Rajamouli is probably the only director from other languages who the Tamil audience can recognize and it is evidenced by the applause he receives when he is on screen in a fleeting appearance. The director is probably the only one in the country who has never seen a flop in his career. 'Baahubali- The Beginning' is his tenth film and it is no doubt a grand spectacle, but lacks the soul of his previous works.

The film begins very promisingly with a valorous woman Sivagami (Ramya Krishnan) carrying a just born child, fleeing from  several men who are hot in pursuit.  She manages to kill  them is thrown into a flowing river, but still manages to hold the child atop the water.  The infant is rescued and brought up by a childless couple belonging to a tribe and he grows up to become Shiva (Prabhas)  who is obsessed with climbing up on a huge mountain and keeps trying.  What is there on the other side of the mountain and what is the connection to him forms the rest of the story which is filled with battles and wars with some romance and motherly love thrown in.

Coming to the actors Prabhas the hero,  both as the father Mahendra Baahubali and son Shivudu has worked extremely hard and he has the charisma to carry the two roles on his broad shoulders.  Rana Dagubatti as the villain Palvalathevan is excellent with subtle body language when he shows jealousy towards his cousin brother and is an angry bull in the war sequences.  Ramya Krishnan as the queen mother Sivagami has given a powerful  performance and proves her caliber as an actress.  Tamanaah appears as a rebel warrior who belongs to a group which is trying to rescue Anushka .  Though the pretty actress has tried her best, her body language and make up lets her down, but she makes up for it in the sensual song with Prabhas where she is fetching.  Sathyaraj as the slave warrior Kattappa leaves an indelible mark, giving his all for the role, especially in the scene where he takes the feet of Prabhas and places it on his head.  Nasser has been typecast in the usual role of the scheming villain and does not have much scope.  In the couple of scenes that Anushka appears as Devasena her make up artist can take the credit for her perfect look as the enslaved old woman.

Madan Karky the dialogue writer  of the Tamil version has written sharp and hard hitting lines that lift the film.  Sabu Cyril, the art director is one of the heroes of this film and his work speaks in every frame of the film with the palace and waterfall set standing out.  Rajamouli regular Senthil Kumar has once again captured the mega sized dreams of his director through his lens and kudos are due to him for perfectly shooting a war sequence that has thirty minutes screen time.  Peter Hain’s stunt choreography is the backbone of the film and he excels in the war sequence.   Editor Kotagiri Srinivasa Rao is responsible for the seamless flow of the images. Maragathamani ‘s songs are not up to the quality of his previous works and the re-recording is passable.

Director Rajamouli’s touches are evident in the opening scene itself when Ramya Krishnan saves the child and the audience sits back expecting  more from him.  Close to the interval comes a sequence where Rana raises a hundred and twenty foot statue of himself and at the same time unknowingly Prabhas rescues his mother Anushka.  This sequence is the defining moment of the film and is excellently presented by the director.  The war strategy and the war itself are definitely never seen before in Indian cinema and credit goes to the passionate  hard worker Rajamouli.

Due to the fact that ‘Baahubali’  is one long story of which only a part is seen by us it gives an impression that there is no story in the first part and we are left clueless about the background and relevance of a few important  characters which does not  give the audience a full fledged movie watching experience.  The sets and the graphics are very good in most of the scenes, but at the same time they seem too obvious.  The love portions between Tamanaah and Prabhas comes suddenly without a strong reason and lacks the pep to sustain interest.  Though the war sequence is well conceived and executed it is too long and tests the patience beyond a point with its repetitiveness.  An item song comes as a major irritant.

It remains to be seen if the sequel justifies the need for so many hidden plots and unanswered questions in this part and give a wholesome satisfaction  for the fans of Rajamouli and the general audience.

Verdict : ‘Baahubali’ has touched one of the highest levels as far as visual grandeur is concerned and Rajamouli’s stamp is evident only in this aspect.