Adipurush Teaser Review – Here is what the Prabhas starrer hits and misses

The year 2022 is not going great for the Hindi Film Industry. Most of the mega budget movies have failed to recover their investment and ended in the red zone. The much hyped Ranbir-starrer Brahmastra too proved to be a gigantic failure.

As per Bollywood Hungama, the lifetime domestic collection of Brahmastra is only Rs 248 crore as compared to the humongous investment of Rs 410 crores. Amid the dark time for Bollywood, the cinema industry is hoping to revive itself on the shoulders of Prabhu Shri Ram.

Can Team Adipurush change tracks for Bollywood?

On 2th of October, T-series released the official teaser of Prabhas-starrer Adipurush. Om Raut directed film, Adipurush, is one of the most anticipated Indian films of 2023. Reportedly, it is made with a gigantic budget of Rs 500 crore.

The budget suggests that the movie, if made properly, will be a visual masterpiece. It will be released in theatres on 12th of January 2023.

The film will showcase Prabhas, Saif Ali Khan, Kriti Sanon, Sunny Singh and Devdutt Nage in the lead roles.

Also Read: Baahubali Prabhas in and as ‘Adipurush Shri Ram’. Directed by Tanhaji Director. Aided by Ajay Devgn

As per media reports, Om Raut has drawn inspiration from Valmiki’s Ramayana for making this film. But the director has made minor changes to the character names of the main star cast. Prabhas will play the character of Raghav (another name for Ram), while Kriti Sanon will be Janaki (King Janaka’s daughter) while Saif Ali Khan will play the villainous character of Lankesh (lord of Lanka). The timeline of the film is set 7,000 years ago.

Although the literal meaning of Adipurush is ‘first man’, for the film’s version it means ‘Best man’.

Positive and Negative aspects of the teaser

First of all, the director-actor duo along with the timeless concept of Ramayana, the movie had strong buzz and anticipation around it. Om Raut’s previous movie, Tanhaji was the biggest Indian box office hit of 2020. The movie showcased the mighty Maratha warriors in full valour and the songs, Background Music (BGM) all were top notch that hooked and booked the audiences.

So, the audience expectations are high and an average/decent performance will not suffice. The director has to carry forward from the legacy of his past movie which seems to be missing from the teaser. The entry of Ram Charan as Ram in RRR looked better than Prabhas in the short teaser.

Also Read: After Taimur, Guru Arjan Dev killer Jahangir – Saif Ali Khan doesn’t like benign names for his kids

Second, Sharad Kelkar is doing the voiceover for Prabhas. This will be a major plus for the movie. Previously, he did voiceover for Prabhas in Bahubali and that was a massive hit. The audience has a separate fan base for Sharad Kelkar’s powerful voice.

Third, the supporting cast like Laxman, Hanuman and others have failed to grab eyeballs and had nothing positive going in their favour as far as the teaser is concerned. Further, Sunny Singh as Laxman will be a very risky bait for the director. It will be tough for the actor to shed his image of a cute romantic guy.

Fourth, the hairstyle and portrayal of Lankesh draws no parallel with the timeline of the character. Further, since the announcement of his role in the movie, audiences have been disgruntled over his controversial remarks.

Earlier, he emphasised that his character will be ‘justifying’ Ravana’s actions and abduction of Sita. He added that with the portrayal he will humanise Ravan.

Also Read: Justifying Ravan’s abduction of Sita, Saif Ali Khan puts his next film in big trouble as netizens fume

He said, “It’s interesting to play a demon king, less strictures in that. But we will make him humane, up the entertainment quotient; justify his abduction of Sita and the war with Ram as revenge for what was done to his sister Surpanakha by Lakshman, who cut off his nose.”

Fifth, VFX and CGI of the movie looks patchy and off the mark. It has failed to amaze the audiences and cast a spell as it should have considering the hearty connection of the audience with the movie concept. However, the team has still two good months to tie the loose ends.

Plus, going by the past work of Om Raut, that is Tanhaji, we can expect that he will not disappoint on this aspect as Tanhaji had a master class of VFX and presentation. So, he knows what drives the audience crazy and may surprise the naysayers.

Sixth, the background score looks intense and engaging. It gives hope that it will take the audience to the spiritual journey.

All in all, if the star cast deliver strong performances, dialogues are powerful and BGM delivers the intended purpose, as it seems in the teaser, the film may even get success in covering its obvious flaws.

However, if the movie fails to live up to the expectation it will be another disaster for Bollywood and it will have itself to blame that even a film on Prabhu Ram could not save it from failure.