Adipurush movie review: Prabhas as Raghava is a baton rightly passed from Arun Govil, but the VFX...

Om Raut’s Adipurush, starring Prabhas and Kriti Sanon, is a paradox in a way. It is in a highly safe zone – because we all know the plot, no surprises there – but also in choppy waters – because it will inevitably be pitted against other superlative renditions such as the highly rated Doordarshan series, Ramayana (1987), as well as Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Ram (1993), produced and directed by Yugo Sako. 

For people who are well acquainted with these other productions of Ramayana, including this author, Om Raut’s movie is a disappointment. It is the unbearable mix of its settings, backgrounds, dialogues and the overuse of VFX that has rendered this oft-narrated tale of Lord Rama’s war against Ravana to rescue Sita, tepid. 

Adipurush review: Plot and acting

To begin with Prabhas had big shoes to fill. Prabhas’ Rama or Raghava, is as graceful, kind and gentle as Arun Govil’s. But Prabhas’ Raghava doesn’t talk much – blame it on the scriptwriter – although, he can fight to kill. Raghava’s battle choreography is borrowed from the likes of Marvel, so it is swift and suave. All said and done, Prabhas suits the part, and looks like the baton has been rightly passed. 

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Kriti Sanon too fits the bill. She is graceful as Sita. However, she has barely been given any dialogues. She is present only in two primary settings – in the forest before ‘Sita haran’ and then in the garden in Lanka. Most of the scenes involve Sanon’s Sita waiting patiently and in constant consternation for Raghava. 

Moving on to Saif Ali Khan’s Ravana – there is much left to be desired. Khan, whose acting prowess is known to all, seems lost in his portrayal of the bad guy. Having played some iconic bad guys, Khan’s Lankesh is a half-hearted or rather confused mix of all the other bad guys. But Ravana is a tricky character – he was a learned scholar and Lord Shiva’s devotee, but also the antagonist who abducted Sita. The answer to this lies in the nuanced portrayal of Ravana in Sako’s adaptation, something that Khan should have taken inspiration from. 

The other mix of characters of Laxmana, Lord Hanuman, Vibhishan, Indrajeet try to hold their own in the retelling of this epic. Even so, Laxmana aka Shesh looks like his only job is to doubt people, while Indrajeet’s – who has tattoos and cornrowed hair – job is to growl and trick the same said people. 

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Lord Hanuman or Bajrang, played by Devdatta Nage, was perhaps the one who stood out. However, a little less VFX on Nage would have done wonders. 

Om Raut’s Adipurush assumes that the audience knows what’s up, which is mostly true. So one scene swiftly moves to the next. The battle appears to have been wrapped up in one business day, with Kumbhakarna making a small appearance – too little time spent on one of the most fascinating characters. 

Adipurush movie: Dialogues

Dialogues are sparse in Adipurush but the few there are, are gems such as this: ‘Kapda tere baap ka, tel tere baap ka, aag bhi tere baap ki, aur jalegi bhi tere baap ki’, ‘Yeh tere buwa ka bageecha hai jo hawa khaane aa gaya?’, ‘Mere ek sapole ne aap ke sheshnaag ko lamba kar diya, abhi toh pura pitara baaki hai’. No one, irrespective of how great an actor, can salvage a scene with such liners. 

And then you would think, it is probably for the best that Raghava and Sita have not been burdened with such graceless dialogues. 

Also read: Adipurush shows cancelled in Nepal over Sita birthplace row; Kathmandu Mayor threatens to stop screening all Hindi films

Adipurush movie review: VFX

Adipurush’s VFX – or its redo – is just too much to handle. It feels like Raghava and Sita have been dropped in the sets of a video game or is it Lord of the Rings + Planet of the Apes + Game of Thrones, with a little bit of Marvel sprinkled in – whatever, it is too strange. Everything that the Adipurush frame touches is just sub-par VFX. 

For, why is Ravana riding a bat? Why is Skeletor unleashing dementors on Raghava? Why are the orcs from Lord of the Rings guarding Ravana’s palace? Why do they have Marvelesque shields guarding Sita in the forest? There are just too many whys, and no reason. 

Adipurush’s VFX is a lesson to creators that simple graphics can go a long way – anyone who has watched Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayana from eons ago, will attest to the fact. 

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