An animation web series, Baahubali: Crown of Blood, will stream on Disney+ Hotstar from May 17. Produced by director SS Rajamouli, Sharad Devarajan and Shobu Yarlagadda on behalf of Arka Mediaworks and Graphic India, the series will follow the characters of Baahubali, Bhallaladeva, Sivagami and Kattappa as they face new challenges. Two episodes from the animation series were screened for the media in Hyderabad.
The animation series comes nine years after Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and seven years after Baahubali: The Conclusion (2017). The blockbuster Telugu films starring Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty, Tamannaah Bhatia, Ramya Krishnan rewrote box office records in Indian cinema.
Baahubali: Crown of Blood is directed by Jeevan J Kang and Naveen John and created by Rajamouli and Sharad Devarajan. Speaking during the launch, Gaurav Banerjee, head of content at Disney Plus Hotstar stated that the series will dismiss the popular notion that animation series are meant only for children and will also appeal to adults.
Shobu Yarlagadda, Gaurav Banerjee, Rajamouli, Sharad Devarajan and Sharad Kelkar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Director SS Rajamouli said, “While writing the script, we developed the backstory, character arcs and aftermath for each character in the Baahubali films. All that content had to be shared with the audience. In Western cinema, a movie becomes a brand. We wanted Baahubali to have animation series, graphic novels and gaming. However, we waited all these years to find the right partners.”
Shobhu Yarlagadda, one of the producers of the Baahubali films, agreed with Rajamouli and added, “The movie is only a chapter in our journey. Cartoons, gaming and animation based on Baahubali will continue.”
Actor Sharad Kelkar who had dubbed for the titular character of Baahubali for the Hindi versions of the films, has also dubbed for the Hindi series. Baahubali: Crown of Blood will show how Baahubali and Bhallaladeva protect the kingdom of Mahishmati from one of its biggest threats.
