Following the worldwide success of the epic fantasy action series, Baahubali, Prabhas made his Hindi-film debut with Saaho. The film clocked in two years of its release today, August 30. The action thriller boasted of an extravagant budget of Rs 350 crore and an ensemble cast with Sujeeth as its director. In this week’s Monday Masala, we revisit Saaho for its ambition, scale and the unimaginable action it served to fans.

SAAHO: THE BIGGEST INDIAN MOVIE OF 2019

Saaho remained two years in the making and was shot in India, the United Arab Emirates, Romania and Austria. The film became the biggest Indian movie of the year 2019. It was released across the globe in five languages – Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam. With Saaho’s earnings reaching Rs 370 crore, surpassing the film’s massive budget of Rs 350 crore, Prabhas once again proved that he is a bankable star. Saaho also marked Shraddha Kapoor’s debut in South Indian cinema.

Saaho had all the makings of a blockbuster, including a formidable supporting cast, comprising Chunky Panday, Arun Vijay, Mandira Bedi, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Jackie Shroff, Mahesh Manjrekar and Tinnu Anand. It was a no-brainer that the film would draw audiences into the theatre.

PRABHAS: SCREEN PRESENCE AND STUNTS

Telugu hero Prabhas is an incredible action star. In Saaho, he bare-handedly fights off an army of men possessing knives and axes, flies off cliffs, drives fancy cars, wins high-octane chase sequences, jumps off skyscrapers and is the quintessential bad boy whose charm works wonders. Well, the charm and the towering screen presence are to Prabhas’s credit. As for the film, the never-seen-before action sequences will make any action fan’s day.

This is not to say that the Saaho is not a muddled mess. The film is about the fictitious Waaji City, which is Hindustan se door aur crime ke paas. Power-hungry gangsters from the world’s biggest crime syndicate try to attain a secret black box, which is the key to the empire. Meanwhile, a crime lord is killed, Rs 2,000 crore are stolen and an undercover agent goes after the thief with his partner. But, no one can be trusted, identities and purposes change in the blink of an eye.

But then again, you don’t go for a riveting story when it comes to such an action entertainer, you go in for the visual spectacle. And Saaho, with all its pitfalls, sure delivers a magnificent action extravaganza.

THE MOST EXPENSIVE ACTION SCENE IN THE HISTORY OF INDIAN CINEMA

A particular action sequence in Saaho was filmed at a staggering budget of Rs 90 crore, making it the most expensive action scene in the history of Indian cinema. Shot in Dubai, the chase sequence where Prabhas rides a superbike was supervised by Hollywood stunt choreographer Kenny Bates. So, cars were blown up like there’s no tomorrow and Prabhas owned the screen like a suave superhero.

Talking about the big action sequence, Prabhas had said, “We had a plan and we went to action director Kenny Bates two years back. Kenny came to Abu Dhabi for recce and he loved the location. He wanted to shoot everything live. Almost 90 per cent of whatever that we are going to show on screen is real. He wanted to show the real cars. He wanted the real cars to fly.”

Besides futuristic fight sequences, there is a Roman-era style duel in an arena in Saaho too, which used to be a village that was wiped off the face of the earth. The battle is worth watching and the climax, even if predictable, comes as a saving grace. Not just the action scenes, the songs shot in picturesque locales also scream grandeur, even if Prabhas and Shraddha Kapoor’schemistry remains amiss throughout

Looking back, we know Saaho is nowhere near Baahubali, but the fact that Prabhas fits the bill of a larger-than-life action figure stands. And the film, even if it failed to deliver on its promise of a full-blown edge-the-seat action thriller, is an undeniable treat for those who love Prabhas, and of course, action.