Director- S S Rajamouli
Cast - Prabhash, Rana Dagubatti, Anushka Shetty
You know what has gripped the meme world this last couple of months in India and Nepal? The spoof of "Why did Katappa kill Bahubali?" We get the long-awaited answer to it in Bahubali 2.
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This is Pop Culture Nepal and welcome to one of the most redundant of reviews (as if all our reviews aren't redundant already 😅😅). But I say redundant in that whatever I say here is not gonna stop anyone from watching Bahubali 2: The Conclusion. 🏹🏹
Bahubali 2 is not just about the revelation of the answer to why Katappa did what he did. And that is the start of Bahubali 2's undoing.
In 2015, we were seduced by the Queen of Mahesmati, Shivagami's double edged dilemma in choosing the next king between her two proficient sons Amarendra Bahubali and Bhallaldev. The rivalry that ensues after Shivagami chooses Bahubali over Bhallaldev is explored in the sequel.
At the centre of this clash between brothers is Devasena, a princess of distant land and Bahubali's love interest, and the crown of Mahesmati. As is often the case in stories of kings and kingdoms ( wink wink Game of Thrones) the women are catalysts for much of the drama that unfolds. Here these women are the queen Shivagami and the princess Devasena. Both staunch feminist and never kowtowing to any men. Although the former loses her character traits in falling prey to hearsay and the latter being captured and ignominiously exhibited at the centre plaza of the kingdom.
But Bahubali 2, unlike its prequel, is stronger in its awe-inspiring graphics than it is in narrative. Albeit I must admit palm trees being used as catapults more than once was a little too on the nose.
The crucial drawback of Bahubali 2, I thought, was the rushed second half where the director throws everything at the screen. It's hard not to feel overwhelmed in the ending sequence. The director just crammed two movies in the span of second half runtime. But also it might have been unscrupulous to not go the whole hog when you've already subtexted your movie "The Conclusion".
All in all, the movie must be commended on the sheer effort and ambition it evinces. Bahubali's sibling rivalry and revenge, and all of the South Asian meme world can finally explode one last time and let matters rest.
