Varanasi Team Spills The Beans: Ramayana Plot, Mahesh Babu's Lord Rama Character, IMAX Shoot, And More

Varanasi is one of the highly anticipated movies of 2027 as it is helmed by SS Rajamouli and stars superstars Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra and Prithviraj Sukumaran. Apart from the crew,  the film's plot is attracting significant attention, as it combines elements of science fiction with a pinch of mythology in a thrilling narrative. As the makers are busy with the shooting in Hyderabad, they took some time out and sat for interviews, where they talked about the plot in detail and hinted at hit songs.

'25 minutes of Varanasi set in the mythological period'

In an interview with Polygon, SS Rajamouli opened up about the plot, where he revealed that the 25 minutes of the film will be set in the mythological period. “About 25 minutes of the film will be set in the mythological period… that’s as much as I can tell you right now,” he said.

“All my films are inspired by the epics of Rama. In this film, I have a chance to actually take an actual episode from the Ramayana itself and present it in this way."

Rajamouli added that in Varanasi, the character relationships that matter the most will be between “a father and son”, along with the dynamic between the lead actor Rudra (played by Mahesh Babu) and a mysterious thief named Mandakini (played by Priyanka Chopra).

Varanasi to release in 2 parts?

During an interview with Screen Rant Plus, the director was asked whether the film would be released in two parts. To this, Rajamouli replied, "We considered it briefly and quickly dropped the idea. It is a one film with 3 hours run time."

Mahesh Babu to play Lord Ram in Varanasi

As Rajamouli confessed that the 25 minutes of the film will revolve around Ramayana. Now, Mahesh Babu has added that he would be playing Lord Ram's character. In an interview with Screen Rant, he opened up about his training session and feeling content after watching the portion. "I’m playing Lord Rama’s character. It required posture. You can’t stand like modern characters. I trained for 6 months to modify my running, walking, and posture style. When I saw the shot, I was really happy. It was all worth it."

He further opened up about his first reaction when Ss Rajamouli narrated to him Varanasi, "When I heard the narration… and it blew my mind. I mean, the kind of. I was really excited. I remember I went home, spoke with my wife, and it was intimidating because of the kind of film he was trying to attempt."

Varanasi filmed in IMAX

During the teaser launch of Varanasi, SS Rajamouli sat down for an interview with several portals and discussed his vision for the movie and detailed the plot. During one such discussion, he shared that Varanasi is filmed in IMAX format due to a Ramayana-inspired sequence. "The format is to encompass the scale. For example, the Antarctica portion, the Ramayana portion, you have seen how they’re tall and vertical. To encompass them is why we need the bigger format. That has been the main reason why we filmed in IMAX. All the technicalities will be taken care of by the DOP. I don't get into the technicalities. I will be telling them 'This is my vision, so which is the best way to fit my vision'," Rajamouli was quoted as saying.

Produced under the production house Sri Durga Arts and Showing Business, Varanasi is slated to hit the theatres on April 7, 2027.