After Kalki 2898 AD (2024) won two National Awards, including Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment and Best Production Design, director Nag Ashwin calls the wins “special”. The recognition marks his second National Award after he was previously honoured for Mahanati. Speaking about the honour, Ashwin says awards were not on his mind while making the film, but he always believed its production design deserved praise.

“Usually during making films, I don’t think of what awards it will get but for Kalki, I always felt that it should get in production design. We were doing some extremely impossible things and I’m very happy that it got that recognition,” says the filmmaker.

Reflecting on the win, Ashwin says the team shared the joy despite being in different places. “We were all in different places but overall I think we all felt an immense gratitude and joy for the recognition,” he says.

The film featured an ensemble cast of Amitabh Bachchan, Prabhas, Deepika Padukone and Kamal Haasan, among others. Ashwin credits the film’s “great actors” for pushing him to be sharper and ensuring that the story and scenes were “up to the mark”.

“Rather than overpower the story, I feel it helped me be sharper on my feet and make sure that the story or the scenes really were up to the mark, to justify the great actors who were playing these roles,” he says.

Recalling the film’s most challenging sequences, Ashwin points to the climax featuring Ashwatthama (Amitabh) battling Bhairava (Prabhas) in Bujji, the three-wheeled AI car, as well as the Mahabharata portions. “It was really a complicated sequence because the action had proper story beats and had to keep improving. And also the Mahabharata sequences,” shares the 40-year-old.

Ashwin also feels the response to films across scales is encouraging. “It’s very exciting as stories now, whether they are small and intimate or larger than life, have somehow seemed to have found their own stable audience and I’m really hoping that this trend continues,” he says.

He adds that Kalki’s success has also inspired filmmakers to explore the genre, although that means he will have to reassess some of the ideas he originally developed years ago. “Kalki has inspired many more to follow this genre... what was original seven years ago while writing it, I’ll have to assess and reimagine sometimes,” he says.

With the film’s box-office success followed by National Award recognition, Ashwin says the focus for its sequel, Kalki 2898 AD – Part 2, will remain on the story rather than expectations. “After the box office success and now the award recognition, what we will strive to do is to still be honest to the story. And make a film that can stand the test of time,” he says.

For Ashwin, that honesty begins with the reason a filmmaker chooses to tell a story in the first place. “I feel the stories that directors want to tell... from inside... not because they need to make their next film or are trying to write something according to the trend. The want to make something should be blind and relentless. I feel only those work, at any point of time,” he concludes.