Pan-India Star Returns
There was a break in 2025, but followers of Prabhas were impatient for his next major release after the success of Kalki 2898AD in 2024. Prabhas returned to the theatres as a Sankranti gift with The Raja Saab, which marked his debut in the horror-fantasy comedy genre. The director of the movie was Maruthi, whose first screening took place on January 8, 2026, a day prior to the official release on January 9.
Plot Summary
The movie tells the tale of a money-loving man, Kanakaraj (Sanjay Dutt), who thinks of himself as the first to have the right idea about life. His ambition is to take revenge upon Ganga Devi (Zarina Waheb), the queen of Devanagara, and at the same time to take over the kingdom by stealing all its riches. With the help of an occultist, Bairagi, he uses dark magic to steal the wealth and keeps it in a fort located in the Narsapur Forest.
The story takes place years after the main character, the young king (Prabhas), has already gone through a lot of experiences: he is looking for his grandfather, he has come across the past’s secrets, and he has to deal with the funny, supernatural twists. The latter part of the movie has more of Prabhas and Sanjay Dutt’s relationship with suspense, comedy, and horror mixed in.
Performance Highlights
In an overly generous description to his fans, Prabhas manages to juggle performing comedy, romance, and action, passing through different periods of history. The grandson, the lover, and the king who died and returned to life are all characters that Prabhas plays and proves his talent and comic timing; however, the script sometimes limits him.
Sanjay Dutt is very convincing in the role of the king of evil Kanakaraj, while Zarina Waheb looks very beautiful during her climactic reveal as the queen. The trio of actresses, among whom Malavika Mohanan is the most visual representation, nevertheless, at the end of the day, the characters of the women are mostly ornamental rather than narrative. VTV Ganesh, Saptagiri, and Satya are the weakest links of the cast, while the considerable role of the psychiatrist played by Boman Irani, a Bollywood actor, is very noticeable.
Direction & Screenplay
Maruthi’s pursuit of integrating horror, fantasy, and comedy is hampered by an overly long duration of 3 hours and 9 minutes. While the story is promising, the addition of superfluous love and humorous scenes makes it even less engaging, particularly towards the end of the film. The movie does not fully explore the elements of suspense and horror which ultimately leads to a lack of impact in the finale.
Technical Aspects
- Cinematography: Karthik Palani offers images that captivate the eye, over all in the sequences shot in the fort and in the woods. The changing appearances of Prabhas are captured effectively, although some discrepancies are mentioned.
- Music: Thaman’s score and songs do not make a significant impact. The main horror scenes are deprived of the musical intensity that would make the genre superior.
- Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao’s editing could have cut down the film by at least thirty minutes, making the film more engaging and faster in its flow.
Overall Verdict
The Raja Saab provides a little bit of fun with the comic timing of Prabhas and there are a couple of engaging sequences like the fight with the crocodile. But still, all the confusing storytelling, lack of proper use of the subordinate actors, lousy music, and excessively long duration lead to a mixed bag experience. The movie teaches us the main point that not even a Pan-India superstar can make up for a bad story.
Rating: 2.5/5
The crowd, seeking out Prabhas’s classic magnetism, may find a few scenes to their taste, nonetheless, the film falls short of being a blockbuster Sankranti entertainment.
