Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire was the last blockbuster movie of 2023, cashing in on the Christmas weekend and filling in coffers till the next year. The action thriller by KGF writer and director Prashant Neel reassures leading man Prabhas who hasn’t had such a pan-Indian hit since the Baahubali franchise. The Telugu cinema superstar had a rough start to his 2023 with the religious epic Aadipurush turning out to be a critical and commercial disappointment.
But now with the high-octane action saga Salaar, Prabhas is back to dominate mainstream pop culture. The actor stars as a tribesman named Deva who lives in the dystopian fictional kingdom of Khansaar. Malayalam actor Prithviraj Sukumaran joins the ensemble as Varadha, a prince who eyes the throne of Khansaar with Deva’s help. But loyalties get twisted and blood gets shed in this exciting period epic.
Here’s a look at all the movies you should watch if you liked Prabhas’s latest.
1- KGF Chapter 1
Prashant Neel gained his pre-Salaar fame with KGF Chapter 1, a gangster epic set in the heartland of the goldmine-laden settlement of Kolar in Karnataka. The first installment of the movie made a star out of Yash who starred as the “angry young man” named “Rocky Bhai” while its immense box-office success created potential for Kannada movies to be pan-Indian hits.
2- Saaho
Saaho might be no Baahubali but this spy thriller potboiler did show Prabhas’s potential to continue his pan-Indian success. Cast alongside Bollywood actors like Shraddha Kapoor and Jackie Shroff, Saaho was tailor made for an audience beyond the Telugu market.
3- Ugramm
A major influence behind Salaar is Prashant Neel’s own directorial debut, the 2014 crime drama Ugramm. The gritty Kannada film revolves around a man’s struggle against gangsters who wreak havoc on a village and its women. Even with limited budget, the dim-lit cinematography and relentless action offered an early prototype to Neel’s future filmography.
4- Raavanan
If you thought Prithviraj Sukumaran’s Varadha is a morally twisted character, have a look at his tough-as-nails cop in Raavanan. One of Mani Ratnam’s best movies, this dark retelling of the Ramayan stars Prithviraj as a police officer who seems morally righteous at first, but as he rescues his wife (Aishwarya Rai) from the clutches of a forest rebel (Vikram), he begins to show his true colours.
5- Aaj Aur Kal
The kingdom of Khansaar is reminiscent of the many princely states that made up India before it attained its independence from the British. Aaj Aur Kal is a fascinating look at the last of these states as an oppressive ruler (Ashok Kumar) struggles to hold his kingdom together in the post-independence era.
6- Kabzaa
Kannada star Upendra tried his hand at the pan-Indian game with Kabzaa, an interesting tale of a freedom fighter who inadvertently turns to a life of crime as the country gets free in the 1940s.
7- Chatrapathi
One of SS Rajamouli’s best movies, the crime revenge drama Chatrapathi established Prabhas as an action star. Things have only looked better for him ever since.
8- Pushpa: The Rise
Much like KGF and Salaar, the Allu Arjun-led Pushpa: The Rise signaled the marketability of two-parter action sagas from South Indian film industries.
9- KGF Chapter 2
If KGF Chapter 1 isn’t enough to satiate your thrills, watch its more ambitious sequel. Yash returns to play Rocky Bhai as Neel directs him again, but Sanjay Dutt’s terrific turn as the Chapter 1’s antagonist’s vengeance-seeking brother.
10- Baahubali: The Beginning
The mythical franchise that made Prabhas a household name only ages better with time and deserves to be revisited after Salaar.
