Big budget films gain popularity as viewers ready for new film making techniques; Rajinikanth's 2.0 up next

Cine-goers were in awe when they watched Baahubali, all thanks to the special effects used in the Rajamouli’s two films. It is these VFX that demand a lot of money but also change the whole movie viewing experience.

More than 15 VFX companies worked on Baahubali: The Beginning, the film which was made at a budget of Rs 180 crore. The companies had upped their game in the sequel Baahubali: The Conclusion which until now was the most expensive film with the cost of Rs 250 crore.

But, now audience is eyeing Rajinikanth’s 2.0 for which the budget was revised by Rs 50 crore to get high-end graphics for the film. In an interview, VFX designer of 2.0, V Srinivas Mohan, who also worked on both Baahubali and Enthiran, said that 2.0 will have the best VFX effects ever.

Is it a risky move? Rahul Puri, MD of Mukta Arts doesn’t think so. “I don't think it is a massive risk. The film (2.0) will do a certain amount of business in India but given the fact that the film has got Rajinikanth it has massive potential to do well outside India. Even Baahubali did fantastic business overseas.”

With bigger budget come bigger risks. Salman Khan’s Tubelight too was made at a huge cost of Rs 135 crore. And, although the film recovered its money because the distribution rights were sold at a higher price, it was the distributors who had to face the brunt of the film’s weak performance.

But Puri is confident that 2.0 will be well received by the audience. “Robot is a massive brand. They are trying to replicate what happened with Baahubali, a regional film, a regional brand cashing in a lot of interest from a strong Hindi audience. 2.0 is a massive spectacle with wonderful special effects and this will attract the audience.”

He further said, “It (2.0) is an extremely bankable film because of the massive brand and hype.”

Can the same be said for a film that would be even bigger than 2.0. Vasudevan Nair’s Randamoozham, called The Mahabharata is speculated to be made on a massive budget of Rs 1,000 crore.

Making a film is not an inexpensive affair and the cost burden increases when filmmakers adopt newer technologies. However, it looks like Indian audience is ready for such film making techniques.

“Indian audience is ready to watch Baahubali sort of special effects spectacles in our language. Now, more filmmakers are pushing their boundaries and trying to find more immersive ways to indulge in films,” said Puri.

Sometimes, it is the big paychecks of stars that add to the big budget burden of films. Be it the VFX or fees of the stars, Indian films have not hesitated to spend enough to entertain the audience.