# Kalki 2898 AD (2024) Review: Mahabharata Meets Mad Max > Kalki 2898 AD is Nag Ashwin's Telugu sci-fi epic fusing Mahabharata myth with a dystopian future, dazzling in scale and Amitabh Bachchan's presence but uneven in tone. Canonical: https://celluloidscore.com/reviews/kalki-2898-ad-2024-review/ Published: 2026-07-23 Last updated: 2026-09-24 Author: Kaiser Khan — Founder & Editor Language: English Review basis: direct-viewing Spoilers: none Rating: 3.5/5 ## Verdict Yes, with reservations. Its ambition, visuals and powerful second half reward fans of Indian spectacle, but a slow, jokey first half makes the three hours a test. ## Is Kalki 2898 AD worth watching? **Yes, with reservations. Kalki 2898 AD is one of the most ambitious films Indian popular cinema has attempted, a mythological science fiction epic whose best passages are genuinely thrilling.** Nag Ashwin builds a detailed dystopian world on the foundations of the Mahabharata, and Amitabh Bachchan gives it a towering centre. The reservations are structural: the first half drifts through world-building and broad comedy, the influences are worn openly, and the whole thing is clearly the opening chapter of a larger saga. ## What is Kalki 2898 AD about? Set some 6,000 years after the great war of Kurukshetra, [Kalki 2898 AD](https://celluloidscore.com/movies/kalki-2898-ad-2024/) imagines the world as a desert wasteland. Its last city, Kasi, lives in the shadow of the Complex, a vast inverted structure where an ageing tyrant and his forces hoard water, resources and power. Ashwatthama (Amitabh Bachchan), an immortal warrior from the ancient epic, waits for a sign that his long penance can end, and it arrives in the form of a young woman held in the Complex, played by [Deepika Padukone](https://celluloidscore.com/stars/asia/india/deepika-padukone/), who becomes the focus of an old prophecy. Standing in the way is Bhairava ([Prabhas](https://celluloidscore.com/stars/asia/india/prabhas/)), a wisecracking, self-interested bounty hunter who wants nothing more than a ticket into the Complex's comforts. [Kamal Haasan](https://celluloidscore.com/stars/asia/india/kamal-haasan/) plays the ruler at the top of the Complex, and Shobana, Saswata Chatterjee and Anna Ben lead the supporting cast. Nag Ashwin writes and directs. The film is in Telugu and runs 176 minutes. ## A world built with real ambition The first thing to say about Kalki is how much imagination has gone into it. Kasi is a crowded, rusting city of scavengers and black markets; the Complex is a cold, gleaming fortress looming overhead like an upturned mountain; and a hidden rebel refuge offers a third, more spiritual world. The production design, costumes and visual effects are among the most accomplished in Indian cinema, and the film has a clear aesthetic identity even when its influences, from Star Wars to Mad Max and Dune, are obvious. The mythological layer is the film's most original element. Ashwin frames the future as a continuation of the Mahabharata, opening with a prologue at Kurukshetra and weaving ancient figures and ideas into the dystopia. For viewers who know the epic, there are rich connections; for newcomers, the framing gives the sci-fi action an unusual gravity. ## Amitabh Bachchan anchors the epic Bachchan, in his eighties, gives the film its soul. His Ashwatthama is a colossal, weary figure, physically imposing and burdened by millennia of guilt, and his action scenes carry a mythic heft that nothing else in the film quite matches. Deepika Padukone brings quiet dignity to a largely reactive role and makes her character's fear and resolve felt. Prabhas is the tougher case. Bhairava is written as a comic rogue, and the actor's light touch suits some scenes, but the character's broad humour sits awkwardly beside the film's solemn mythology. Kamal Haasan's role is brief but memorable, clearly a setup for what comes next. ## Where the epic stumbles The film's first half is its weakest. It spends a long time establishing Bhairava's world through comic set pieces and a talking vehicle sidekick, and the tone lurches between knockabout humour and grim dystopia. Once the story's threads converge, the second half picks up dramatically, building to large-scale action of real power. But at 176 minutes, the uneven pacing is felt, and the film ends by pointing clearly towards a sequel rather than delivering a complete story. ## Who should watch Kalki 2898 AD? It is ideal for fans of big Indian spectacle, science fiction lovers curious about a very different take on the genre, and anyone interested in the Mahabharata's legacy in modern pop culture. Set aside around three hours and a large screen if possible. The violence is frequent but largely stylised, with fantasy battles and some intense scenes of cruelty in the Complex. If you want more epic spectacle: - [Baahubali: The Beginning](https://celluloidscore.com/reviews/baahubali-the-beginning-2015-review/), the Prabhas-led mythic epic that opened the door for Telugu blockbusters like this one. - [RRR](https://celluloidscore.com/reviews/rrr-2022-review/), a more tightly controlled Telugu spectacle with a similar appetite for scale. ## The verdict Kalki 2898 AD is a flawed but thrilling leap for Indian genre cinema, rich in imagination and anchored by Amitabh Bachchan's monumental presence. The slow, tonally uneven first half and unfinished story are real drawbacks, yet its ambition and powerful second half make it well worth seeing. **Rating: 3.5/5** ## Related title - [Kalki 2898 AD (2024)](https://celluloidscore.com/movies/kalki-2898-ad-2024/) ## Editorial - [Editorial standards](https://celluloidscore.com/about/editorial-policy/) - [Report a correction](https://celluloidscore.com/about/corrections/)