'Modern Masters: S S Rajamouli' review: Laudatory docu misses critical insights

Almost midway through the documentary, sitting in a cafe overlooking the ‘Hollywood’ sign in Hollywood, film journalist and producer Anupama Chopra asks S S Rajamouli about the prickly issue of consent (or the lack of it) when Avantika (Tamannah Bhatia) is ‘disrobed’ with a sword during a so-called ‘love fight’ between her and Shivudu (Prabhas) in Baahubali I (2015). I leaned forward thinking this was probably the moment in this hour-long song of success. In reply, Rajamouli rambles on and ultimately dismisses the question by saying “they” don’t understand storytelling. Ah.

Modern Masters: S S Rajamouli is a happy, laudatory look at the director, who, arguably, is the latest sensation from India on the global stage. RRR (2022) raked in the moolah from Japan to the US and South Korea, and he picked up a few statuettes along the way.

The documentary is packed with anecdotes about the director and his close-knit filmi family, many of whom have toiled behind the scenes on all his productions. It gives the viewer (who better be an admirer of SSR) a breezy tour of Rajamouli’s childhood, his initial attempts at directing social awareness shorts and then soaps on television to finally finding true success with the Ram Charan-starrer Magadheera (2009). Of course, it then goes on to narrate quite breathlessly his mega successes — the Baahubali franchise and RRR.

Interspersed are shots of Chopra chatting up the maverick director about his style of filmmaking, his ‘madman’ perfectionism, etc., on the sidewalks of Tokyo and the aforementioned cafe in Hollywood.

There are also interviews of his actors and technicians, indulgently talking about his eccentricities. All good and interesting to watch and never a dull moment. But, but. What the viewer who does not come from a place of adulation for SSR expects is a more critical view of what a director like him brings to the table in terms of cinematic sensibilities, how his kind of filmmaking has perhaps transformed the economy of Indian cinema and the deeper implications of his larger-than-life portrayal of mythological concepts on the Indian psyche.

(The movie has been released in English, Telugu on Netflix; produced by Tanvi Ajinkya Anupama Chopra )