Baahubali, the big stock!

Forget mutual funds, forget gold and forget real estate. If you’re the sorts with a few bucks to spare and on the lookout for quick, good returns… don’t look any further than director S.S. Rajamouli’s Baahubali 2 — the sequel to this year’s runaway smash-hit.

News is Baahubali 2 would be pitched in the market as a proper corporate product, designed for investment in the stock market. The producers Prasad Devineni and Shobu Yarlagadda intend to take  on investors from the outside for the project.

As the Baahubali team prepares to reload for shooting from September, the movie moghul whose fantasy-epic has amassed over Rs 500 crore is inundated with requests from big business houses across India and abroad to invest in the project.

Baahubali director S.S. Rajamouli is reluctant to reveal details, as he’s busy putting together the nitty-gritty for the spectacular sequel. “I don’t really get into the business aspect of the film. Also, at the moment the producers are not comfortable giving out information. But yes, there are a lot of business inquiries about Baahubali 2.”

The Baahubali franchise is well on the way to becoming an empire, though Rajamouli with characteristic humility rejects the idea. He says, “There’s still a lot to be done to make it an empire. My endeavour is to lay the foundation for the sequel even deeper than the first part. The rest is all destiny. I just keep my feet firmly on the ground and let my dreams fly freely.”

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A feasible idea, but as a producer, I’d rethink - Ajay Devgn

I’ve been a part of maximum sequels. From the Golmaal series to Singham series and now Son Of Sardaar, the market for sequels have helped us build the franchise. I think it’s a producer’s prerogative if he wants other investors to come on board. These are business strategies. As an industry we’re still growing — our films are touching the Rs 100, Rs 200 and Rs 300 crore mark. As a producer, I’d rethink before agreeing to others investing in my projects. It’s a feasible idea though if you’re making a film on the level of Baahubali.

Open to the idea of inviting investors - Hrithik Roshan

Brand Krishh has been synonymous with a lot of international technicians. It helped us tap the Indian and overseas market. With each instalment of the film, its brand value has grown. We have decided to retain the franchise, though time-to-time we do get inquires about the next instalment of the film from various distributors and investors. The idea to collaborate with a big name or Hollywood studio is totally viable. Irrespective of the language or industry, as a production house, if our film has the scope we’d always be open to the idea of inviting investors and getting them on board.