Prabhas, who is now easily one of the biggest pan-Indian actors in the country, is all set to star in the upcoming magnum opus Adipurush, which will mark the actor’s first-time collaboration with director Om Raut. The makers had confirmed that the film is an adaptation of a popular Indian epic. The title poster hints at the film being based on the Ramayan and Prabhas could be seen playing Lord Ram.
Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan is the next big addition to the cast of the film. It was announced via a poster on Thursday that the star will be seen as Lankesh, another popular name for Raavan. It may be recalled that Saif had also played the antagonist in Om Raut’s last film Tanhaji, which released in January and was a multiplex hit.
While some recent reports had suggested that Keerthy Suresh has been signed as the leading lady, according to a TOI report, Kiara Advani was approached for the role and it is expected that the makers will announce it officially.
In his latest interview to a leading daily, Om Raut opened up on why he roped in Prabhas for this project. “I’ve seen him (as the lead) in my head, on my computer, in my script — if there’s anybody who can play Prabhu Ram to perfection, it is Prabhas. As the biggest star in our country, he adds to the commercial value of the film. But more than that, he has a great combination of calmness and aggression. As the writer and director, that appealed to me,” Raut said.
The project is currently in its pre-production stage and will go on the floors next year. The makers are eyeing a massive 2022 release. However, they are yet to reveal the rest of the cast and crew as talks are underway with several leading actors from Bollywood to play crucial roles. The film will be shot as a bilingual in Telugu and Hindi. It will be dubbed and released in other languages such as Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and several foreign languages. Adipurush is produced by Bhushan Kumar under the T-series banner. This film will be Prabhas’ third with producer Bhushan Kumar after Saaho and Radhe Shyam.
Kiara Advani was last seen in Akshay Kumar’s Laxmmi Bomb, the remake of the smash hit Tamil flick Kanchana, which was directed by Raghava Lawrence. Laxmmi Bomb was scheduled to hit the screens in March but later premiered on Disney+ Hotstar as a result of the theatres being shut due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Prabhas will resume shooting for Radhe Shyam from this month onwards. The project went on the floors in January earlier this year. Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, the team successfully wrapped up the Georgian schedule in March and returned to India safely. According to reports, the Indian schedule of the film will begin in a specially erected set at Annapurna Studios, Hyderabad. Pooja Hegde, who plays the leading lady, will join this schedule along with other key actors.
(Content provided by Digital Native)