Mahesh Babu is currently shooting for SS Rajamouli’s ambitious film Varanasi, which also stars Priyanka Chopra and Prithviraj Sukumaran. While the film is slated for a theatrical release on April 7, 2027, the buzz around it has been strong well ahead of its release. Recently, during an interview, the cast shed light on the film’s massive scale and the effort that has gone into creating this visual spectacle.
Mahesh Babu on playing Lord Ram
Mahesh Babu plays the character Rudhra, inspired by Lord Ram. In an interview with Screen Rant Plus, the actor spoke about Rajamouli’s meticulous filmmaking process and the challenges of portraying such a revered figure. “He (SS Rajamouli) has a process. There’s a method to it. When you’re playing a character inspired by Lord Ram, it’s very important to get the posture right — the way the character walks, stands, and carries himself,” Mahesh said.
He further revealed that he underwent intense physical preparation to perfect the role. From learning kalari for posture to relearning how to run, the actor had to unlearn and relearn several physical nuances. “He wanted to nail that. So last year, I prepped for about two to three months. We took kalari classes — a very intense form of martial art from Kerala. It opens up your body and helps you naturally get into the right postures,” he shared.
Mahesh Babu on training to run
“Then he wanted to change my running technique. So I trained with a track and field team for 6 months, and there would be only two shots in the film, by the way. That’s the kind of commitment I was willing to make for this film, but it was like I said, you know it’s fun and when you’re in that mindset… it’s fun, and you don’t look at it as hard work,” the actor further said shedding light on how SS Rajamouli works on his films that end up being a global sensation.
SS Rajamouli reveals Varanasi is shot for IMAX
SS Rajamouli said, “Firstly, I would like to thank the Rachakonda Police Department. KL Narayan garu, thank you for bringing Mahesh and me together. Usually, before my films, I hold a press meet and narrate the story – it became a tradition. But actually, I don’t do that for every film. For ‘Baahubali’, I didn’t. If there is scope, we will; if not, we won’t. For this film, we won’t. But we wanted to release an announcement video to set the expectations right. We planned it for March but couldn’t. Then the rains came… and now, on November 14, we are finally coming with that video. It’s becoming difficult to keep referring to it as “this film” without revealing the title.”
Lauding Superstar Krishna, he said, “I didn’t know much about the greatness of Superstar Krishna garu earlier. I was a fan of NTR garu, but after entering the industry, I understood Krishna garu’s legacy. To introduce a new technology, you must break many norms, and he did that with multiple films. Today, I am proud to say we are introducing a new format to Telugu cinema: a premium large-scale format, filmed for IMAX. You might think, “Aren’t there already IMAX films?” The ones we usually watch are blown-up versions of the CinemaScope print. But a few films, like ‘Baahubali’ and ‘RRR’, were actually shot, mastered, and VFX-finished specifically for the format. This film too is being created for IMAX in the truest sense.”
