The Baahubali franchise changed a lot of things in the Indian film landscape. The pan-India craze was born, ₹1000 crore became the new benchmark for a blockbuster, and Prabhas shot to national stardom. Ever since, the actor has appeared in five films - all of which have opened at over ₹100 crore on day one. That alone speaks volumes of his stardom.

However, not all of those films have worked at the box office. And yet, his aura remains undiminished. That gives the true picture of how loved Prabhas has become by the masses. And if the lineup of his upcoming films is any indication, he has already enough to be called India's most bankable star.

Prabhas' return to form

Prabhas' follow-up to Baahubali was Saaho, which was released in 2019. Despite a bumper opening day, the film tanked. It was a hit in Hindi, but failed to recover its costs in the Telugu states. That should have ideally hurt Prabhas, but he again delivered a ₹100-crore day with Radhe Shyam's release. But that flopped as well.

The massive failure of Adiupurush was seen as some sort of point of no return for the star. But the Rebel Star bounced back with Salaar and Kalki 2898 AD. The former was a complete Prabhas vehicle, which he carried on his shoulders. And it earned over ₹600 crore. Kalki solidified his status as a pan-India star even if Amitabh Bachchan and Nag Ashwin deserve some credit for the film's ₹1100-crore gross too.

But what the success of these two films has done is that it has given a new lease of life to Prabhas' career. The actor was in the doldrums after Adipurush. He suffered a blow to his credibility if not his stardom. But Salaar and Kalki rescued him. Today, the actor has five films lined up - all mega projects . And what is truly promising is that the actor is willing to experiment with genres in these films, which will test the true mettle of his stardom. 

India's most bankable star

The five films Prabhas has in his kitty currently have a combined production budget of ₹1700 crore. No other star comes close. Shah Rukh Khan is filming King, and nothing apart from that. Rajinikanth and Salman Khan have one film each, too. His closest competitor is Ranbir Kapoor, who has Ramayana and Animal Park, but Brahmastra 2 is only on papers for now. But Prabhas, with five big films, has the best shot to lord over the box office over the next three years.

First up for Prabhas is  The Raja Saab, his maiden foray into horror comedy. A poster released on the actor's birthday earlier this week showed him in a never-seen-before avatar. As per trade sources, the Maruthi directorial has a budget of ₹200 crore. After it releases in April 2025, Prabhas will shift his focus to the tentatively titled Fauji, his first collaboration with Hanu Raghavpudi. The action drama is said to have a budget of over ₹300 crore. He then has Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Spirit, which he has not officially signed because of date issues. But reports have indicated that it will be Vanga’s biggest film, with one insider claiming that the director is aiming for a ₹300-crore budget.

Then Prabhas will stretch his wings in two sequels - Salaar: Part 2 – Shouryanga Parvam and Kalki 2. Prasanth Neel's Salaar 2 is said to be even bigger than part 1 (which had a budget of ₹270 crore). The makers want to leave no stone unturned in making it the biggest film so far and have reportedly committed a budget of ₹400 crore to Neel. Kalki 2 is aiming even bigger with a reported ₹500-crore landing cost.

How Prabhas turned things around

In an age when stars are being selective, Prabhas has chosen to be prolific. Shah Rukh returned with three films in a year but has since decided to have no release the following year. Salman Khan is following a similar pattern. Only Rajinikanth has stuck to the two films per year formula. But Prabhas is taking it a step ahead.

This is in stark contrast to his strategy after Baahubali, when he did one film every two years. But what that did is that when his first three films after Baahubali failed, Prabhas had been without a solo hit for eight years. This Prabhas 2.0 recognises that films fail, and he needs to have a backup. So he opts for two big releases a year, both in different genres, giving him a better chance at succeeding.

If all goes well, Prabhas is looking to explode at the box office starting in 2025. And even if it doesn't, he is bound to go out swinging.

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