The cast of filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli’s upcoming film Varanasi has spoken about the demanding production process behind the project shot across multiple continents, including Africa, Antarctica and India.
The film stars Mahesh Babu as the protagonist Rudhra, Priyanka Chopra Jonas as Mandakini, and Prithviraj Sukumaran as antagonist Kumbha.
Babu said he spent nearly a year preparing for the role, including three months of Kalari martial arts training focused on posture. “I’m playing Lord Rama’s character, it required posture… you can’t stand like modern characters,” he told Variety.
He also trained with a track and field team for several months to alter his running style. “The way I walked changed, the way I stood changed, everything changed,” the actor added.
Sukumaran said his character Kumbha is confined to a wheelchair and can move only his face. “All that you see here is practical. It’s not like a CGI image that you’re seeing,” he said, adding that the challenge lay in conveying emotions using only facial expressions.
He described the character as “a very interesting dichotomy” with limited physicality but an “unlimited” mentality.
Priyanka said working amid wild animals was both intimidating and exhilarating. “Everything was animal dependent. So the crew hardly slept,” she said, explaining that scenes were timed around the movement of animals.
Babu recalled the first day of filming in Masai Mara as surreal, with Rajamouli directing remotely via walkie-talkie. “We realised that we’re just standing there with the wildebeest,” he said.
Rajamouli said filming in Africa had been a long-held ambition. “As you travel into the wilderness, you are not just hit, you are literally swept off your feet,” he said.
Rajamouli acknowledged the cultural and religious weight associated with naming the film after one of India’s most sacred cities. “I know it carries a religious significance. And of course, that makes me even more responsible in how I use it,” he said.
Priyanka, who was raised in Uttar Pradesh, said she felt a personal connection to the city. “I’m a big Shiva Bhakt… understanding why it’s called ‘Varanasi’ was amazing,” she said.
Varanasi marks Priyanka’s return to Indian cinema after 2019’s The Sky is Pink. She said she expressed concerns about not speaking Telugu in her first meeting with Rajamouli. “There’s no version of this film that goes out to the world if it’s not the best version of you in every frame,” she recalled him saying.
Varanasi is slated for a worldwide theatrical release on April 7, 2027.