Earlier, we reported about Prithviraj Sukumaran playing a character named Kumbha in SS Rajamouli's Varanasi. The film stars him as the antagonist, opposite Mahesh Babu's hero. Earlier, the makers announced his casting with a poster featuring a character in a wheelchair with artificial arms, reminiscent of Suriya from 24 and Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man 2.

Recently, Prithviraj joined Mahesh Babu and Priyanka Chopra in a conversation about the film with Collider. Speaking about his character, the actor described the wheelchair as "an extension" of Kumbha's personality and "how his mind works". Calling Kumbha a "a very dangerous man who's just physically incapacitated," Prithviraj said that the character's "mind works in very, very unpredictable, dangerous ways."

According to Prithviraj, the wheelchair is beyond "a prop" and "is set up in a way where it almost connects directly to Kumbha's thoughts." The film brings the actor back to Telugu cinema after his starring role in Prashanth Neel's Salaar: Part 1, opposite Prabhas.

Speaking about his director, the actor said, "One thing I've noticed with Rajamouli Sir is that for all the grand visuals and the sheer scale and imagination that his films carry, I've realized that, as far as possible, he sticks to the most simple basics for his filmmaking. I've seldom seen him setting up a gimmick shot. In fact, never. I've never seen him attempt a gimmick with the camera or an unnecessarily complicated track movement. Nothing. For him, it's about the basics. It's about classical filmmaking done right."

According to Prithviraj, also known for his work as a director on Bro Daddy, Lucifer and its sequel L2: Empuraan, it is far more difficult to get classical filmmaking aspects right. "When you're sticking to that language of making a film, you really can't have an escape mechanism for a shot that you're not able to capture at a moment that you're not able to get. You will have to just keep at it until you get it, and that he does."