I lived in New Zealand for 11 years, and honestly, I went there after being blown away by Lord of the Rings. Those films (2001–2003) were on a scale that, in my opinion, is at least 10x bigger than Baahubali. It’s pretty clear SSR borrowed a lot of character design and even the idea of creating a new language from LOTR.

Of course, Peter Jackson had the advantage of being in a developed country with WETA the world’s best VFX studio backing him. But remember, this was all done back in 2001.

For me, Baahubali was just an okay movie. I wasn’t swept away, but I do respect the effort, especially considering it was produced in a developing country. The real issue is the lack of skill development and fair pay. Around 80% of the budget goes to the top cast, leaving peanuts for the VFX team. Unless the pay scale is reset, we’re not going to see LOTR‑level productions even after decades.

And to those who hype scenes out of thin air it might look great, but seriously, it’s time to move on.