Although flawed, Nag Ashwin’s gutsy epic, Kalki 2898 AD, captivates with its ambitious scope and exciting ideas, complimented by some of the most breathtaking visuals in Indian science fiction films.
The film takes place in 2898 AD, six thousand years after the Kurukshetra war, which concludes with Lord Krishna cursing Ashwatthama (Amitabh Bachchan) with immortality. In post-apocalyptic India, the only known city is a desertified Kashi, ruled by a Fascist supreme leader named Yaskin (Kamal Hassan), who lives in an inverted pyramidal structure above the city known as “The Complex.” Yaskin’s rule is enforced by Captain Manas (Saswata Chatterjee), who is also responsible for Project K, an experiment aimed at producing a serum through fetuses generated by artificial insemination in fertile women (who are captured and brought to The Complex as slaves) to prolong and fortify the supreme leader’s life. Of all the pregnant women, Sum 80 (Deepika Padukone) emerges as a rare case. As a result, when serum is about to be extracted from her fetus, the rebels, who are fighting Yaskin’s fascist regime, halt the procedure and help her escape, leading to the imposition of a bounty on her head. Eventually, Sum 80 (later renamed Sumathi by one of the rebels) learns she is bearing Vishnu’s tenth avatar. When a local bounty hunter, Bhairava (Prabhas), learns of a large bounty on Sum 80’s head, he resolves to bring her in, hoping to escape from the wretched life and earn enough units (money) to settle in The Complex. In contrast, Ashwatthama vows to save her to atone for his previous sins.
The film’s first half consists of multiple storylines running parallel to one other, much like in Star Wars, with one plotline focusing on everything that happens inside The Complex, one on Bhairava, one on rebels, and one on Ashwatthama. With the exception of Bhairava’s story, which drags the film and harms the first half due to its seemingly endless introductory scene and an unnecessary subplot involving his lover Roxie (Disha Patani), the screen time given to each storyline is reasonable without being excessive. Only in the second half, when these plotlines merge, does the film become urgent and engaging. The incorporation of the elements of Hindu mythology into a dystopian setting, particularly towards the conclusion, elevates the film, leaving us curious about Bhairava’s past and eager for the film’s next installment.
From a visual sense, the picture is arguably one of the best-looking sci-fi Indian films (barring the de-aged Amitabh Bachchan and a lion), and the lavish budget spent is quite evident on screen. The imagination-stirring visuals will stay with you long after the credits roll. For example, there’s a scene in Shambala at night when the tree and the surrounding area are illuminated by lighting and decked with rangoli, which is absolutely mesmerizing to watch. Other notable visuals include a humungous statue that comes to life and serves as the sole means of accessing Yaskin’s house or the one that features a levitating Yaskin with rotating circles surrounding him, one of which can assume the shape of a hand. Even the designs for futuristic flying vehicles, weapons, and protective shields are equally impressive and inventive. Having said that, regarding the world-building, particularly that of the dystopian Kashi city, which appears to have been heavily influenced by Blade Runner and Dune films, I was unable to shake the impression that the visuals didn’t quite capture the essence of Kashi and adapt and localize to the intricacies of the Indian city’s infrastructure. It might have been any city with dense architecture—narrow alleys, cramped buildings, and overcrowded streets. Fortunately, it doesn’t detract from the film, as the visuals nevertheless manage to immerse the viewers in the dystopian world.
The action in the film yields mixed results. While some of the sequences, such as the high-speed chase involving a rebel named Kiara (Anna Ben), who has a brief but effective role, and the climactic action set piece are well executed, others, such as Bhairava’s opening scene and the first fight between him and Ashwatthama, felt overly choreographed. Action scenes generally work best when they tell a story (Ram Charan’s introductory scene in RRR (2022) is a perfect example of this) and succeed in evoking fear among the audience about a particular outcome, and the more the action moves toward that outcome, the more tension and intensity the scene creates. While the makers succeed in building that tension via the action sequences between Bhairava and Ashwatthama; however, the problem is that there are two such scenes, and the first one in particular seems over-choreographed, weakening the impact and intensity of the scenes’ ability to incite fear in the audience.
Amitabh Bachchan stands out as Ashwatthama, and despite his minimal screen time and dialogue in the film, he conveys his character’s anguish, remorse, and desperation through his commendable physical performance. The film builds to an exciting climax at the end, leaving you eagerly anticipating the sequel.
Kalki 2898 AD movie links: IMDB, letterboxd
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