Baahubali: The Epic, the two-part film series by SS Rajamouli, will soon hit theatres again on October 31, this time as a combined feature of both parts. Two days ahead of the re-release, the Baahubali team released a video of a freewheeling conversation among Rajamouli and film’s lead actors Prabhas and Rana Daggubati. 

During the conversation, the trio shared many interesting anecdotes and memories from the film’s herculean shooting experience. In one of those anecdotes, Rajamouli recalled that they shot the Mahishmati-Kalakeya war scene over a period of 70 days. “We shot that entire sequence in one long schedules continuously — no holidays, no breaks. The Baahubali filmmaker also recalled how both Prabhas and Rana were busy pumping up before every shot, to look bulky and strong on screen for the epic sequence that times to nearly 40 minutes’ duration on screen. 

Meanwhile, Prabhas noted how the shoot was particularly strenous for the actors playing the Kalakeya tribe members. “They had to wear sweaters in the month of May for that outdoor shoot. All black costumes — they had it tougher.” At this point, Rajamouli recalled how the actors asked for a holiday to play Holi, to which he remembered reacting strongly while denying them permission. “I said, ‘I will kill you if I find anyone of you playing Holi. Eventually, they used black color to play Holi,” Rajamouli added.

More stories of Rajamouli’s strict demeanor unfolded throughout the conversation, as Prabhas recalled instances like when Prabhas had to shoot many scenes with a difficult horse or when Rajamouli refused to let him go for a 3-day holiday to Bali. When Rajamouli jokingly said that they are all making him sound like a dictator, Prabhas said, “Baahubali shoot wouldn’t happen if you were not that strict.”

Produced by Arka Media, Baahubali series also starred Anushka Shetty, Tamannaah Bhatia, Sathyaraj, and Ramya Krishnan in lead cast.