SS Rajamouli's 'Varanasi': Producer talks about creating grand sets
What's the story
S. S. Karthikeya, the producer of the upcoming epic film Varanasi, recently opened up about the extensive efforts that went into creating the sets for the movie. Speaking at Comic Con Experience Mexico 2026, he revealed that they had to build the Varanasi ghats from scratch to align with director SS Rajamouli's vision for the film.
Production details
How the sets were created
IANS quoted Karthikeya as saying, "The story begins, and revolves, and ends in Varanasi." "It's also called the spiritual capital of India, and it's one of the oldest cities that was built and still inhabited." "And obviously our director, SS Rajamouli, had a vision of some breathtaking sequences in the ghats of Varanasi, which obviously, practically we couldn't have possibly executed there." "As the producer, our responsibility is to make that happen."
Set construction
'Varanasi' cast and crew
Karthikeya further explained, "We sent out our production design team to Varanasi to get all the possible dyes, measurements, picture references and all of that." "And yes to get his vision come true we built the Varanasi ghats brick by brick to ensure his vision comes true." The film stars Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Prithviraj Sukumaran in lead roles. It will be released on April 7, 2027.