Directed by : S.S Rajamouli

Meri apni himmat meri taakat hai, par tumhari himmat meri jeet hogi. 

NT Rama Rao Jr and Ram Charan in a still from 'RRR'

Spoilers ahead... 


Set in the 1920s British India, a young girl Malli from a tribal Gond community in Adilabad gets abducted and taken to the British Palace in Delhi. The Gond warrior Komaram Bheem (N.T. Rama Rao Jr) disguises himself as a Muslim mechanic (Akhtar), and is in search of Malli when he confronts a British Indian Policeman Alluri Sitarama Raju (Ram Charan). Their friendship begins while both having no idea of each others real identity. They are in their own ways fighting for independence, against the King Scott Buxton (Ray Stevenson) and Lady Scott/Catherine Buxton (Alison Doody).

Ram Charan in a still from 'RRR'
Inspired by the lives of two real life revolutionaries, Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem, Rajamouli builds narrative with many influences taken from Ramayana and Mahabharata, creating a fantasy fiction where these two who never met in real, actually not only meet here, but fight against each other too before eventually teaming up. That's one of the reasons I was able to enjoy the action knowing these main characters are pretty much like superheroes having great powers. For instance, it didn't effect me watching Raju who never used arrows before suddenly hits bullseye in the climax though a childhood scene is setup to give small indication about how perfect he can be without practice. And also how Bheem with total ease picks up a motorbike in his hands. I wonder if Rajamouli did that intentionally to help viewers tone down their thinking about the over the top action or it was just a case of adding more depth to the characters. Both ways it works!

Told through parts - The Story, The Fire and The Water.. Each short segment builds up characters very well. 'The Story' establishes the main plot of Malli who gets captured and has to be rescued before she gets harmed in any way. The final scene ends here in a very haunting bgm. 'The Fire' brings into light the character of Raju who very much like 'Ramayana's Ram' believes in following the given orders even if it means going through a large dangerous mob. And then there's 'The Water' that shows the efficiency and physical power of Bheem to tackle wild animals mainly 'Tiger' who plays a significant role later on. Also, this helps in scenes when Bheem uses forest 'jadibhooti' ways to cure Ram when he gets injured.

NT Rama Rao Jr in a still from 'RRR'

The writing is top-notch when we see scenes that aren't there for sake but rather holds important key as the story progresses. Like notice the Dosti song where Bheem is doing pushups holding Raju over his shoulders, that is used in an innovative action sequence during the final act. Or the scene in the jungle where Raju writes a letter to Sita and we see a god statue in background, and again in the last act its where the transformation of Raju into God happens. 

We also get to see some well done twists, for instance Bheem assuring Seetha that he will bring Raju back to her, is total opposite of Ramayana where Hanuman assures Ram that he will bring Seetha back. 

In his last 3 films Rajamouli has already established how effective his storytelling style is, and once again he uses the scale to his advantage where the emotions still takes the forefront. The set pieces are more than just the action that's taking place. Both Raju and Bheem get full character arcs, and the scene where they fight against each other is reminiscent of Ironman vs Captain America fight, its become a popular trope now where you make audience feel bad watching 2 main heroes land deep punches on each other when you know they should together be using that energy against the villain.

MM Keeravaani just like Baahubali lifts up Rajamouli's storytelling to another level and I am someone who totally enjoys when a background piece is done so well without trying to manipulate, RRR is full of such instances. The most notable is ofcourse the goosebumps inducing 'Train Accident' scene where the slow 'dara dum dara dum dara dum dum' brings the 1st meeting of Raju and Bheem eventually leading to their friendship. That visual of handshake has already become viral and famous. I love the same theme used in that final act scene too when Bheem is using music to find the solitary cell where Raju is. 

Almost every song is well used and they are really good in terms of lyrics too. My pick is 'Dosti' track by Amit Trivedi (I saw the hindi version of movie) that so brilliantly shows the quickly blossoming friendship of Raju and Bheem, comparing them to Fire and Water, Rock and Storm, Lightning and Thunder, East and West, and also there's the fear that their different goals might spoil their friendship one day. Usually I would be complaining how rushed the bonding is shown with just one montage, but such is the power of visuals with music in here that you are made to believe how quickly they became close friends. I think whenever friendship based songs between 2 males will be considered, this track will be right up to the top, I loved it that much. Also, love the other two versions of Dosti track - Sad and Victorious.

Naatu Naatu is another fantastic track (also Oscar award winner now), though its a song that appeals to me visually more than the audio. The dance off that takes place with the Britishers and then between Raju & Bheem, and its mad choreography makes this a treat to watch. 'Komuram Bheemudo' is the most emotional track of the movie, that reminded me of 70s patriotic movies where a person would be singing while being smashed all over the body with a whip. The scene was expectedly toughest one to watch. Also, I love how the song doesn't try to just let the pain of Bheem out, but also how it's effecting the perspective of Raju, not just as a friend but his beliefs change when he sees the impact of Bheem's song on the gathered crowd. 

Ram Charan in a still from 'RRR''
RRR isn't without flaws though, it may have got labelled as a spectacle which quiet frankly it is.. but at the same time I won't call it masterpiece and won't rate it above Baahubali. I felt Alia Bhatt's character was very poorly used in the narrative, and the meeting scene of Bheem-Seetha felt more of a convenience rather than organic. The other major issue I had was with the villain, sure we see glimpses of Scott being exploitative but there could had been more of his involvement in the finale. Or atleast Lady Scott who we see cruelly asking for more blood off Bheem in the public flogging scene, she could had played extra part before meeting her expected wild death. In her own words, I missed 'the pool of blood', and the end of Scott happens rather too quickly. In short, the final 15 mins felt very underwhelming. 

The end-credits was another letdown which gave a feeling of 'Did I just switched to Farah Khan movie?' I have seen the film many times and always end up skipping that end credits song. There are 1-2 instances when the action goes way too over the top to digest, like when Rajamouli is too eager to show Fire vs Water in that Palace animal attack sequence that we literally see firecrackers and waterpipes themselves having a go at each other. Thoda jyada ho gaya yeh!

Ram Charan and NT Rama Rao in a still from 'RRR'
Both Ram Charan and NT Rama Rao Jr, have given great performances, can't really pick best out of them. Love when we see Raju torn between his friendship and the goal of his life when he learns the truth about Akhtar's real identity. And the moment when NTR Rao Jr feels deep anger towards Raju with the rage in his eyes suggesting how hurt he felt at the interval scene. Also, I like how the entire forest angle is used perfectly in that NTR Rao Jr's attack over the palace as he unleashes the animals at the Britishers. 

Good to see Ajay Devgan nail the cameo with such ease, can't help but get emotional during the scene when he forces Ram to 'Load, Aim, Shoot' when he just lost 2 of his family members. Shreya Saran does feel wasted in almost nothing role. Maybe she just wanted to be part of this special movie. 

Overall, RRR may not be a masterpiece for me, but I enjoyed it a lot for what it has to offer especially the 1st two acts, which is a testament to Rajamouli's exceptional storytelling style.

My Rating : 8/10