Things you need to know before watching ‘Kalki 2898 AD’..!!!
India’s biggest visual spectacle is finally into theatres!! As the most awaited Kalki 2898 AD is arriving to cinema halls, there are some important things you need to know before watching the movie which includes the Hindu Purana and Prelude Series.
The Purana
Kalki2898AD is based on Hindu mythology’s Kalki Purana. According to Hindu mythology, The Kalachakra (cycle of time) is classified into four yugas.
- Satya Yuga
- Treta Yuga
- Dwapara Yuga
- Kali Yuga
The Kali Yuga begun when Lord Krishna, the ninth incarnation of Lord Vishnu, left this world. Many Puranas predict that Lord Vishnu will incarnate as Kalki in the end of Kali Yuga. In Kali Yuga, dharma will decline and adharma will rise. Humans will abandon truth and dharma, thus lead an immoral life. The goal of leaders will be only money. People will suffer from famines, infectious diseases, droughts, storms and more disasters…. Thus, at the peak of Immorality in Kaliyuga, Vishnu will be born as Kalki in a family in the village of Shambhala to restore Dharma.
The opposite of Kalki is Kali. Kali is the evil demon who rules the world by erasing the world’s dharma. Puranas say that Kalki will end the Kali Yuga by annihilating Kali and thus begin the Satya Yuga and then Kalachakra will start again.
The Worlds of Kalki
Coming to the film, The Apocalyptic Future has three worlds.
- Kashi
- Shambhala
- Complex
Kashi is the last city on earth. So, the civilized world is only Kashi. Majority of people think that nowhere else is habitable for people to live. But there is a village called Shambhala outside Kashi. A hidden place… According to Hindu mythology, Kalki is born there. Kashi is ruled by Supreme ‘Yaskin’. Kamal Haasan plays that role. He can be Kali’s physical form or Kali’s host. Commander ‘Manas’ is the commander of the Kasi Empire’s high-tech army. We see Manas throughout the trailer.
Cash is transferred in units in this world. These are contactless payments. It can be said that it is an upgraded version of systems like Google Pay that we use now. Everyone has a smart watch, through which units are transferred. Kashi can be divided into two: Complex (supposedly, the 3rd world) – where rich people live & Slums of Kashi where others live. Anyone can live in the complex only if they have 1 million units. Until then, not a single person will even be allowed to go inside. It is not so easy to make 1 million units as in real life. Being a post-apocalyptic world, there aren’t many job areas. So, Bounty Hunting is the best way to get lots of Units.
Bounty Hunters watch is like a gauntlet. In this, apart from units transferring, you will get Bounty information and the location of the person who has fallen on Bounty’s head in public. If you catch the criminals who have dropped bounties like this, you will get a lot of Units, depending on the price on their head. Prabhas‘ character ‘Bhairava’ is also a Bounty Hunter.
Bujji & Bhairava Series
‘Bujji & Bhairava’, which takes place two years before the film, was released as a 2-episode animated series on Amazon Prime. ‘Bujji’, the AI voiced by Keerthy Suresh, is a very important character in the movie. Along with the story of how ‘Buji and Bhairava’ met, this series has a good introduction of Kashi and some upcoming characters in the film. We already did a detailed review of the series.
Check it out:👇
Aswatthama
Amitabh Bachchan‘s ‘Ashwatthma’ is one of the most important characters in the film. He is the son of Drona in Mahabharata and is one of the world’s immortals. Ashwatthama was one of the reasons for the most casualties on the Pandava side in the Mahabharata war. He fought the Pandavas from the Kaurava side for Duryodhana. On the night of the eighteenth day of the war, Aswatthama was the Kaurava commander. They invaded the Pandava camp and killed the remaining armies of the Pandavas including the Pandava commander Dhrishtadyumna and Shikhandi. His cruelty didn’t end there. They also killed children of the Pandavas. He then left the camp after assuring that the Pandavas had no children left alive and no heirs. He conveyed this information to the dying Duryodhana.
Ashwatthama first aims Brahmashiras Astra (A Deadly Weapon) at the Pandavas. In response, Arjuna also aims Brahmashiras against Aswatthama. Meanwhile, the deva rishis warn them not to use this arrow and if they do, there will be no rain in that country for twelve years and tell both of them to withdraw the arrow. Arjuna, who has good qualities, can withdraw the arrow, but Ashwatthama cannot. Ashwatthama then sends an arrow into Uthara’s womb. Uthara is the wife of Abhimanyu. The only remaining heir of the Pandavas is Parikshit, who grows up in Uthara’s womb. Ashwatthama thought that if Parikshit died like that, the race of Pandavas would be destroyed and they would face annihilation. Ashwatthama’s action made Krishna very angry. He cursed Ashwatthama to live immortal but he will not have a place among the people. He will be infected by all deadly diseases and hence he’ll look ugly and smell disgusting.
That’s all you need to know before Kalki 2898 AD movie from Puranas and other sources. The Kalki Universe now already has an animated series and a movie. Hoping it’d grow into a big franchise not just nationally, but globally as well….
Compiled By Sree Nandan Chengannur