Nag Ashwin’s Kalki 2898 AD, which released on June 27, has been on an unstoppable run at the box office. The film starring Prabhas, Deepika Padukone, Amitabh Bachchan, and Kamal Haasan is receiving praise for its spectacular visuals and performances from the cast. However, actor Mukesh Khanna who is known for playing Shaktiman and Bhishma in BR Chopra’s television series Mahabharat, had a mixed take on the film. Even though he praised the visuals and the acting, Mukesh reacted strongly on the decision of the filmmakers to twist so many elements of the Mahabharata.

What Mukesh said about Kalki 2898 AD

Mukesh Khanna took to his YouTube channel to post a long video of him talking about Kalki 2898 AD. He shared that Kalki 2898 AD is comparable to the standards set by Hollywood films like Avatar, and the performances by the cast, especially Amitabh Bachchan, deserve praise.

However, Mukesh was also critical of the film, and went on to say in Hindi, "One thing that is bothering me is that they have tried to change the mythology in the film. In the beginning, you see Lord Krishna come, and take the gem from Ashwathama's forehead, telling him that he will be my saviour in the future, Lord Krishna never said this. I want to ask the makers, how could you presume to know more than the Vyas muni, who said that what doesn’t exist here cannot exist elsewhere? It wasn’t Krishna who removed Ashwatthama’s ‘mani’. I’ve been reading the Mahabharata since childhood; I can tell you that it was Draupadi who instructed that his ‘mani’ should be removed, after he killed all five of her children.”

The liberties that you’ve taken are inexcusable

He also said, “The reason I’m telling this story in such detail is because I don’t understand how Krishna could command Ashwatthama to protect him in the future in Kalki? How can someone as powerful as Krishna ask someone like Ashwatthama to protect him? The liberties that you’ve taken are inexcusable. We think that South filmmakers have more respect for our traditions, but what happened now? I would like tell the government to make a committee which can look over the films that are being made on Ramayan, Gita, and other mythological topics and take control over the film's script if needed.”

Kalki 2898 AD is a film that mixes sci-fi with mythological elements. Prabhas plays a bounty hunter called Bhairava from Kashi, and Deepika plays a pregnant test subject called SUM-80. Amitabh plays Ashwatthama from Indian mythology. Vyjayanthi Movies, the producers of Kalki 2898 AD announced on Wednesday that the film has made more than ₹700 crore in all languages worldwide.

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