SS Rajamouli Says Varanasi Is Five to Six Times Bigger Than RRR, Targets April 2027 Release

A bigger adventure with 40 fewer shooting days

SS Rajamouli says Varanasi, his adventure film starring Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Prithviraj Sukumaran, is five to six times larger in scale than RRR. Yet the director puts its shooting schedule at 275 days, compared with 315 days for his 2022 epic, a saving of 40 days.

Scheduled for a worldwide theatrical release on April 7, 2027, Varanasi follows an archaeologist trying to prevent a global catastrophe. Its story moves through the Indian city that gives the film its name, Antarctica, Africa and Ancient Rome, combining time travel with Indian mythology.

Rajamouli discussed the production during his appearance at the 50th São Paulo International Film Festival in Brazil, where he received the Leon Cakoff Career Award and attended a screening of RRR. He said about 10 days of filming remained, with further work on visual effects to follow.

The director credited more detailed preparation before filming for the shorter schedule. The difference amounts to roughly 13% fewer shooting days than RRR, even as the new film requires a wider range of settings and production techniques.

Rajamouli, who works primarily in Telugu cinema, explained the change in his approach:

I did a lot more paperwork on Varanasi, going into filming even more prepared,

His description of a production five to six times larger refers to its creative and filming scale. The reported budget is $100 million, compared with $72 million for RRR, an increase of about 39%. The challenge he describes is building several very different screen worlds and making them feel like one story.

One film built from several different worlds

Varanasi required the team to approach individual sequences almost as separate productions. Rajamouli described the task as fitting six or seven films into one, with each major episode needing its own research, preparation and method of filming.

Scenes set in Antarctica present a different visual problem from those in an Indian city, an African landscape or an ancient setting. The film also includes a time travel episode involving the Ugarbathi Caves and a large climax. Rajamouli said the emotional story connects these otherwise different sequences.

The director described that connection while explaining the production challenge:

Each sequence or episode in 'Varanasi', be it the episodes set in the city of Varanasi, the sequences in Africa or Antarctica, or the time-travel episode involving the Ugarbathi Caves, is like a different film in itself. All of them are tied together by a beautiful emotion,

Research and development, often shortened to R&D, means working out how to create a sequence before committing to the full shoot. Here, that preparation included finding a workable filming approach for each setting rather than repeating the same process throughout the production.

Time travel, mythology and a threatened world

Mahesh Babu plays the central character, whose name has been rendered as Rudra or Rudhra, and also portrays Lord Rama. Chopra Jonas plays Mandakini, while Sukumaran plays Kumbha, the antagonist, described as a scientist. Shruti Haasan is also part of the cast.

The story combines an archaeological adventure with elements from the Ramayana, the ancient Indian epic centred on Rama. Time travel allows the narrative to move between historical, mythological and future settings while its central mission concerns preventing worldwide destruction.

Plot descriptions place the wider story between 7200 BCE and 2071. The teaser includes scenes identified with 512 CE and 2071, alongside images of Antarctica, Africa, underground caves and objects from space threatening the city. The full connections between these periods and the characters remain unrevealed.

Rajamouli has described the journey as beginning in Varanasi, travelling to Antarctica and Africa, moving back in time to Ancient Rome, and finally returning to Varanasi. That route gives the film a geographical circle even as its story crosses thousands of years.

A father and son provide the emotional centre

Rajamouli has identified a damaged relationship between a father and son as the emotional centre of Varanasi. Their separation and eventual reunion sit alongside a romance involving a young couple.

The director described the relationships at the heart of the adventure:

This film is an emotional journey of the father-son bond that initially broke up and then came back together. In this story, the most beautiful love story between a young man and a young woman creates magic,

Those relationships help explain how the film intends to connect its many locations and eras. The audience will follow people trying to repair a family bond or build a relationship while the surrounding action moves between very different worlds.

Rajamouli also said audiences unfamiliar with the Ramayana could follow the characters through their emotions. He co-wrote Varanasi with his father, V. Vijayendra Prasad, and S. S. Kanchi, drawing on stories of mythology, history and heroes that he has known since childhood.

Hyderabad becomes Varanasi across different eras

A large set in Hyderabad shows how much physical construction sits behind the film's digital spectacle. The recreation of Varanasi covers roughly 700 by 400 feet, or about 280,000 square feet, and was scaled down by approximately 30% from the real locations being represented.

Construction had been underway for about a year and a half when the set was visited around the film's November 2025 announcement. Buildings were developed using reference photographs, measurements and detailed instructions for decoration.

The recreated landmarks include the Ratneshwar Mahadev Temple, with its distinctive tilt reproduced in the set. Plans included surrounding the structure with water. The city set was also designed to change appearance so it could represent Varanasi in different periods.

At least 500 extras were expected for scenes there, including dramatic exchanges, a major action sequence and stunts using wires. Those scenes were expected to occupy about 25 minutes of a film projected to run close to three hours.

On that estimate, the set would account for roughly one seventh of the finished running time. It is a concrete example of Rajamouli's description of the production: a substantial construction effort serving one part of a much larger journey.

Filming nears its end, with effects work still ahead

Varanasi began filming in February 2025, with production taking place in India, Kenya, Antarctica and Georgia. The project is produced under the Sri Durga Arts banner, with KL Narayana and S. S. Karthikeya named as its producers.

In an earlier progress update, Rajamouli said 80% of filming had been completed and all the major action sequences were finished. The remaining work had resumed in Hyderabad, with a target of wrapping before Dasara. His subsequent statement that about 10 shooting days remained placed the production closer to completion.

The 275 days refers to the shooting schedule rather than the full time needed to make the film. Editing, sound, music and visual effects continue beyond filming. Rajamouli said the promotional trailer alone took a year to complete and described another year of visual effects work planned for the feature.

The main dated milestones are:

• 2022: Story development began after RRR, according to Rajamouli.
• February 2025: Filming began.
• November 15, 2025: The Varanasi title and promotional footage were unveiled at Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad.
• April 7, 2027: The film is scheduled to open in cinemas worldwide.

The Hyderabad announcement brought the cast before thousands of fans and introduced the project's title on a giant screen. Its promotional footage offered an early view of the settings and visual effects that will carry the story between eras.

Music and movement remain part of the storytelling

M. M. Keeravani is composing the music, continuing his collaboration with Rajamouli after RRR. Keeravani and lyricist Chandrabose won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for Naatu Naatu in 2023.

Rajamouli plans to use music and dance to develop relationships and carry the narrative forward. His approach treats action and dance as closely related forms of movement, with choreographers sometimes working across both.

The director explained how that works in his films:

I don't see action choreography or dance choreography as two separate things. In my films, action choreographers choreograph dance and dance choreographers compose action sequences.

Rajamouli also referred to Navarasa, a concept in Indian aesthetics describing nine emotional experiences. He used it to explain why his films move among sadness, humour, anger and other feelings, sometimes giving international viewers the experience of several genres within one story.

For Varanasi, that approach links the promised romance and family drama to the adventure rather than placing them in separate compartments. A song, a fight or a reunion can each carry a change in the relationship between characters.

Brazil shows the audience Rajamouli wants to reach

RRR reached cinemas in more than 40 countries, but its Brazilian release came through streaming. Rajamouli said its success on Netflix in Brazil surprised him and prompted feelings of gratitude.

The São Paulo festival gave Brazilian audiences a different experience: a screening with Portuguese subtitles at a packed Sala Petrobras. Rajamouli received the Leon Cakoff Career Award, named after the festival's founder, and the Varanasi teaser was also presented.

India's acting consul general in São Paulo, Preetham S, attended alongside a delegation led by Kanchan Prasad, director general of the Central Bureau of Communication. The delegation invited Brazilian audiences to the second World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit in Mumbai the following year.

RRR, a fictionalised story about two revolutionaries fighting British colonial rule, earned more than $166 million worldwide on its reported $72 million budget. Its reach grew further after its global Netflix launch in May 2022, when it ranked as the platform's most watched film in a language other than English.

Rajamouli wants Varanasi to reach that international audience in cinemas from the outset. Describing his plan for a large worldwide theatrical release, he said:

That is how I want the world to watch it.

A larger screen and greater responsibility

Varanasi is being prepared for IMAX presentation, with Rajamouli describing it as the first film in a language other than English shot entirely in IMAX. The production has also been described as combining a Cinemascope presentation with a premium IMAX release.

IMAX involves a system of image capture and theatrical presentation intended for very large screens. Cinemascope refers to a wide screen image. The final cinema formats and framing will shape how audiences see the film's expansive sets, landscapes and action.

Rajamouli's international success has also changed the responsibility he feels when telling Indian stories. He said viewers increasingly tell him that his films introduce them to India, making him more conscious of how he presents its people and traditions.

The director described that reaction:

As the films become more successful and start going beyond the borders, many people tell me they are getting to know a little bit of India through my films,

Varanasi brings those ambitions together: a story rooted in Indian mythology, an adventure crossing continents and centuries, and a theatrical release intended for audiences far beyond its original language. Its next major task is completing filming and the extensive work needed to turn those separate worlds into one finished film.

Key Points

• Varanasi is scheduled for worldwide theatrical release on April 7, 2027.
• Rajamouli describes its scale as five to six times larger than RRR, with 275 shooting days compared with 315.
• Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Prithviraj Sukumaran lead a story combining archaeology, time travel and Indian mythology.
• The director said about 10 days of filming remained, with extensive visual effects work to follow.
• A father and son relationship and a young couple's romance connect the film's different settings.
• M. M. Keeravani is composing the music, and Rajamouli is planning a major international cinema release.