Adipurush: A Box Office Flop Despite High Budget Adipurush, a 2023 Indian mythological action film based on the Ramayana, failed to resonate with critics and audiences, despite its substantial budget and star cast. Directed and co-written by Om Raut, and produced by T-Series and Retrophiles, the film boasts a high production value, with principal photography taking place in Mumbai between February and November 2021. Shot simultaneously in Hindi and Telugu, the film stars Prabhas, Saif Ali Khan, Kriti Sanon, Sunny Singh, and Devdutta Nage. The film's music is composed by Ajay-Atul and Sachet-Parampara. With a reported budget of US$82 million, Adipurush became one of the most expensive Indian films ever made. However, this financial investment did not translate into critical or commercial success. Released on June 16, 2023, the film faced widespread criticism for its screenplay, dialogues, and visual presentation. The negative reception led to the film's categorization as a box office bomb, a significant setback considering its ambitious scale and pre-release hype. The film's shortcomings highlight the challenges of adapting ancient epics for a contemporary audience while maintaining fidelity to the source material and delivering a compelling cinematic experience.

In the opening moments of ‘Adipurush’, we see Raavan throwing his head back, and laughing. He is stomping through the snow, one shoulder rising, the other dipping, just like a cartoon character, and going ha-ha-ha-ha. That laugh is called the villain’s ‘thahaka’ in Bollywood: every single significant baddie from KN Singh to Amrish Puri has given us that laugh. You see Saif Ali Khan’s Lankesh tossing that one off, and it is an indication that Om Raut’s version of ‘Ramayana’ will be a series of clunky computer graphics, bathed in Bollywoodese. And that’s exactly what this nearly three-hour long film is.

When the film opens, Ram, Sita and Lakshman are already in the forest, the Maryada Purushottam having accepted his ‘vanvas’. In short order, we get the Sooparnakha tale (Raavan’s sister whose nose is slashed by Lakshman when she comes on to him strongly), the Shabari story (an old woman whose ‘jhoothe ber’ are eaten by Ram), and the chapter of the Lakshman rekha which Sita steps over, and is promptly kidnapped by Raavan. The rest is an endless barrage of the rescue mission, the meeting with Pavan Putra Hanuman, the creation of the Ram Setu, the formation of the 'vaanar sena', and the battle with Raavan and his cohorts, ending, of course, in the victory of good over evil.

This version of the Ramayan is not interested in connecting with the feeling of genuine religiosity that any reading of the ‘granth’ arouses, whether it is the most popular Tulsidas version or the Valmiki version. This is a beloved epic turned into an actioner, reminding you of a little of ‘The Lord Of The Rings’ (the poor ‘rakshashas’ guarding Lankapati’s castle look like orcs and trolls, and the building itself a gargoyle with zero provenance), a bit of ‘Game Of Thrones’, and countless films which have computer generated armies going at each other.

Despite our 3D glasses, Prabhas (Ram), Sunny Singh (Lakshman), Sita (Kriti Sanon) all appear 2D: the only one who feels somewhat filled out is Hanuman (Devdatta Nage), with his few funny lines. Saif Ali Khan, vamping it up as Raavan, and looking like Bollywood's idea of a Mughal monster, gets a few moments, but is felled by having to re-create that demonic laughter, and grapple with his ten heads, which refuse to fill out an orderly line. He felt much more alive in Raut's 2020 film 'Tanhaji'.

Questions abound. Why does 'Adipurush' choose to call its lead character Raghav, and not Ram, when it is going to lay the Ram-Siya-Ram chant thickly over the movie? Why talk about the sanctity of ‘behens’, just like crass characters in bad Bollywood movies? Do you really think a vulgar phrase like 'teri jali kya' ( does it burn) belongs in the 'Ramayan'? This, when Hanuman's tail is set alight. Who's written these dialogues? Why leach out all signs of reverence in this zeal to make it, one presumes, palatable to New India? And where, most importantly, is the feeling of piety? Like millions of Indians, I love the ‘Ramayan’, with all its wondrous characters and twists and turns. It is amongst the greatest of all epics. Why reduce it to this two dimensional barrage of little feeling?

Adipurush movie cast: Prabhas, Saif Ali Khan, Kriti Sanon, Sunny Singh, Devdatta Nage
Adipurush movie director: Om Raut
Adipurush movie rating: One and a half stars