Another Lesson From Rajamouli In Promoting Films

SS Rajamouli is not only a legendary filmmaker, who is known for his craft, but also a master of promotions, who knows how to take his films to the public in the right way. Be it any film in his career, Rajamouli makes sure to promote it hugely, grabbing people’s attention.

Many directors followed Rajamouli in making pan-India films, and some of them succeeded in delivering pan-India hits as well. However, no one could repeat the way he promotes films extensively and makes sure to take them to the audience. His latest promotions for Baahubali: The Epic prove the same.

Rajamouli makes sure to cater for a couple of months for promotions before every film’s promotion. Even for the upcoming release of Baahubali: The Epic, he started promotions almost a month ago. Be it interviews with producer Shobu or erecting standees at major theatres and multiplexes, Rajamouli is making sure to promote Baahubali: The Epic in a big way ahead of its worldwide release on October 31.

On the other hand, we have directors who attend just a pre-release event before the release, saying that they are occupied with post-production work. Sometimes, makers also skip those pre-release events or release the trailer just a couple of days before the release. If they don’t have a bankable hero or a director, those films fail to get openings due to a lack of promotion. Recently, we have seen many films opening well in their home states but failing miserably in other languages. Lack of promotions in other states is a major reason for this trend.

No matter how hard you work to make a film, if you promote it well, it will reach wider sections of audiences, resulting in huge openings. Rajamouli knows that formula. That is the reason why his films open big from South to North, irrespective of the story and star cast.

Even though it is a condensed cut of Baahubali 1 and 2, Baahubali: The Epic is being promoted hugely because Rajamouli wants people to see it as a unique standalone film and is striving to deliver another epic cinematic experience. Directors need to have that zeal to promote even re-releases in such a huge way. This is another reason which makes Rajamouli stand out from the rest. It remains to be seen if other filmmakers take a leaf from his book and learn how to promote their films.