Distributor: ‘Rajamouli Is Living in an Illusion’

Rajamouli has been giving continuous interviews to so-called Hollywood media outlets, many of which function more like independent platforms with limited reach among mainstream American audiences.

So far, Rajamouli, Priyanka Chopra and Prithviraj Sukumaran have been the most visible faces in these interactions, while Mahesh Babu has appeared only occasionally.

However, the comments under these YouTube videos are mostly from Telugu viewers, along with a few other Indian audiences. The interviews hardly seem to be reaching a significant American or European audience.

Sharing his views on the same, a Overseas distributor said, “Rajamouli and his team seem to be under an illusion after their Oscar promotions and brief interactions with James Cameron and Steven Spielberg. They appear to believe that slowly building momentum through Hollywood media will create worldwide interest in Varanasi.”

“They seem to think that if Indians and audiences across the world can celebrate films like Oppenheimer, Titanic and Avatar, then an Indian film can also be taken to the world with the same level of frenzy and craze,” he added.

The distributor further said, “But they may not understand that mainstream Hollywood audiences often look at Indian films in a way similar to how Telugu audiences view films from smaller Indian industries such as Odia, Assamese or Bhojpuri cinema. No matter how well such films are made, most people simply do not follow them. There is little curiosity unless the film itself creates a major cultural or commercial impact.”

He further added, “Hollywood media gives attention to Indian films because there is money involved. They know that their mainstream audiences may not necessarily care about Indian films, but they do not openly acknowledge this because it is part of their business.”

Rajamouli is known for his sharp marketing skills and intelligence. One can only hope that he proves this distributor wrong and makes Varanasi the talk of 2027, both before and after its release, across the world.

If he succeeds, Varanasi could achieve the kind of global impact that films like Avatar and Titanic created. In that case, Rajamouli could be celebrated as a champion of Indian cinema on the global stage.