RRR

Alluri Sitarama Raju (left) and Komaram Bheem (right), the real-life Indian revolutionaries whose lives were fictionalised in the film

In October 2017, in an interview with Variety, S. S. Rajamouli announced two projects after Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017) with producers D. V. V. Danayya of DVV Entertainment and K. L. Narayana. Rajamouli prioritised his work on the former, which was touted to be a social drama film, and which would be followed by Narayana's production with actor Mahesh Babu.[15] In November 2017, Rajamouli shared a picture with N. T. Rama Rao Jr. and Ram Charan through his social media handles, hinting their inclusion in the film.[16]

The film was announced in March 2018,[17] with the tentative title RRR, an abbreviation for Rajamouli, Ram Charan, and Rama Rao.[18] The tentative title RRR was later confirmed to be the film's official title as Rajamouli felt that a universal title across the languages was essential for a film of such scale.[19][20] Rajamouli's father V. Vijayendra Prasad gave the original story and Rajamouli scripted the film, which he worked on for six months.[21] In September 2018, writer Sai Madhav Burra was signed for the dialogues for the film in the primary language (Telugu),[22] whereas dialogues in other versions were written by Madhan Karky (Tamil),[23] Varadaraj Chikkaballapura (Kannada),[24] Mamkombu Gopalakrishnan (Malayalam),[25] and Riya Mukherjee (Hindi).[26] Rajamouli retained several technicians from his previous projects. The crew consists of M. M. Keeravani as the music director, K. K. Senthil Kumar as the director of photography, A. Sreekar Prasad as the film editor, Sabu Cyril as the production designer, V. Srinivas Mohan handling the visual effects supervision, and Rama Rajamouli as the costume designer.[27] Nick Powell was the stunt director for the film, and handled the choreography for the climax action sequences in the film.[28] Prior to the start of film production, both Rama Rao and Charan had attended a special workshop in mid-November 2018, in order to train physically and intensively for their roles in the film.[29][30]

RRR is an entirely fictitious story incorporating the lives of two real-life Indian revolutionaries, namely Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem, who fought against the British Raj and the Nizam of Hyderabad respectively. Charan plays Rama Raju while Rama Rao plays Komaram Bheem. The plot explores their stay in Delhi of the 1920s before they begin the fight for their country.[31] Rajamouli stated that there had been a coincidence between the two Telugu tribal leaders and the events surrounding over them.[32]

When I read about Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem, it was exciting to know that their story is similar. They never met each other. What if they had met? What if they had got inspired by each other? That is what RRR is about. It is completely fictitious. The film is mounted on a very large scale. We had to do a lot of research for it. To know costumes, their dialect, their way of living and that is why it took so much time for us to get this together.

— S. S. Rajamouli[33]

Alia Bhatt (top), Ray Stevenson (middle) and Ajay Devgn (bottom) made their debut in Telugu cinema (Tollywood) in this film.

In March 2019, Rajamouli finalized the cast. The film marks the Telugu debut of Ajay Devgn and Alia Bhatt.[34][35][36] Bhatt was paired opposite Charan in the role of Sita, while Devgn would have an extended cameo.[37] Tamil actor Samuthirakani was roped in to play a crucial role.[36] British actress Daisy Edgar-Jones was signed to be paired opposite Rama Rao,[36] however, she left the project in April 2019 citing personal reasons, which later revealed to be scheduling conflicts to Normal People.[38] Olivia Morris was cast as her replacement in November 2019. The same month, Irish actor Ray Stevenson was cast as the lead antagonist Scott, with Alison Doody joining in to play Lady Scott.[39] Chakri, Varun Buddhadev, Spandan Chaturvedi and Twinkle Sharma were the child artists for the film.[40]

In an interview with Deadline Hollywood, Rama Rao said that they had carried out major research to portray their characters on screen. He was put on an 18-month training programme to get the right physical appearance.[41] The Hans India reported in March 2019 that Devgn will appear in the second half of the film during the flashback episodes.[42] Reports claimed that Keerthy Suresh and Priyamani were approached for a role in the film,[43][44] before Shriya Saran confirmed her role opposite Devgn in June 2020.[45] Rahul Ramakrishna,[46] Chatrapathi Sekhar[47] and Rajeev Kanakala are cast in other supporting roles.[48]

In June 2020, Bhatt was trolled by the netizens following the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, where she was accused of nepotism. A few fans also called to replace Bhatt in RRR.[49][50] However, Bhatt denied the news of her leaving the film and being replaced by Priyanka Chopra,[51] and joined the sets in December 2020.[52] She learnt to speak Telugu for the film.[53][54]

Sabu Cyril served as the production designer for RRR.[27] Prior to starting the first shooting schedule, the team had constructed a set at an aluminium factory located in Hyderabad, for filming an action sequence.[55][56] A manduva house was constructed for the film actors and technicians.[57] The first schedule of the film's shooting was held at the Aluminium factory set for nearly 20 days.[55] In June 2020, it was reported that ₹18 crore (US$2.43 million) was spent for a set replicating an entire village in Gandipet, where the team planned to film the sequences in this location post-COVID-19 lockdown.[58] A set resembling the 20th-century Delhi was recreated at the Ramoji Film City,[52] where the team had undergone an extensive action schedule for 50 days, which involved night shoots.[59] Another huge set was constructed by the art direction crew for a song shoot featuring Charan and Bhatt.[60] The promotional music video for the film titled "Dosti" was filmed in July 2021, at a specially constructed set at the Annapurna Studios designed by Sabu Cyril and photographed by Dinesh Krishnan.[61][62][63]

The film's launch event with a puja ceremony was held on 11 November 2018, which saw the attendance of noted personalities from the Telugu film industry,[64] including Prabhas and Rana Daggubati, who had worked with Rajamouli in the Baahubali franchise.[65][66] Principal photography of the film commenced on 19 November 2018 in Hyderabad at a specially erected set at an Aluminium factory in the location.[55][56] It is the first Indian film to be shot on Arri Alexa LF and Arri Signature Prime lens.[67] Senthil Kumar told American Cinematographer that, he "avoided the use of overt stylization such as extreme color palettes and unrealistic camera moves, in favor of a more classical cinematographic approach".[68] The filming schedule was completed on 6 December 2018.[69] The team took a brief break before commencing the film's second schedule on 21 January 2019 at Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad.[70] An action sequence consisting of 1000 artists was filmed during February 2019.[71] An extensive schedule was filmed in Vadodara for 10 days in March 2019.[72] Few scenes were also shot at Siddhpur, Gujarat.[68] Another schedule was planned in Pune, Maharashtra, however, it was called off following Charan's injury on the sets.[73] Rama Rao too faced a minor injury on the sets,[74] resulting the team to take a break during the schedule.[75] Ram Charan's introduction scene was reportedly shot for 32 days.[76]

Araku Valley, where parts of the film were shot, including the opening scenes[77]

After their recovery, an action sequence featuring Charan, Rama Rao and 2000 junior artists was shot, reportedly at a cost more than ₹45 crore (US$5.6 million).[78] Introductory sequences of Rama Rao and Charan costed the production upwards of ₹40 crore (US$5.0 million), a sum considered higher than the total budget of many small Indian films.[79] In August 2019, the production headed to Bulgaria to film the second schedule where the crew shot crucial scenes featuring Rama Rao.[80] The shoot was stalled during October 2019 as Rajamouli had to attend a screening of Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) at the Royal Albert Hall in London.[81]

In November 2019, a song featuring Rama Rao and Charan was filmed at the Ramoji Film City.[82] The film's official social media handle tweeted that 70% of the film's shoot had been wrapped as of November.[83] Rama Rao headed to the Modakondamma Temple forest area in the Paderu–Araku road to film for five days in December 2019.[77][84] In January 2020, Charan began a week-long night shoot in the Vikarabad forest region.[84] Ajay Devgn joined the film's shooting schedule on 21 January 2020 and wrapped his portions during February.[85][86] The film was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.[87] After the governments of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana granted permission to resume film shooting during June 2020,[88] a 2-day trial shoot was planned, but it was halted following the spike in COVID-19 cases in Hyderabad.[89] The filming was resumed in early October 2020 following the ease of the COVID-19 lockdown in India,[90] and Rajamouli shot for the promotional teaser for the film, titled "Ramaraju for Bheem", during this schedule.[91] Abiding to social restrictions related to the pandemic, the production unit was accommodated in a hotel in Madhapur and were barred from coming into contact with outsiders not belonging to the production.[90]

In late-October, the team canned night shoots for the film and stills were revealed by the official social media handles for the film under the tagline #RRRDiaries.[92][93] The action sequences, which took place for 50 days, were completed by the end of November 2020.[59] The production then moved to Mahabaleshwar to film a very brief schedule in early December 2020[94][95] The production then moved to Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad for further filming.[96][97] Alia Bhatt began filming her portions in Hyderabad in December 2020, during which key scenes involving her were shot.[98][96] The filming of the climax scenes began in January 2021.[96] Action director Nick Powell choreographed few climax war-sequences in March 2021.[97] A special song shoot featuring Charan and Bhatt was held during the same month.[60] Though the filming was halted again due to the second wave of COVID-19,[99] it was resumed in June 2021.[100] In June 2021, the makers announced that except for two songs, the filming was completed and Charan and Rama Rao had completed their dubbing work in two languages,[101] and had completed the talkie portions for the film.[102]

The "Naatu Naatu" song was filmed at the Mariinskyi Palace in capital Kyiv of Ukraine.

In August 2021, the final schedule of the film took place in Ukraine.[103] The song "Naatu Naatu" was shot during the schedule at Mariinskyi Palace, Kyiv, which is the ceremonial residential palace of President of Ukraine, filming took place some months before Russia invaded Ukraine.[104][13] Barring a few shots, the entire shoot was completed on 26 August 2021.[105] In an article published in March 2022, by News18, it was reported that at least 3000 technicians have worked on RRR, while nine co-directors also contributed to the film. It took over 300 days to complete the shooting of the film. About 75 days had been allotted to film the action sequences, and 40 fighters from other countries took part in the film. At least 2500 crew people were also hired from London. Overseas locations including Netherlands was also used for shooting some important sequences.[106]

RRR began with a budget of between ₹350 crore (US$49.7 million) and ₹400 crore (US$56.8 million) in 2019.[107] However, the budget was overrun by around ₹150 crore (US$19 million) due to the delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,[108] with the film's final budget estimated to be ₹550 crore (US$69 million),[109][110] thus making RRR the most expensive Indian film at the time of its release.[111] In March 2022, according to the producer's application to the Government of Andhra Pradesh for ticket price hikes, the film's budget was ₹336 crore (US$42 million) excluding the Goods and Services Tax and the remunerations of the director and star cast.[112]

Post-production of the film began simultaneously with the wrapping-up and continuation of film production. The dubbing process began during April 2020, with Rama Rao and Charan dubbing their portions for the film from their homes, and thus being the first persons to do so.[113][114] Both actors gave voiceovers for each other's introduction teasers.[115][116] In June 2021, the film producers reported that both actors had completed dubbing for the film.[117] On 26 August 2021, after filming was completed, the film entered into an extensive post-production phase.[118] With three years already invested in the film, Rajamouli's decision to spend less time in post-production compared to his other films was due to future commitments, rising production costs, and filming postponements caused by COVID-19 restrictions.[119] The dubbing works were completed by late October 2021.[120] Both Rama Rao and Charan dubbed their lines for four languages, namely Telugu, Hindi, Tamil and Kannada.[121]

V. Srinivas Mohan is the visual effects supervisor of the film, along with Framestore and the Moving Picture Company (MPC), the film's principal visual effects studio.[122] Alzahra VFX, NY VFXWaala, Redefine, Knack Studios, Makuta VFX, Digital Domain, Rhythm and Hues Studios, Method Studios, Rodeo FX, Technicolor VFX, Legend3D, The Third Floor, Inc, Clear Angle Studios, Halon Entertainment, 4DMax, and Cinesite, among others, are responsible for some of the other visual effects in the film. In an interview, Mohan discussed the utilization of pre-visualization, lidar scanning, and light stage technology in the film.[123] Extensive visual effects work took place for more than six months during the post-production process.[21] The finishing work for RRR was performed at ANR Sound & Vision at Annapurna Studios, by colorist BVR Shivakumar.[68]

The final copy of the film was ready by late November 2021, and was submitted to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) that month.[124] On 9 December 2021, the film received a U/A certificate from the Censor Board, with a finalized runtime of 187 minutes.[125]

RRR was scheduled to have special premieres across India and the United States on 24 March 2022[213][214] before its worldwide theatrical release on 25 March.[215][216] Earlier, it was scheduled to be theatrically released on 30 July 2020.[217] However, in February 2020,[218] the release date was revised to 8 January 2021, a week prior to the Sankranthi festival (14 January 2021).[219][220] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, which disrupted production, the film's release was put on hold.[221] Rajamouli said that the new release date would be confirmed after the completion of shooting.[222] On the eve of Republic Day (25 January 2021), a 13 October 2021 release date, coinciding with the eve of Dusshera weekend, was announced[223][224] The release date was again deferred, citing theatrical restrictions across the world due to the second wave of COVID-19 and its aftermath.[225][226]

In early October 2021, the theatrical release date was changed to 7 January 2022, ahead of the Sankranthi festival.[227] However, a week before the release, the film producers announced that the film's release would be postponed indefinitely due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, fuelled by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant.[228][229] In mid-January, two tentative release dates were announced pending the pandemic situation: 18 March 2022 and 28 April 2022.[230][231] Later, the producers finalized a 25 March 2022 release date.[232] The film was intended to be released in Telugu along with the dubbed versions in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, and other Indian and foreign languages in 2D, 3D and IMAX formats.[233][234] It is the first Indian film to be released in Dolby Cinema format.[235]

In January 2022, a public interest litigation (PIL) was filed in the Telangana High Court to restrain the film for being released, alleging that the film distorts the history of Alluri Sita Rama Raju and Komaram Bheem.[236] The High Court quashed the petition in March, observing that the film did not tarnish the reputation of the two revolutionaries as claimed.[237]

Following political and film industry backlash after reducing ticket prices last year, Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy issued a ticket price hike in Andhra Pradesh in mid-March 2022.[238][239] As per Cinematography Minister Perni Venkataramaiah, the filmmakers received government approval to increase ticket prices by ₹75 (94¢ US) during the first ten days after the film's 25 March release.[240]

RRR became the first film to be screened in Jammu and Kashmir, after the re-opening of movie theaters in September 2022, which were closed in 1990s following the spread of terrorism and further incidents.[241][242]

The original Telugu version was released on 21 October 2022 in Japan.[243] It was released by Keizo Kabata's Twin Company in 209 screens and 31 IMAX screens across 44 cities and prefectures, the widest release for an Indian film in the country.[244] The film's Japanese-language dubbed version is scheduled to release in Japan on 28 July 2023.[245]

Shortly before Academy Awards nominees were announced, distributor Variance Films announced RRR would return to American cinemas for a limited run from 3 March 2023.[246]

In November 2021, The Times of India reported that RRR would premiere on over 10,000 screens worldwide, the "highest for an Indian film".[247] In India, the film was estimated to show on over 2,300 screens, with the Telugu version premiering on over 1,000 screens.[248] The Hindi version was reported to showcase on over 793 screens and the Tamil version on over 291 screens.[248] The Kannada and Malayalam-dubbed versions were scheduled for 66 and 62 screens, respectively.[248] The film was set to show on over 1,000 screens in the United Kingdom, including BFI IMAX, the largest cinema screen in the United Kingdom.[249] The film was slated to screen at over 1,150 locations in the United States in around 3,000 theatres and 1,000-odd multiplexes across the country, which was claimed to be a record for an Indian film.[250][251]

The film was planned to be released in IMAX, 3D and Dolby Cinema.[252][253] According to trade sources, the film would screen in over 21 IMAX screens in India and over 100 IMAX theatres overseas, a first for an Indian film.[214] RRR is also the first Indian film to be released in Dolby Cinema in overseas theatres.[253] Sarigama Cinemas, which distributed the film in the United States, planned the film's premiere in large-format resolution DCP at Cinemark XD, also a first for an Indian film.[254]

On 1 June 2022, RRR was screened in over 100 theatres across the United States for a one night event called "#encoRRRe".[255][256] The film was re-released by Variance Films and Potentate Films, in association with its original distributors — Sarigama Cinemas and Rafter Creations.[257] Speaking to Deadline Hollywood, Dylan Marchetti of Variance Films said that "With more than 250 films coming out of India annually, RRR could be a gateway drug".[258] In his review of the film Nashville Scene's Jason Shawhan wrote about the event that "the nationwide encore of RRR is American audiences reaching with outstretched arms to something so exciting and rock-solid entertaining that its success already happened without insular traditional media even mentioning it. This isn't America dipping a toe in Indian cinema — it's a victory lap".[259]

In June 2022, London-based Prince Charles Cinema announced that it will re-release the film on popular demand on 3, 5, and 29 July and 8 August 2022.[260][261] RRR was screened at the TCL Chinese Theatre on 30 September 2022 in IMAX as part of "From Tollywood to Hollywood: The Spectacle & Majesty of S.S. Rajamouli" program of 10th Beyond Festival organized by American Cinematheque in partnership with IMAX, Variance Films, Potentate Films and the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles.[262][263][264]

RRR was screened at the 53rd International Film Festival of India under the Indian panorama section, in November 2022.[265]

Originally, the film made a pre-release earning of ₹400 crore (US$50 million),[266][267] but the revised pre-release deal was later revealed to be ₹890 crore (US$110 million), the highest for any Indian film to date.[268][269] The domestic theatrical rights in the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana regions were reported to be under ₹165 crore (US$21 million).[270] Lyca Productions acquired the film's theatrical distribution rights from Tamil Nadu for ₹48 crore (US$6.0 million).[271][272] The following month, Pen Studios acquired the theatrical rights for North India under the Pen Marudhar Entertainment banner, in addition to electronic, satellite and digital rights for all language versions.[273][274] The deal for the North Indian theatrical release rights were reported to be ₹140 crore (US$18 million).[275] The Kerala theatrical rights were acquired by Shibu Thameens, with Riya Shibu presenting the film under the HR Studios banner. Thameens bought the film's distribution rights for ₹15 crore (US$1.9 million).[276] The Karnataka theatrical rights were purchased by KVN Entertainment for ₹45 crore (US$5.6 million).[268] The Arab world theatrical rights were sold to Phars Films for ₹70 crore (US$8.8 million).[277][278] Dreamz Entertainment distributed the film in United Kingdom and Ireland.[279] Shreyas Media Group's film distribution company Good Cinema Group has acquired the distribution rights for the entire African continent.[280]

In May 2021, Pen Studios announced that the film's digital rights for Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada versions are acquired by ZEE5[281] while Hindi, English, Portuguese, Korean, Turkish and Spanish versions are acquired by Netflix.[282] Zee Network acquired the satellite rights of the Hindi version and Star India Network acquired the satellite rights of the film's Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada versions.[283][284] The combined deal of post-theatrical streaming and satellite rights were reported to be in the region of ₹325 crore (US$41 million).[285] The film started streaming on ZEE5 from 20 May 2022 in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada languages while the Hindi version was released on the same day on Netflix.[286][287] The film has also started streaming though Disney+ Hotstar on 26 July 2022 in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada languages.[288][289]

The original Telugu-language version of the film was premiered on television on 14 August 2022 on Star Maa,[290] and registered a television rating point of 19.62 according to Broadcast Audience Research Council, becoming the 11th most viewed film.[291][292][293] On the same day, Malayalam-language version was premiered on Asianet.[294] Unlike the Telugu version, the Malayalam dubbed version registered a TRP rating of 13.70, which is considered to be one of the most viewed films on Malayalam television.[295] It is also the second-most viewed Malayalam dubbed Telugu film on the Malayalam television, behind Baahubali 2: The Conclusion.[296] The Hindi-language version was premiered on Zee Cinema UK on 13 August 2022 in the United Kingdom,[297] whereas in India it was premiered on 14 August 2022 on Zee Cinema.[298] The Kannada-language version was premiered on Star Suvarna on 21 August 2022.[299] The Hindi version was again telecasted on Zee Telugu on 11 September 2022.[300] The Tamil-language version was premiered on Star Vijay on 25 December 2022.

Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave the film a rating of 4/5 and termed RRR as a solid entertainer that "doesn't make you restless, despite a marathon run time. The screenplay is wonderfully constructed, the twists and turns are attention grabbing and the nail-biting episodes as well as superbly executed action."[309] Roktim Rajpal of Deccan Herald gave the film a rating of 4/5 and wrote "The action-packed climax again hits the right notes as the visuals do the talking, the hallmark of good storytelling".[310] Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "RRR is not perfection by any means (despite Rajamouli's best efforts) because after the way he pulls off certain scenes, you wonder if he could've done a better job in certain others. But watch this one this weekend if you've been pining for a good action packed drama".[311]

Himesh Mankad of Pinkvilla gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "RRR has the best action sequences to offer in an Indian film with an unimaginable interval block and a roaring finale".[312] Janani K of India Today gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "RRR is a terrific film with brilliant performances and amazing set-pieces".[313] A reviewer from Deccan Chronicle gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "RRR is a fantastic film that's meant for the big screen".[314] Latha Srinivasan of Firstpost gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "Ram Charan and Jr NTR's offscreen friendship and camaraderie seep into their onscreen performances, and the organic transformation from strangers to brothers-in-arms has been captured beautifully".[315] Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "RRR is just the kind of visual treat that will bring people back to theatres".[316] Bharathi Pradhan of Lehren gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "SSR rescues his adventure with a smorgasbord of skilfully choreographed, shot and performed action pieces that have you cheering lustily, the temporary boredom soon forgotten".[317]

Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "The film casts not just one super-star, but two of them – Jr NTR and Ram Charan. The biggest super-star among them all is SS Rajamouli and the audience also saved the loudest 'taalis' (claps) for him".[318] Prateek Sur of Outlook India gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "The film's grand representation is what makes this a Must Watch".[319] Stutee Ghosh of The Quint gave the film a rating of 3/5 and wrote "Parts of RRR seem Ridiculous and Reductive it's also absolutely Ravishing and for that it deserves to be seen and enjoyed".[320] Rahul Devulapalli of The Week gave the film a rating of 3/5 and wrote "Visually stunning action sequences, exceptionally synchronised dance moves stand out".[321]

Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave the film a rating of 2/5 and wrote "The film rings hollow because it never pauses for breath and does not grant its two male protagonists anything akin to recognizable human qualities although they do constantly harp on love and longing".[322] Sukanya Verna of Rediff gave the film a rating of 2/5 and wrote "A copious amount of blood, beating, crying, saving, sacrificing, nationalism fills up its staggering three hours running time. Emotions run sky high, but you feel nothing".[323]

Calling RRR "bigger than Ben-Hur", Deadline Hollywood's Stephanie Bunbury wrote: "RRR is one action crescendo after another, never dull but not exhausting either."[324] In her review for Polygon, Katie Rife stated: "RRR is a busy movie, full of kinetic camerawork, bustling crowd scenes, elaborate set design, expensive-looking CGI, and loud sound effects."[325] Siddhant Adlakha of IndieWire praised Rajamouli's work, M. M. Keeravani's music and acting performances of lead actors. He further wrote that RRR outshines even the director's previous venture Baahubali.[326]

Reviewing the film for The Austin Chronicle, Josh Hurtado called RRR a "bromantic action nirvana". Hurtado stated that Rajamouli turned a "patriotic fantasy" into an "incredibly entertaining reality for fans of big action, big emotions, and big laughs."[327] Joe Leydon in his review for Variety felt RRR was "bigger-than-life and bolder-than-mainstream action-adventure epic."[328] Nicolas Rapold of The New York Times stated: "Rajamouli shoots the film's action with hallucinogenic fervor, supercharging scenes with a shimmering brand of extended slow-motion and C.G.I. that feels less 'generated' than unleashed."[329] Screen International's Tara Judah wrote that RRR was "big, bold and bombastic", feeling the film was "big screen entertainment at its best".[330] Writing for Rolling Stone, David Fear cited the film as "best and most revolutionary of 2022". He further wrote that "RRR is about the movies: the thrill of watching stories told at larger-than-life levels, the joy of watching stars collide, the effort of rendering lavish mythologies at whatever the digital equivalent of 24 frames per second is, the sensation of seeing manufactured movement via gleefully conspicuous special effects bump up against genuine physical effort". Praising the dance number "Naatu Naatu", he stated—"Seriously, the 'Desi Naach' dance sequence feels like a Gene Kelly number dialed up to superhuman levels".[331]

Calling it a "dudes rock movie" Hannah Kinney-Kobre of Pittsburgh City Paper compared RRR with American English-language films and wrote that "the politics that power American blockbusters are milquetoast and/or incomprehensible – the only thing that justifies their plots is the studio executive's emphasis on recognizable intellectual property as a way to drive up box office totals. If our system can only produce movies that refuse to make the most of their astronomical budgets, why not look elsewhere? RRR is a good place to start".[332] Richard Brody of The New Yorker felt that the film is "of shortcuts and elisions no less relentless than those of American superhero or superstar vehicles, but Rajamouli is an artist of a distinctive temperament and talent". On a final note, he further wrote "The movie's powerful sense of revolutionary virtue and collective purpose yields to nationalistic pride that's danced and sung with uninhibited joy".[333] Nashville Scene's Jason Shawhan opined that "RRR, in addition to being a historical epic, political drama, action spectacle and bromantic telenovela, is a film that engages with history on its own terms. This isn't a case of Tollywood aiming for Western wallets".[259] In his review of the film, The Atlantic's David Sims stated: "RRR serves as a reminder of how much modern action usually follows a formula. If wonder is to be consistently found on the big screen, then Hollywood has plenty of new lessons to learn from its best competitor".[334] Praising the film, American screenwriter C. Robert Cargill called it a "craziest, most sincere, weirdest blockbuster".[335][336]

Praising the film's direction and action sequences, The Globe and Mail's Aparita Bhandari opined that the officers of the British Raj are shown as caricatures, which does not add depth to the narrative. There is very little character development, or social or historical context. She further wrote "The female characters barely have a role to play, despite the fact that one of Indian cinema's leading actresses Alia Bhatt plays Raju's fiancée".[337] Collider''s Chase Hutchinson stated—"An unrelenting ride of a film that makes blockbusters such as Top Gun: Maverick look like child's play and leaves whatever is happening in Jurassic World Dominion in its dust, S.S. Rajamouli's action musical epic RRR is what cinema can only hope to aspire to."[338] Calling it "the craziest movie of the year", Adam Graham of The Detroit News further stated that "RRR's breakout is significant though, and it's the kind of accessible, crossover success story that brings more eyes to different cultures, styles and voices across the globe. Even its subtext is winning favor: the supercharged bromance at the center of the film has been celebrated by some who see Raju and Bheem as gay superheroes acting out a love affair bubbling just below the surface of all those explosions".[339] In an article published by Screen Rant, Mark Donaldson wrote that "RRR's portrayal of the racism and oppression of colonialism makes it vital viewing for Western audiences that are interrogating their own countries' troubling colonial pasts".[340]

A critic writing for Israeli newspaper Haaretz, praised Rajamouli's screenplay and his vision to make the film. They further compared RRR with Hollywood films and opined that it is truly an "entertaining film".[341] Comic Book Resources cited it as the "best blockbuster of 2022" and felt that the film "gives Western audiences the chance to experience something new, the biggest and best of Indian cinema".[342] In an article published by The Irish Times, Donald Clarke stated that RRR is "one of the year's unstoppable cultural phenomena".[343] Matt Patches of Polygon and Wes Greene of Slant Magazine named the "Naatu Naatu" musical sequence as one of the best movie scenes of 2022.[344][345]

Ritesh Babu, writing for American publication Vox, called RRR "incredible action movie with seriously troubling politics." He accused the film of casteism as well as claiming the director's is characterized by "deep casteism" that "reinforces a Brahmanical vision of the universe."[346] Filmmaker Steven Spielberg, whom Rajamouli is a big fan of, also praised the film, saying "I couldn't believe my eyes – it was like eye candy...it was extraordinary to look at and experience." Rajamouli said in response "I can almost get up from the chair and do a dance – it means a lot to me."[347] Filmmaker Daniel Kwan lauded the film, saying "While a lot of the blockbusters we're making in the states tend to have self aware, cheeky characters trapped in self-serious filmmaking, RRR was all heart-on-its-sleeve sincerity wrapped up in the most ridiculous over the top execution. So much to love."[348]