Filmmaker: Ashwin broke his silence on the criticism surrounding Karna’s portrayal of ‘Kalki 2898 AD’. The director responded after social media users questioned the film’s interpretation of the legendary warrior and its climax. Nag Ashwin talks about the Mahabharata and urges the audience to wait till the sequel before judging the complete story.
Social media debate begins after ‘Lenin’
The online discussion gained momentum after the theatrical release of Akhil Akkineni’s ‘Lenin’. Amid the many reactions to the film, a social media user praised Pramod Panju’s performance as Karna and claimed that the character should have been portrayed as the same as Kalki 2898 AD. The same post also criticized Nag Ashwin’s interpretation of Karna and questioned the climax of the film. As the debate heated up, Nag Ashwin chose to respond directly.
The director quoted the Mahabharata
Responding to the criticism, Nag Ashwin shared a quote from Bibek Debroy’s English translation of the Mahabharata. He referred to a passage from the Drona Vadha Parva. Lord Krishna spoke about Karna while he was talking to Arjuna in that passage. The filmmaker defended his interpretation by writing, “These are Sree Krishna’s own words to Arjuna in Drona Vadha Parva. Please read the Mahabharata. I suggest the Bibek Debroy version. Or Google how many times Krishna praised Karna to Arjuna. I have the greatest respect in our history. I know what I am doing. Wait for Part 2.”
‘Waiting for Part 2’
Apart from defending the film, Nag Ashwin’s reply also gave a little tease about the sequel. Although the director did not reveal any details of the plot, his last sentence ‘Waiting for Part 2’ raised the hype for the sequel.
‘Kalki 2’ is currently under production
Work on ‘Kalki 2’ is progressing in Hyderabad. The sequel continues the story introduced in ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ and is expected to focus more on the journeys of Ashwatthama and Karna. The first film featured Prabhas, Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Kamal Haasan, and Disha Patani in lead roles. Reports say that ‘Kalki 2’ is targeting a theatrical release in December 2027 and the expectations are very high.