Name: Kalki 2898 AD
Director: Nag Ashwin
Genre: Science Fiction
Released: 2024-06-27
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Disha Patani, Deepika Padukone, Prabhas, Kamal Haasan

Synopsis

Kalki 2898 AD

In the aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, Ashwatthama unleashes the Brahmastra weapon to terminate the unborn child of Uttarā, aiming to systematically extinguish the Pandava lineage. As retribution for his malice, Krishna curses Ashwatthama with painful immortality and eternal suffering. He condemns him to wander the Earth for six millennia until he can redeem his soul by protecting the mother of Kalki, the prophesied final avatar of Vishnu. Six thousand years later, in the year 2898 AD, Earth has deteriorated into a desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland. The historic city of Kashi stands as the final remaining bastion of humanity. Kashi is autocratically ruled by Supreme Yaskin, a totalitarian God king who resides in the "Complex", a massive, technologically advanced inverted pyramid floating above the city, accessible only to the wealthy elite. Impoverished and fertile women from the outskirts are systematically abducted for Project K, a secretive laboratory experiment aimed at extracting a life-extending serum from artificial pregnancies to grant Yaskin absolute immortality. None of the subjects have ever survived the lethal extraction process past the 150-day threshold. SUM-80, a captive laboratory subject, successfully reaches the 150-day milestone of her pregnancy.

Director: Nag Ashwin
Release: 27 Jun 2024
Run time: 181 min
Language: Telugu

Cast & crew

Amitabh Bachchan Cast

Disha Patani Cast

Deepika Padukone Cast

Prabhas Cast

Kamal Haasan Cast

Brahmanandam Cast

Rajendra Prasad Cast

Shobana Cast

Pasupathy Cast SA Saswata Chatterjee Cast

Anna Ben Cast DJ Djordje Stojiljkovic Cast

Nag Ashwin Director, Writer

Santhosh Narayanan Composer

Reviews

Indian-media reviews, grouped by reception.

Critics' consensus

Mixed

Across 3 available source-linked Indian-media reviews for Kalki 2898 AD, reception is mixed.

IMDb and Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes are reference ratings and are not counted as Indian-media reviews.

Best forViewers looking for science fiction and action in Telugu cinema.

Reception Order

All 3 reviews shown

Bollywood Hungama

Nag Ashwin's direction is supreme. From the very start, it is clear that this is a genuine effort. The mythology angle is the USP and it is not added just for the heck of it. Moreover, the way it's smartly merged with the story of the dystopian era is seen to be believed. The characters and their arcs add to the fun and madness and once they all come together, the film goes on a high. The numerous cameos also contribute to the entertainment quotient. The finale is the best part of the enterprise and expect a lot of whistles and claps at this point. On the flipside, except for the introduction scene and intermission point, the first half is weak. The world of 2898 AD is not explained properly and hence, viewers might not get connected to it completely. Moreover, the experiment of Yaskin is not clearly explained and it might confuse viewers.

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News18 Chirag Sehgal

Director Nag Ashwin deserves a pat on the back for the efforts he has put in to take Indian cinema to the global level with this film. His film’s climax will remind you of Avengers: Endgame or any other Marvel movie. Ashwin did not digress from his script, churned out the best of all actors, and spent much time on VFX to make it look ‘futuristic’. He also mixed Mahabharat with today’s world in a very well-defined way. He does not let either of them overpower the other and manages to strike a balance. However, the director should have paid much more attention to the action sequences in the first half. They look weak and leave you disappointed.

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Rediff Sukanya Verma

A running time of three hours is a daunting prospect and Kalki 2898 AD’s indulgences and excesses prolong the conflict for far too longer than required in its excitement to overstuff the narrative in flashbacks and back stories teeming in dispensable characters (Disha Patani serves little purpose except as a distraction), star-studded cameos (from Team Baahubali, Team Mahanati and a one truly trippy surprise) and elusive theories (for the convenience of future movies). Except the movie is providing so much fun with its add-ons, it doesn’t hurt to play along. Comfortable as ever in larger-than-life biggies, Prabhas puts his commanding presence to good use as burly Bhairava -- a money-minded Han Solo unwilling to pick sides even if his AI pilot and cargo ship are a long way off from Chewbacca or Millenium Falcon.

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