, highest rated on IMDb, surpassing the ratings of ‘The Godfather’ (1972) and ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ (1994).

Trade analyst and the publisher of ‘Film Information’ Komal Nahta says, “For the urban viewers, access to regional cinema might have been a new phenomenon but the satellite channels had already whetted the appetite of masses with dubbed versions of regional movies.”

No wonder, when theatres reopened, there was a fair degree of familiarity and more than that, a readiness to accept the unfamiliar. As Nahta puts it, “Faces don’t matter, what does is content.” Trade pundits’ projection about future revenues, with some tall claims suggesting that 50 per cent of earnings could come from regions other than native states, might be a little off the mark. Nahta, however, thinks it’s too early for such crystal gazing. Besides, not every film from the South is a hit. Vijay’s ‘Master’ and Ajith Kumar’s ‘Valimai’ are a case in point. Hence, prophesising the dominance of one industry over the other might be akin to jumping the gun.

Yet, Bollywood sure is facing the heat and some filmmakers like Karan Johar are responding to the impending challenge. Earlier, Johar had acquired the Hindi rights of ‘Bahubali 1 and 2’, while his upcoming film ‘Liger’, shot simultaneously in Hindi and Telugu, stars Vijay Deverakonda, besides featuring Ananya Panday.

And it’s this synergy that would determine the future course. The presence of directors like Priyadarshan who adapted stories from Malayalam films into Bollywood and whose flopped period epic ‘Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea’ starred Suniel Shetty, has helped further blur the lines. Mukesh Rishi, who has acted in dozens of South Indian films, feels, “These are happy tidings of tremendous opportunities transcending boundaries — geographical, linguistic or otherwise.” So, Raveena Tandon and Sanjay Dutt dot chapter 2 of ‘KGF’, Ajay Devgn and Alia Bhatt embellish ‘RRR’ and Mrunal Thakur would be seen making her Telugu debut with ‘Sita Ramam’ opposite Dulquer Salmaan. Mrunal, who signed the film two years ago, says, “ I said yes for I knew that with director Hanu sir (Raghavapudi) at the helm, every frame would be like a painting. We always wanted it to have a pan-India reach.”

While the over-enthused among us might be tempted to chorus that “regional is the new Indian”, Nahta qualifies, “Films with a universal theme and not the ones steeped in regional flavour will have a pan-India connect.” Rajamouli’s success formula does not merely lie in mounting spectacles, but also how he blends Indian mythology with fantasy. While ‘RRR’ might foreground two revolutionaries from the South, Rajamouli also gives them a makeover and projects its key protagonists as Ram and Bheem. Rather unimaginable, but one that has not only masses cheering heartily, but educated men like Nahta, too, who shares how he lauded and applauded this master twist. If Rajamouli suspends disbelief and entices us to enter a world where we are willing captives of his make-believe galaxy, he is on firm footing, thanks to his father KV Vijayendra Prasad’s sterling writing backing him. Prasad believes, “There is a world of imagination in our epics, ‘Ramayana’ and ‘Mahabharata’, which I periodically dip in to for inspiration.” Prasad points out that it’s exactly this connect that Bollywood no longer taps into. “Knowing the pulse of the audience is not difficult provided you keep in touch with them. Watching films in single screen cinema halls along with them, I know exactly when the masses clap and when they shed a tear,” he asserts.

Then there is his humongous risk-taking appetite; imagine conceiving a regional film with a Rs. 550-crore budget, hiring the best technicians such as Hollywood action director Nick Powell and the most expensive cameras around the world.

It’s in this dreaming big that there are lessons to be learnt for other industries, especially Bollywood, which among many other things must stop looking at remakes. Even Mrunal, who is part of ‘Jersey’, agrees that in times to come remakes could became redundant. Still, Ranveer Singh is collaborating with Tamil filmmaker Shankar for a remake of superstar Vikram’s ‘Anniyan’. Besides, many a remake like that of ‘Drishyam 2’, ‘Soorarai Pottru’ and ‘Vikram Vedha’ are in the pipeline. However, more eyes will be watching out for Shah Rukh Khan’s upcoming film directed by Tamil filmmaker Atlee, featuring Tamil and Telugu star Nayanthara. If you can’t beat them, join them. As Nahta puts it, “Bollywood has no choice but to embrace them, else they will be left behind.” Though Bollywood is unlikely to be crushed under the regional juggernaut, crossover cinema is the new reality. And one that is no flash-in-the-pan occurrence, but here to stay.

Alexx O’ Nell, actor of period films like ‘Madrasapattinam’ and ‘Urumi’ and recently ‘RRR’, too, reminds us that South Indian films were always propelled by massive budgets. What has changed is “the marketing of southern cinema in North India.” “Since OTT had shown the way, filmmakers are now following the audiences with astute strategies in place,” he adds.

If ‘Pushpa’ was a hit, and ‘RRR’ a super-hit, industry watchers say ‘KGF: Chapter 2’ may be super-duper hit. More will follow suit and many might bite the dust, but a solid beginning has been made. Mrunal sums it up, “Beyond categorisation, right now we are celebrating Indian cinema.” More power to it.

REEL SUPREMOS

Star of many parts

Ram Charan

Ironically, Ram Charan’s Hindi debut, a remake of ‘Zanjeer’ opposite Priyanka Chopra, tanked. Son of mega star and politician Chiranjeevi and Surekha, the ‘RRR’ star’s next is again a fantasy-action movie, also directed by SS Rajamouli. He has reportedly charged Rs. 100 crore for an upcoming pan-Indian drama directed by Shankar. A philanthropist, owner of a polo team, chairman of an airline, he turned producer for his father’s comeback film, ‘Khaidi No 150’.

Man of the moment

SS Rajamouli

All his movies have been top earners, right from ‘Student No 1’, with not a single flop. Yet, his humility is in direct proportion to his colossal success. Rajamouli’s spectacular cinema emanates from a rare alchemy of a father-son jodi. His father, ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ film writer KV Vijayendra Prasad, believes Rajamouli takes his writing prowess to a higher plane. The filmmaker’s next is with Mahesh Babu, a Telugu superstar, with Prasad wielding the pen, yet again. ‘Bahubali 3’ is also on the cards.

Telugu typhoon

Allu Arjun

Swag has a new identity — Allu Arjun, who hails from the mega-family Allu-Konidela known for their work in Telugu cinema. Crossing boundaries is not new for him, with many a superstar in the family such as uncle Chiranjeevi and cousin Ram Charan. His movie ‘Arya 2’ was a blockbuster in Kerala with a 100-day run. The love from the fans from the coastal state also earned him the sobriquet Mallu Arjun. With ‘Pushpa: The Rise’, he has become a pan-India star.