Baahubali’s MGR connection

Even as Rajamouli’s Baahubali has been creating records at the box-office, there’s social media buzz about the script’s resemblance to the legendary MGR’s 1969 blockbuster Adimai Penn. Reportedly, Rajamouli was canning the scene in which the people of the kingdom see King Baahubali for the first time.

The director was particular that he wanted to see an ecstatic mood from the thousands of junior artistes, as though they were seeing God before their eyes. After a few takes, he captured the right mood and completed the shots.

But what conceived him was how to convey this sense of awe to Sathyaraj who was playing the army head Kattappa in Baahubali, since the latter was an atheist. It suddenly struck him that Sathyaraj is an ardent fan of the late MGR.

Accordingly, he went and said to Sathyaraj, “If MGR garu suddenly comes to a village, imagine how the villagers would react. I want a similar reaction when Baahubali makes his first appearance.” That was enough to create the right magic with Sathyaraj who got his emotions just right, in the very first shot!