Modern Masters: SS Rajamouli Review 2024 Tv Show Series Cast Crew Online
After RRR became a global sensation (even in hard-to-reach markets like Japan), journalist Anupama Chopra speaks with director S.S. Rajamouli about the impact of the film’s success. She also delves into his earlier work to chart the trajectory of his career, aided by talking heads like his collaborators and even the great James Cameron.
S.S. Rajamouli rose to global prominence in 2022 after the release of the acclaimed RRR, and the success of that film has prompted many to return to his earlier films and watch with newfound respect. Modern Masters: S.S. Rajamouli is a documentary that sets out to chart his rise, from young son of a dreaming father to pioneering director, without delving into any thorns in the sides of his legacy.
Flanked by his inner circle—including his son, wife, cousin, and nephew who all work as collaborators in his film—Rajamouli’s story would always be framed positively. His beginnings in film are genuinely interesting and hearing the man’s rise from his own mouth is an inspiring tale. Rajamouli is depicted as a creative workhorse, a director who has his hands in every cookie jar with his sights set on perfection. This depiction, along with humble soundbites about his place in film history, make him an endearing subject to cover.
Anupama Chopra, a renowned film journalist, appears alongside Rajamouli, probing him with the questions that frame the film’s narrative. But her appearances fail to add another dimension to the film, and she’s more of a friendly face rather than a presence that pushes his answers or digs deeper. In one scene when she asks about public feedback that labeled his films as casteist, Rajamouli doesn’t have a good answer. He rambles and Chopra doesn’t push him to clarify his statements, which don’t exactly refute that label. It’s a disappointing moment that questions why Chopra is there in the first place, and reinforces the idea that this film was helmed with little expectation to push boundaries.
Of course, in a film that has already labeled him a “master,” it’s silly to expect anything critical about Rajamouli. Like The Romantics before it, the film was constructed to showcase his rise as an ambassador of Indian cinema without any examinations into the drawbacks of some of his work.
The majority of the runtime is spent discussing the popularity and awards success of RRR, showing clips of the actors learning the “Naatu Naatu” dance that transcended the film and the team winning everything from a Golden Globe to an Oscar. But for those tuning into this film, that part of the story is already common knowledge, and the runtime would have been better served delving into his earlier works that built the foundation of his practice today.
It seems like Modern Masters: SS Rajamouli is only scratching the surface of a complex man. For fans of the decorated filmmaker, maybe a nuanced take isn’t exactly what you’re looking for, but for everyone else, the documentary stops short of showing us something truly remarkable about the filmmaker.
