WEBVTT

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Baahubali! Baahubali!

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And he said,
"Rana, you're telling me

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you all are making a 200-crore war film
in Telugu?"

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Baahubali: The Beginning!

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Is it going to be a new beginning
for the industry?

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Baahubali: The Beginning has finally
crossed the 500-crore mark worldwide.

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Baahubali: The Beginning becomes the
most searched Indian film on Google.

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It has set many
unprecedented records.

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It is being billed as the most
successful Indian film of all time.

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-India's highest-grossing film.
-A pan-Indian film,

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Baahubali 2: The Conclusion.

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It will be the first film in
India to earn 1,000 crore.

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It will be the first film in
India to earn 1,000 crore.

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And the highest-grossing
Indian film globally.

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Baahubali 2, the number one Indian film
at the worldwide box office.

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Baahubali actually
redefined Indian cinema.

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K Raghavendra Rao, BA., presents

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Arka Media's Baahubali.

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Jai Maahishmathi!

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It was a TV serial called Shanti Nivasam.

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I gave him a 20-minute outline,

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and he turned it into
500 to 1,000 episodes.

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He would film it better
than what I had narrated.

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He wouldn't take it lightly
just because it's a TV serial.

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I told him, since he's a
prodigy of RK Banner,

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and considering I'm
not after money or fame…

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I told him to direct a film
for us whenever he's ready.

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The first serial I directed was an
RK Tele Show, Shanti Nivasam,

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under the guidance of Mr. Raghavendra Rao.

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My first film was produced by
Mr. Raghavendra Rao, called Student No. 1.

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Working with RK again is like
coming back home to my own banner.

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Alright. All the best.

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Just kill it, guys!

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So, the combination was Mr. Raghavendra
Rao and RK Films-Arka Media Works.

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And Rajamouli with Prabhas.

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It was the first genesis
of Baahubali as a film.

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It wasn't titled
Baahubali at this point.

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There was no story in place either.

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We just knew we were going to
work on a larger-than-life project.

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That's how the idea started.

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He'll be wondering why is everyone
chanting the name Baahubali,

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who is this Baahubali?

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Oh, nice.

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-You got to be quick.
-Simple…

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Rock, Cloth, Scissors.

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Rock, Cloth, Scissors.

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Rock, Cloth, Scissors.

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See?

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What's more harrowing than a swish
of the blade or a swing of the spear is…

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…Betrayal, Mahendra.

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Who is it, Grandpa?

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Who is it?

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You're looking at him.

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It's me.

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"The sun is setting."

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"Under the searing Sun, Baahubali
glistens in a cloak of blood."

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"yet I swear,
none of that blood was his own"

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"No man valorous enough to kill
Baahubali has ever been born."

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"No blade cuts deeper than a backstab."

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"I stabbed him in the
back and killed him."

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This is the first scene
that I narrated to Rajamouli.

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That is all I had written.

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But I saw his eyes sparkle
as he listened to the scene.

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Baahubali! Baahubali! Baahubali!

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It could use some more energy.

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Baahubali! Baahubali!

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Baahubali! Baahubali! Baahubali!

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Baahubali is a suicide mission.

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So, to get people onto
this speeding, crazy boat,

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I, as a maker, need to have
that belief that we can make it.

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Once the story was ready,

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it was my belief and passion
that steered the wheel.

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I think more than the story,

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it was my passion which
made people come on board.

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Be it the actors or technicians.

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I remember being in the
dubbing theatre for 'Rebel'.

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Rajamouli sir came to see
me and narrated three scenes.

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The first was Ramya Krishnan ma'am
holding the baby above the water.

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Second, why Kattappa killed Baahubali.

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Third, the mother killing
the son in the 2nd part.

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That's when it occurred to me that…

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I couldn't be part of
a bigger film than this.

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I came on board right away.

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I knew Rajamouli sir had
worked on five stories before this,

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none of which satisfied him.

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I won't take credit for his
decision to make this film, but…

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I knew he'd make a blockbuster if
even one of those scenes worked.

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At that point, it wasn't a two-part film.

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The thought of exploring three emotions in
a film with Rajamouli sir was intriguing.

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I got all excited and
told all my friends that…

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we were going to make an explosive film.

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Given how strong the story was,

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I was confident that everyone
would jump at the opportunity

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to work on this project.

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I believed there was no
greater story than this.

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I knew I could go to any actor
or technician,

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and they would come on board
without a second thought.

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That was the case with most of the actors.

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There was a lot of
excitement after the narration.

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Most of them had tears in their eyes.

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They jumped into the project.

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I had no doubt whatsoever
that they would like it.

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He didn't start with the story.
He started with a map.

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"This is the Kingdom of Maahishmathi."

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"This is where the water bodies are.
This is where the mountains are."

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"The statues are not of gods,
but of their warriors from the past."

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"That's the entrance to Maahishmathi."

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I think that was the first moment
of excitement

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because stories like this
had previously existed

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only in comic books
and Hollywood films.

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But his explanation just
took me into a trance.

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It just drew me into a world that
was so big and magnanimous.

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Bhallaladeva is mightier than
Baahubali in terms of warfare.

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-Physically, he's superior.
-Physical strength.

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Then, the minute he said I
was the King of that kingdom,

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everything changed.

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And action!

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Action!

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And action!

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My first film with Rajamouli
sir was Vikramarkudu.

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He told me upfront that he doesn't
write extensive roles for heroines.

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That it would be glamorous
and include dance numbers.

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He said that's what he had to
offer, and asked what I thought.

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Even when I headed to the meeting,
I didn't think too much of it.

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When the narration began,
it wasn't all about Devasena.

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It was about the world of
Baahubali, Bhallaladeva, Shivagami,

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I could see each character come

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to life in my head as he narrated.

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Mahendra Baahubali!

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Cut it! Cut!

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I was listening to a
script after a long time.

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What's more, Rajamouli
sir was narrating it.

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The introduction scene…

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"Mahendra Baahubali must live!"

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And in that moment,
I knew I had to do this film.

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And I had made up my mind.

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3, 2, 1. Action!

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And… Action!

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I don't think I
could've imagined

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doing something like
Baahubali with him.

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He's been a trailblazer
in the sense that…

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he always attempts something new,
whether anyone believes in it or not.

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I realize it's been 10 years

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since Baahubali released.

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But it genuinely feels like yesterday.

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"It has turned into ashes."

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I asked him, "How can I help you?"

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"I know you didn't come all
the way to narrate the story."

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He said,

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"Sir, I would like to meet Sathyaraj sir."

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"You can go meet him", I said.

00:11:09.041 --> 00:11:10.041 align:center
"No, sir.

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I'm feeling a bit
uncomfortable to narrate a scene."

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"I don't know whether
he'll accept that or not."

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I was super interested
in meeting Rajamouli sir.

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He came to Chennai to narrate the story.

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He said, "Sir…"

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and there was pin drop
silence for 5-10 seconds.

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He said,

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"Sir, you have to place Prabhas'
foot on your head in this shot."

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I obviously had a bit of ego about it.

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Why should I place Prabhas' foot
on my head?

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I asked him how it was justified
of the character to do this.

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Then he went on to narrate the story.

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That reeled me in. I got extremely
excited about playing Kattappa.

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I've decided right away!

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Then came the scene where I should
place Prabhas' foot on my head

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I said "Sir we should definitely do it"

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"That's when this
character will truly shine."

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Cut it! Shot okay!

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I was simply awestruck
when I heard it initially.

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His style of narration
is also very visual.

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We can't help but imagine his world.

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It doesn't work any other way.

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It was only when I listened
to the story again later on…

00:12:55.708 --> 00:13:01.333 align:center
that I understood the work cut out for me.

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We had a concept art
of the waterfalls made.

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It hadn't existed anywhere in the world,

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and was purely out of his imagination.

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It was like a streak of water.

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And then they started zooming in.

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When you looked further down,
you could see a tiny human form.

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I said, "That is the scale of the
waterfall that I'm looking at."

00:13:27.250 --> 00:13:28.916 align:center
"Shiva should climb all the way up."

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"I want all the details from this sketch."

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"I will shoot it exactly like this."

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All the technicians understood the vision.

00:13:38.041 --> 00:13:40.541 align:center
Then they brought in their experience.

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He made it clear to me that
this visual was a must for the film.

00:13:46.458 --> 00:13:48.208 align:center
That's when I understood the scale of it.

00:13:48.333 --> 00:13:49.541 align:center
Then we discussed about it…

00:13:49.625 --> 00:13:53.333 align:center
He told me that he wanted
to make it look like Rome.

00:13:54.375 --> 00:13:57.166 align:center
That's when I understood
how huge a film it is.

00:13:57.250 --> 00:14:02.375 align:center
The scale of the film, the number
of actors, and the depth of the story.

00:14:02.458 --> 00:14:04.625 align:center
A sense of fear crept in
when he narrated the story.

00:14:04.708 --> 00:14:08.500 align:center
I wondered if I could pull off
those extreme sequences.

00:14:09.333 --> 00:14:11.083 align:center
If I could live up to that vision.

00:14:11.458 --> 00:14:16.625 align:center
If I could create sequences
of such a high standard.

00:14:30.458 --> 00:14:34.083 align:center
It started out as one film.

00:14:34.166 --> 00:14:35.875 align:center
Then it became two parts.

00:14:35.958 --> 00:14:38.750 align:center
During that period,
the training really began.

00:14:39.000 --> 00:14:41.333 align:center
He mentioned there would be workshops.

00:14:41.416 --> 00:14:44.875 align:center
We realized he was trying
something new with this film.

00:14:45.416 --> 00:14:47.916 align:center
Nowadays, I see all these young actors

00:14:48.416 --> 00:14:50.666 align:center
actively taking part
in script-reading sessions.

00:14:50.750 --> 00:14:56.458 align:center
But Rajamouli was particular
about it even back then.

00:14:56.791 --> 00:14:58.458 align:center
He insisted on workshops.

00:14:58.541 --> 00:15:01.041 align:center
Rajamouli was like a principal to us.

00:15:03.083 --> 00:15:04.458 align:center
We did whatever he told us to do.

00:15:04.625 --> 00:15:07.291 align:center
Me, Rana, Sweetie, everyone.

00:15:07.750 --> 00:15:08.958 align:center
Everything started here.

00:15:09.958 --> 00:15:10.833 align:center
Right here, sir.

00:15:10.916 --> 00:15:12.458 align:center
You can remember the day. It's like…

00:15:13.000 --> 00:15:13.875 align:center
Crazy…

00:15:14.000 --> 00:15:14.875 align:center
It was right here.

00:15:33.958 --> 00:15:34.958 align:center
I have mugged it up.

00:15:35.541 --> 00:15:36.666 align:center
We have used our talent.

00:15:36.750 --> 00:15:38.916 align:center
Like a kid, he has memorized it twice.

00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:41.583 align:center
He would have lunch
and immediately doze off.

00:15:43.333 --> 00:15:44.541 align:center
I guess it's not so bad.

00:15:44.625 --> 00:15:47.958 align:center
They've given me three pages. Look!

00:15:48.583 --> 00:15:49.625 align:center
My hands are shivering.

00:15:49.708 --> 00:15:51.375 align:center
I won't make it to the class tomorrow.

00:15:52.291 --> 00:15:53.166 align:center
Oh…

00:15:53.250 --> 00:15:54.875 align:center
The workshops were very scary.

00:15:55.041 --> 00:16:00.416 align:center
Rajamouli sir and Nasser sir would
sit and make us say things in gibberish.

00:16:00.791 --> 00:16:02.208 align:center
It was very scary.

00:16:02.291 --> 00:16:04.291 align:center
We went on to have a lot of training.

00:16:04.458 --> 00:16:07.541 align:center
Prabhas and I were reasonably fit people.

00:16:08.041 --> 00:16:14.000 align:center
We have always been
fit by a general standard.

00:16:14.166 --> 00:16:17.666 align:center
But for Baahubali, we realized we
needed a whole different level of fitness.

00:16:17.750 --> 00:16:22.291 align:center
We would start chatting with
our Indian trainers, distract them,

00:16:22.625 --> 00:16:24.125 align:center
and cheat on our workouts.

00:16:24.208 --> 00:16:27.291 align:center
After which, they brought
us these Vietnamese trainers.

00:16:27.375 --> 00:16:31.250 align:center
They didn't speak a word of
English other than 'Yes' and 'No'.

00:16:31.625 --> 00:16:32.833 align:center
They only spoke Vietnamese.

00:16:40.125 --> 00:16:41.708 align:center
I don't understand 'No'. I don't know.

00:16:42.583 --> 00:16:43.458 align:center
Bye.

00:16:46.458 --> 00:16:51.125 align:center
Tomorrow 5 hours.

00:16:51.666 --> 00:16:52.541 align:center
Please, man.

00:16:53.375 --> 00:16:56.458 align:center
It's been only a month
and we're already screwed.

00:17:17.125 --> 00:17:22.541 align:center
We assumed the sword
fights would be relatively light.

00:17:22.958 --> 00:17:26.875 align:center
We didn't expect the Vietnamese
trainers to make us work so hard for it.

00:17:27.458 --> 00:17:29.458 align:center
I've always been a film lover first.

00:17:29.666 --> 00:17:31.000 align:center
I've always been a fan of…

00:17:32.416 --> 00:17:35.041 align:center
swords and films like this.

00:17:35.125 --> 00:17:38.500 align:center
So, I just keep training from
morning till they let me go.

00:17:38.875 --> 00:17:40.625 align:center
With Rajamouli sir,
you can't cheat anyway.

00:17:40.708 --> 00:17:42.500 align:center
With these trainers, it's worse.

00:17:42.875 --> 00:17:43.791 align:center
Ten times worse.

00:17:46.333 --> 00:17:48.166 align:center
We had to do everything
our Principal ordered.

00:17:48.750 --> 00:17:54.583 align:center
Rock climbing, sword
fighting, horse riding.

00:17:54.750 --> 00:17:56.458 align:center
They would even call to
check if I had gone horse riding.

00:18:03.250 --> 00:18:04.125 align:center
Do you have sugar?

00:18:04.500 --> 00:18:05.375 align:center
For the horse?

00:18:05.458 --> 00:18:06.875 align:center
I'm a bit lazy.

00:18:06.958 --> 00:18:10.125 align:center
Not necessarily on sets
but, I can be lazy sometimes.

00:18:10.416 --> 00:18:13.166 align:center
I would miss a horse riding session
and then blame it on the weather.

00:18:13.250 --> 00:18:16.750 align:center
He insisted that I take it seriously and
even asked me to keep a horse at home.

00:18:16.875 --> 00:18:18.666 align:center
I said, "Keep a horse at
home? Are you serious?"

00:18:21.750 --> 00:18:25.833 align:center
This will keep me busy for a year, easily.

00:18:26.458 --> 00:18:29.125 align:center
I had these ducks at my guest house.

00:18:30.083 --> 00:18:33.375 align:center
He told me that horses
were the real deal…

00:18:33.875 --> 00:18:35.208 align:center
and asked me to go
horse riding every day.

00:18:35.541 --> 00:18:38.125 align:center
I said, "Now I have to
raise a horse for your film?"

00:18:47.000 --> 00:18:52.083 align:center
It started with those sessions of
martial arts and extreme weapon training.

00:18:52.583 --> 00:18:56.375 align:center
Then, body building became
a large part of the process.

00:18:56.541 --> 00:18:58.916 align:center
Is your body original or CG generated?
Hello! It's original.

00:19:01.125 --> 00:19:03.750 align:center
Your arm and head look huge here!

00:19:18.541 --> 00:19:23.625 align:center
We started getting concept art
done from the very beginning.

00:19:23.916 --> 00:19:25.375 align:center
A number of artists joined us.

00:19:25.500 --> 00:19:27.250 align:center
They made great sketches of the…

00:19:27.333 --> 00:19:34.083 align:center
costumes, armors,
swords, forts and thrones.

00:19:34.166 --> 00:19:37.166 align:center
All of them looked great, but
each artist had a different style.

00:19:37.250 --> 00:19:41.583 align:center
In an attempt to achieve uniformity,

00:19:41.666 --> 00:19:45.041 align:center
we started establishing
the world of Baahubali.

00:19:45.166 --> 00:19:48.416 align:center
How is this world going to look, so on.

00:19:48.500 --> 00:19:50.666 align:center
We started answering all these questions.

00:19:50.750 --> 00:19:54.875 align:center
Till then, one year in pre-production
was unheard of for a film.

00:19:54.958 --> 00:19:58.041 align:center
Set designs, World of
Baahubali, Concept arts.

00:19:58.125 --> 00:20:01.708 align:center
Things that nobody had thought of.

00:20:01.791 --> 00:20:08.291 align:center
We spent our time, money, and
resources building all these things.

00:20:08.375 --> 00:20:11.333 align:center
That work was amazing
and extremely detailed.

00:20:11.541 --> 00:20:16.083 align:center
That level of detailing was
unseen and unheard of before.

00:20:16.208 --> 00:20:18.916 align:center
Concept art was of great help
to kick-start the film because

00:20:19.000 --> 00:20:22.625 align:center
it gave everyone an idea of
what we were going to create.

00:20:22.708 --> 00:20:26.875 align:center
We used storyboard animatics extensively.

00:20:27.125 --> 00:20:29.250 align:center
We have a concept artist called Pratheek.

00:20:29.333 --> 00:20:33.916 align:center
He does very interesting black and
white moving animatics and storyboards.

00:20:34.000 --> 00:20:36.958 align:center
We can avoid CG in a lot of things.

00:20:37.041 --> 00:20:38.416 align:center
We can use light.

00:20:38.791 --> 00:20:41.583 align:center
We had something called
a bible written for Baahubali,

00:20:41.666 --> 00:20:45.375 align:center
where we talked about even
the political situation of how it was.

00:20:45.458 --> 00:20:47.333 align:center
Things that weren't shown in the film, but

00:20:47.500 --> 00:20:52.916 align:center
as a team, we all knew what was happening
in Maahishmathi at every point in time.

00:20:53.083 --> 00:20:55.625 align:center
Initially, I had gotten
many costumes made…

00:20:56.041 --> 00:20:57.583 align:center
with the references of Amar Chitra Katha.

00:20:57.708 --> 00:20:59.166 align:center
I thought they were very good.

00:20:59.375 --> 00:21:04.791 align:center
But when we put the actors in
them, they looked very comical.

00:21:04.875 --> 00:21:05.833 align:center
Damn!

00:21:06.416 --> 00:21:07.916 align:center
He thinks your costume looks better.

00:21:08.000 --> 00:21:09.875 align:center
It's me, not the costume.

00:21:11.916 --> 00:21:13.791 align:center
That's the problem with all of them.

00:21:13.875 --> 00:21:15.916 align:center
The designs were really good.

00:21:16.250 --> 00:21:18.625 align:center
But once we incorporated them,
they looked very funny.

00:21:18.708 --> 00:21:20.583 align:center
When it came to the jewelry,

00:21:20.666 --> 00:21:23.875 align:center
the sheer amount required
was beyond anything we had imagined.

00:21:23.958 --> 00:21:27.125 align:center
We weren't prepared
for the first day of shooting.

00:21:27.416 --> 00:21:31.541 align:center
When I wore the crown
and armor for the first time,

00:21:31.625 --> 00:21:32.666 align:center
it was definitely a new experience

00:21:32.750 --> 00:21:34.958 align:center
because I had never worn
anything like that before.

00:21:35.875 --> 00:21:36.833 align:center
Sir.

00:21:36.916 --> 00:21:39.541 align:center
Sir, they're killing me!

00:21:39.833 --> 00:21:41.083 align:center
This is a torture helmet, sir.

00:21:41.625 --> 00:21:46.000 align:center
Aditya Chari from Firefly

00:21:46.083 --> 00:21:49.916 align:center
initially gave us the armor designs.

00:21:50.416 --> 00:21:52.041 align:center
They were really very beautiful.

00:21:52.541 --> 00:21:55.958 align:center
It was heavy. I didn't notice it at first
because I was so excited.

00:21:56.541 --> 00:22:00.916 align:center
I went to Sabu Cyril and
told him how good the armor was.

00:22:01.250 --> 00:22:05.833 align:center
It's the first time the Indian film
industry has used this kind of material.

00:22:05.916 --> 00:22:08.125 align:center
It's highly flexible,
yet it looks like metal.

00:22:08.416 --> 00:22:11.291 align:center
What can I say? It was a great feeling.

00:22:12.208 --> 00:22:18.416 align:center
It got too heavy when we used a particular
material to achieve the desired look.

00:22:18.791 --> 00:22:22.875 align:center
We can still not be sure of the costume
until the day of the shoot.

00:22:22.958 --> 00:22:25.625 align:center
-We will face difficulties as we go on.
-Yeah.

00:22:25.708 --> 00:22:27.250 align:center
It was one heavy armor.

00:22:27.791 --> 00:22:30.833 align:center
I had to fight wearing
that and the crown.

00:22:31.458 --> 00:22:33.541 align:center
We couldn't secure
the crown with a string.

00:22:33.625 --> 00:22:36.125 align:center
So naturally, it would fall
off in the middle of the fight.

00:22:36.583 --> 00:22:42.958 align:center
We did the horse sequences for
two days, which certainly tested us.

00:22:43.041 --> 00:22:46.541 align:center
So, the armor would slide up,

00:22:47.083 --> 00:22:48.708 align:center
above the shoulder, like this.

00:22:48.791 --> 00:22:50.458 align:center
And, Rajamouli is a perfectionist.

00:22:51.083 --> 00:22:56.416 align:center
He would pull it down tightly before the
shot, which made the horses move a lot.

00:22:56.750 --> 00:23:00.833 align:center
I had to hold the horse, the armor,
and the helmet, all at the same time.

00:23:01.333 --> 00:23:03.500 align:center
After an hour, the
horses got familiar with…

00:23:03.833 --> 00:23:06.500 align:center
the sound cues
"Ready" and "Action".

00:23:06.666 --> 00:23:09.041 align:center
They are inherently super-fast.

00:23:09.375 --> 00:23:10.500 align:center
They would immediately run
as soon as they heard "Ready".

00:23:14.250 --> 00:23:15.125 align:center
Cut it.

00:23:15.208 --> 00:23:17.000 align:center
Baahubali's horse was
supposed to be first.

00:23:17.083 --> 00:23:18.500 align:center
But with these horses,
we could never tell.

00:23:18.791 --> 00:23:21.583 align:center
We had to line them up again.

00:23:21.958 --> 00:23:25.583 align:center
On the third day, we decided not
to yell "Ready", but instead do this.

00:23:26.250 --> 00:23:29.291 align:center
I would hold everything in
place and go once he sighed.

00:23:29.375 --> 00:23:31.291 align:center
The horses would watch me and get ready.

00:23:31.791 --> 00:23:33.708 align:center
By the fourth day, they had
gotten used to this pattern as well.

00:23:34.333 --> 00:23:35.208 align:center
Horses, ready!

00:23:36.166 --> 00:23:37.583 align:center
-All the horses!
-Go!

00:23:41.875 --> 00:23:44.875 align:center
We would make 2-3 backup
armors for certain shots.

00:23:44.958 --> 00:23:50.583 align:center
Armors that moved differently
based on the requirement.

00:23:50.875 --> 00:23:53.666 align:center
They had varying levels
flexibility in certain parts.

00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:57.041 align:center
Even the armor was
very complicated to carry.

00:23:57.125 --> 00:23:59.666 align:center
It was definitely not an easy task.

00:23:59.875 --> 00:24:00.916 align:center
-Shot ready!
-Action!

00:24:01.250 --> 00:24:02.208 align:center
One!

00:24:03.333 --> 00:24:04.208 align:center
Two!

00:24:04.291 --> 00:24:05.208 align:center
Two!

00:24:06.708 --> 00:24:07.625 align:center
Three!

00:24:10.500 --> 00:24:11.375 align:center
Cut, cut!

00:24:12.041 --> 00:24:16.166 align:center
At first, it was only an iron ball
and a chain that I had as a weapon.

00:24:20.291 --> 00:24:22.208 align:center
So, I trained with that
for a couple of weeks.

00:24:22.291 --> 00:24:26.750 align:center
He said, "This is good for far
combat, but what about close combat?"

00:24:26.833 --> 00:24:28.791 align:center
"We have to, through this,
design something else."

00:24:28.875 --> 00:24:31.125 align:center
So then, they attached
a stick at the end of it.

00:24:31.458 --> 00:24:32.958 align:center
So he hits like this,

00:24:33.291 --> 00:24:35.583 align:center
presses this one, comes closer,

00:24:35.916 --> 00:24:37.208 align:center
and now it is like a mace.

00:24:38.375 --> 00:24:42.750 align:center
Bam! He hits, and these guys get
crushed on to the guys at the back.

00:24:46.916 --> 00:24:50.000 align:center
That childlike excitement of
why you are in the movies…

00:24:50.083 --> 00:24:51.833 align:center
was answered to me because of Baahubali.

00:24:55.500 --> 00:24:57.166 align:center
"I will kill him!"

00:24:57.375 --> 00:24:58.250 align:center
Action!

00:24:58.875 --> 00:25:02.333 align:center
"Mahabali! How dare you insult my court."

00:25:03.500 --> 00:25:04.500 align:center
Cut it. Okay.

00:25:05.291 --> 00:25:08.625 align:center
The biggest technical hurdle is money.

00:25:09.083 --> 00:25:10.416 align:center
Baahubali's budget is quite high.

00:25:10.500 --> 00:25:15.291 align:center
While we would invest
50-60 crores on a film earlier,

00:25:15.375 --> 00:25:18.333 align:center
Baahubali 1 was made
with a whopping 220 crores.

00:25:18.541 --> 00:25:24.583 align:center
But in reality, to make a movie
like Baahubali: the Beginning…

00:25:24.875 --> 00:25:29.541 align:center
requires two times the budget
to fulfill our vision and ambition.

00:25:29.750 --> 00:25:32.291 align:center
That's 400-500 crores
for the first part alone.

00:25:32.750 --> 00:25:35.333 align:center
That was the requirement
for such a vision.

00:25:36.166 --> 00:25:38.708 align:center
Let's say this is the mark
that we were trying to hit.

00:25:38.791 --> 00:25:43.583 align:center
Only when we got into it did we realize
that his vision was somewhere beyond.

00:25:44.250 --> 00:25:45.833 align:center
Usually, the budget
for big films is this much.

00:25:46.458 --> 00:25:47.625 align:center
Baahubali's budget is this much.

00:25:47.708 --> 00:25:50.541 align:center
But in all honesty, we need
much more. That's the comparison.

00:25:51.625 --> 00:25:57.291 align:center
Since I used to take care of the
finance and the business side of things,

00:25:57.625 --> 00:26:03.375 align:center
I had an Excel sheet stating the
expenditure and then the total market.

00:26:03.458 --> 00:26:04.583 align:center
After a certain point,

00:26:04.666 --> 00:26:08.958 align:center
once the expenditure started
increasing and crossed the market…

00:26:09.416 --> 00:26:14.041 align:center
I wouldn't say it was a shock or
that it was suddenly getting serious.

00:26:14.125 --> 00:26:16.458 align:center
Nonetheless, we decided
to support the dream.

00:26:16.791 --> 00:26:19.000 align:center
Two things made me want
to be part of this project.

00:26:19.083 --> 00:26:22.208 align:center
One was that I saw
how much Shobu had on his plate.

00:26:22.291 --> 00:26:25.166 align:center
I mean, it was crazy,
the things he had to take care of.

00:26:25.250 --> 00:26:27.291 align:center
Production and marketing
were already underway.

00:26:27.375 --> 00:26:30.500 align:center
Business deals and negotiations
were on the table.

00:26:30.583 --> 00:26:34.833 align:center
I was also traveling to film festivals
and film markets,

00:26:35.583 --> 00:26:36.750 align:center
trying to see if we could secure

00:26:36.833 --> 00:26:39.375 align:center
international distribution
and foreign sales.

00:26:39.541 --> 00:26:40.458 align:center
The second thing was that

00:26:40.833 --> 00:26:46.208 align:center
I felt I needed to play an active role
in this dream called "Baahubali."

00:26:46.500 --> 00:26:50.458 align:center
So, I wrote an email to Shobu saying,
"I would like to be part of Baahubali."

00:26:50.875 --> 00:26:53.958 align:center
I immediately agreed,
and we split the work between us.

00:26:54.500 --> 00:26:59.000 align:center
That was our first project where
we divided responsibilities.

00:26:59.083 --> 00:27:01.125 align:center
I was handling production and marketing,

00:27:01.208 --> 00:27:05.083 align:center
and dealing with Rajamouli
and the entire unit.

00:27:05.208 --> 00:27:07.291 align:center
He was handling the finance and…

00:27:07.375 --> 00:27:08.958 align:center
Sales. I mean,
the business side of things.

00:27:09.041 --> 00:27:13.333 align:center
I was in charge of raising funds
and closing deals.

00:27:44.333 --> 00:27:49.208 align:center
The vision and challenge Rajamouli
presented to us were unique,

00:27:49.291 --> 00:27:53.583 align:center
and we were setting a new benchmark
for the industry.

00:27:53.750 --> 00:27:56.041 align:center
I don't think anybody knew
what we were getting into.

00:27:56.125 --> 00:27:58.333 align:center
We had never done this before.

00:27:58.416 --> 00:28:01.458 align:center
Nobody had done anything like this before,
so we had no point of reference.

00:28:01.625 --> 00:28:03.250 align:center
"Can we do it?" was the first question.

00:28:03.333 --> 00:28:06.500 align:center
The scale he envisioned came
purely from his imagination

00:28:06.583 --> 00:28:10.458 align:center
and was unlike anything Indian cinema
had seen before.

00:28:10.666 --> 00:28:14.250 align:center
Nobody knew what Baahubali
was before it came out.

00:28:14.333 --> 00:28:18.666 align:center
We had this crazy belief in the
filmmaker himself, in the team,

00:28:19.000 --> 00:28:22.416 align:center
that he would achieve
whatever he set his mind to.