Until Brahmastra: Part One — Shiva hit the marquee, few Indian movies had showcased that seamless blend of cinematic vision and technology. The stellar special effects are arguably the biggest highlight of the Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt-starrer. When Namit Malhotra of DNEG came on board as the VFX head and co-producer on Ayan Mukerji’s ambitious directorial venture, all he wanted to do was bring India on par with the West.

“India was lacking in access to technology and tools that filmmakers in the West have. I had the desire to bust that notion that India can’t do [superhero films],” he begins.

But that’s where the comparison with the West stopped. Mukerji’s story about a man discovering his superpower of harnessing fire was so rooted in Indian mythology that the team didn’t need to reference from Hollywood movies. “For creative design, we went into our own history, aesthetics, astras, and mythological references. But the technology is borrowed to translate that [vision on screen]. It’s not like Iron Man where there are high-tech gadgets. That could’ve alienated the audiences, but at the same time, it had to look cool enough for kids who are accustomed to Marvel/DC movies,” says Malhotra, adding that it took them “close to seven years” to perfect the film’s VFX.

It has taken Brahmastra almost a decade to go from paper to the big screen. The film’s budget, reportedly around Rs. 410 crore, has always been under scrutiny. But Malhotra brings forth a different point of view. “I had a running joke with Ayan that after James Cameron, he is the only guy who has taken this long [for a film]. But time has allowed the film to be finer. From a VFX standpoint, we were working till weeks before release. The budget is high for an Indian film, but it’s not a patch on the Hollywood budgets sanctioned for such movies. We made it for half the cost of a Hollywood movie. Brahmastra can stand next to any Hollywood [superhero] flick. Ayan and I [reasoned that] if the ticket prices are the same for Marvel movies, why should we drop the standard for Bollywood movies? We want this film to travel the globe, [like] Squid Game did.”

The franchise, envisioned as a trilogy, focuses on the elements derived from gods Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. This philosophy will be at the core of the Astraverse. “In the first part, we explored fire, which is the most exciting energy visually. The future [instalments] will also have similar constructs.”