New Delhi

Nag Ashwin's Kalki 2898 AD, touted as one of the most expensive films made in India, has lofty aims. The Telugu film - dubbed in Hindi and Tamil- pitches itself as a Pan-India film that includes actors from across industries, a plot that marries Hindu mythology with sci-fi and VFX that is (mostly) at par with Hollywood films of the same genre. Yet, the film's borrowed plot lines and shoddy screenplay make the film borderline comical and utterly disappointing. 

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Kalki 2898 AD takes you back in time, during the fag end of the war at Kurukshetra in Mahabharata where Lord Krishna curses Ashwathama (Amitabh Bachchan) with immortality. The film transports viewers 6000 years later and 874 years into the future from the present day to a barren, dusty Kurukshetra. Kasi is now the only capital that is under the oppressive rule of tyrant Yaskin (Kamal Haasan) who resides or rather levitates in a huge elevated inverted triangle block called the Complex. His watchdogs, under the command of Commander-in-chief Manas (Saswata Chatterjee ), sift through travelling immigrants in search of fertile females (age notwithstanding). The complex houses hundreds of pregnant and fertile females who are impregnated with lab-harvested eggs to procure a mysterious serum for Yaskin. 

Outside the complex, it's a dog-eat-dog world where bounty hunters like Bhairava (Prabhas) look for ways to get access to the fabled building which has fresh air, comforts, food, and water in plenty. In the hills, a rebel group led by Mariam (Shobhana) lives in Shambala waiting for a prophecy - the birth of a supreme leader who would bring about a change - to come true. 

All hell breaks loose when Sumati (Deepika Padukone), a pregnant woman from the complex manages to escape and is taken by the rebel group to Shambala. On her journey in Nag Ashwin's version of Green Land (a nod to Mad Max), Sumati's path crosses with Ashwathama, who rises from the ashes almost and fights everyone to protect her and her unborn child. 

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Written by Nag Ashwin, the film has taken huge references from Dune, Star Wars, Mad Max: Fury Road, Blade Runner and even Marvel movies. It's a slow first half and an unnecessary subplot involving Disha Patani and Prabhas's forced romance and gallivanting around the complex. Kalki 2898 AD takes its time to establish the plot. The action mostly begins in the second half, when the pace picks up. However, by then the mind-numbing, long action sequences take precedence and the plot stops making sense. At one point on the screen, we see two giant Amitabh Bachchans fighting each other. Then there is a flying Prabhas with his aid, a robotic- AI-driven car/confidante who also turns into a giant robot, sports car, and spaceship at Prabhas' will. 

When you are attempting to make a futuristic film and one that is set so much ahead in time, where machines and gadgets are far superior than mankind can imagine in this day and age, why would people be waiting for a divine force to lead them to change? You have technology, that should work, right? I also don't get most of the costumes in the film. The pregnant women are all scantily clad in whites, sexualising the womb unnecessarily. Or why Shambala's matriarch is in a Roman toga while her army is dressed in high-tech armour? 

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Since the film is a big-budget venture, Nag Ashwin has multiple known faces playing cameos. From Vijay Deverakonda to Mrunal Thakur, to filmmakers SS Rajamouli and Ram Gopal Verma to Malayalam star Anna Ben - all the stars come and go even as Sumati and Ashwathama travel through rugged terrains to Shambala for safety. 

I will give full marks to the filmmaker for mounting the film on such a huge scale. The VFX is stunning, at par with Hollywood films, even though they reek of familiarity in several instances. But can VFX alone save a film? 

Disha Patani is there to add oomph - I am not sure why she is there. Prabhas' comic timing isn't the best and Deepika Padukone has a singular expression throughout the 180-minute-long film. I only liked Amitabh Bachchan as the mysterious Ashwathama and he towers - literally and figuratively - over everything and everyone else. I am curious to see Kamal Haasan's character in the sequel (yes, the film ends on a cliffhanger promising the viewers more films from the universe.)

There is a reason why superhero films have started to fail in the past two years. No one is keen to indulge makers with absurdities anymore or perhaps one is exhausted at the multiple players in the elaborate universe that filmmakers seem to have spun. In such an environment, I am not sure how great an idea it is to introduce a similar franchise in India. A good sci-fi with a legible story can still be tolerated if it has great performances, catchy lines and some awe-inspiring VFX. Nag Ashwin's film only ticks one box and fails in the rest of the departments.