The ‘Raja’ of many matters
Directing his first-ever assignment, SS Rajamouli nearly trembled. It was a government
ad that he was to shoot. He managed to get the project thanks to the recommendation of someone he knew. Having
landed the offer, he was now clueless, not because he had no technical knowledge but he didn’t know how to handle a
team. From someone who was fear-stricken to direct a few-minutes ad for Doordarshan, Rajamouli, now a Padma Shri,
has grown to become a ‘Raja’ (king) in his own right.
Heroism
He has a way with heroism. If films like ‘Samarasimha Reddy’, ‘Narasimha Naidu’ and
‘Indra’ had done it with senior actors, Rajamouli pulled it off with a 21-something NTR. That was ‘Simhadri’. That
became a game-changer. Since then, Rajamouli put that as the bar, admittedly or otherwise. From ‘Singhamalai..
Singhamalai..’, ‘Chatrapathi.. Chatrapathi..’, ‘Bhairava..’ to the signature tunes of films like ‘Baahubali’
dedicated to heroism, Rajamouli has always scorched the box office through his heroes. As his heroes go ‘roudra
rasam’, the audience get goosebumps. As they massacre the villains, his audience nod in agreement. That goes to
show that he also elevates villain-ism in the best way.
Interval bang
If ‘Student No. 1’ was a trailer, ‘Simhadri’ was a testimony to Rajamouli’s insuperable
knack for getting the interval bang right. Same with ‘Chatrapathi’ and ‘Vikramarkudu’. The more said about
‘Magadheera’, the more exciting it becomes. His interval bangs elevate heroism, present the hero as the gutsy
numero uno who will never rest for the rest of the movie, emanate drama backed up by Keeravani’s best BGM, pack up
tempo and performance – all at once.
Emotions
Elevation of emotions is integral to his story-telling. He does it without melodrama.
He does it in a way that youngsters can relate to. With just one line, his characters take an emotion to the next
level. ‘Vattu vesi oka mata, veyakunda oka mata cheppanamma’ (‘I speak the truth, whether I swear on you or not’)
became a sensation. Mother-son sentiment of ‘Chatrapathi’ could have turned out to be outdated in the hands of an
ordinary director.
The scene where Bhumika Chawla pierces a sword into NTR’s chest (‘Simhadri’) was both
frightening and emotional. As the BGM deliberately went amiss, the silence conveyed a hundred questions.
In ‘Sye’, the angst of Rajeev Kanakala’s character, that peaks in the pre-climax
portions, did the magic. In ‘Eega’, the emotions conveyed by the housefly were so vivid that Nani lived on even
after his character withered away.
In ‘Baahubali’, the emotions of a forsaken woman (Anushka) once again brought out his
Midas Touch. As for Katappa’s choking confession that it was he who killed Baahbali, it is still haunting the
audience. That’s the Rajamouli power.
Revealing a meaty part in advance
The director has more than once surprised the audience by revealing a meaty part of the
story well in advance. The audience were told beforehand that ‘Magadheera’ was about two love birds who take
rebirth 400 years later to win their love back. Considered the second best movie of Rajamouli after ‘Baahubali’
(non-Telugu audience wouldn’t know it, but many Bollywood directors couldn’t dare to remake it), the revelation only
raised the audience’s curiosity levels. The result was that the costliest Telugu movie ever went on to become the
biggest hit ever. Rajamouli only got bigger after this. When he did ‘Maryada Ramanna’ and ‘Eega’, he followed the
same strategy. And both the times, it worked, more in the case of the latter.
Technical knowledge
It’s said that Rajamouli’s technical knowledge is immense. While his contemporaries may
or may not use it to the producer’s benefit, Rajamouli makes sure he does. That’s why a film like ‘Baahubali’ could
be made at a reasonable cost (for a movie of that standard).
Value system
Rajamouli’s value system doesn’t allow him to do certain things. In his career spanning
15 years, he hasn’t had a single flop. His films are either hits or super hits or even more – industry hits. Yet,
commerce can’t get the better of him. A producer can give him away a fortune, but he wouldn’t be ready to make a
movie for him unless he loves the craft. That’s Rajamouli for you.
Vijayendra Prasad & MM Keeravani
Rajamouli has become what he is in company with his father Vijayendra Prasad (writer)
and music director MM Keeravani, also his relation. While most of his contemporaries work with the biggest music
directors of the current generation, Rajamouli works with a stalwart of the last generation. As Keeravani puts it,
when he is music-directing a Rajamouli movie, he gives the best output because that’s how much the director inspires
him. Enough said.