The teaser of SS Rajamouli’s Varanasi has taken the internet by storm especially for the scene where Mahesh Babu is seen sitting atop a gigantic CGI bull.
Within minutes of its release, the visuals triggered an unexpected wave of nostalgia about a legendary scene that had no graphics, no technology and no safety harnesses.
That daring moment from a project showed an iconic actor facing the raw strength of a real bull. Unfortunately, the film was shelved soon after the teaser was released.
That daring moment from a project showed an iconic actor facing the raw strength of a real bull. Unfortunately, the film was shelved soon after the teaser was released.
The scene belonged to Kamal Haasan from his passion project, Marudhanayagam. The film started in 1997 and remains one of Indian cinema’s most ambitious unfinished ventures.
Written and directed by Haasan himself, the film was halted midway due to production issues and financial problems. In the teaser, Kamal Haasan rode a real bull at full speed into the forest, performing a stunt that today would involve massive VFX support and multiple stunt doubles.
Kamal later shared in interviews that graphics technology at the time couldn’t handle scenes of that scale which pushed him to train for months using a real cow.
Marudhanayagam was mounted on a monumental budget of around Rs 80 crore. It had set new expectations for period storytelling in Indian cinema.
The film, backed by a powerful creative team including Ilaiyaraaja for music and Sujatha for the story, featured celebrated actors like Nassar and Vishnuvardhan.
Production challenges and financial setbacks eventually stalled the film but rumours of a revival surface every few years. No official confirmation has been made, though.
Now, with Varanasi reigniting conversations and bringing Marudhanayagam back into the spotlight, fans are expecting a development soon.
