Radhe Shyam

<p>In 1978 Italy, Vikramaditya aka Aditya is a young world-renowned . After having read the palm of the Prime Minister and mentioned about , he runs to . Dubbed as the ” of palmistry,” he is a disciple of the saint Paramahamsa. Aditya was a playboy, who does not believe in romantic relationships. But he instantly falls for Dr. Prerana, a gorgeous and clumsy young doctor. They meet on a train but separate thereafter. One day, Vikramaditya reads the palm of Anand Rajput, an aspiring politician, who is the only son of a well-known Indian businessman. Aditya predicts that Rajput cannot be a politician and his fait is to be the heir of his father’s business. This leads Rajput’s men to chase Adithya, which results in him having an accident. He is admitted into the hospital where Prerana works and is treated there. After recovering, Aditya proposes to Prerana to be in a flirtationship with him. Prerana, however feels insulted and leaves town but Aditya follows her all the way. She accepts his proposal and they begin to date. Prerana’s uncle, Dean Chakravarthy, however, asks her not to develop any deep feelings toward Aditya. When Aditya and Prerana are travelling on a , a stranger requests him to read the of his daughter, Tara, an aspiring . He predicts that she does not have any future in , and she should instead focus on . Amazed by Aditya’s skill, everyone in the coach ask for predictions by showing their palm but Aditya hesitantly gets down along with Prerana. However, he realises that everyone on the train is destined for immediate death. He chases the train to stop it but in vain. Later that evening, the train meets an accident, leading to several casualties. Prerana, who starts to believe in palmistry, asks Aditya to read her palm. He predicts that she would have a long life with a bright future but she faints immediately with a bleeding nose. Prerana is admitted to the hospital where her uncle, who is also a doctor, reveals that she is suffering from an incurable and may die within months. Aditya disagrees since he predicted otherwise but is expelled from the hospital. Prerana is now hopeful of her life. Her uncle, on the other hand, believes Aditya is a fraud and that only medicine can change her fate. He tests Aditya with five dead people’s palms, and Aditya deduces all of them correctly. Her uncle changes his mind and trusts Aditya’s prediction. When a cure for Prerana’s disease is found, an elated Prerana proposes to Aditya. However, he rejects her by saying he cannot love her as he does not possess a “love line” and would be leaving the country soon. Dejected, Prerana attempts suicide but comes across Aditya’s diary. She learns that Aditya was prepared to sacrifice his life to save her. Before leaving, Aditya takes Prerana to a as per her wish and the couple spends the night intimately. Prerana leaves a note in the diary that she’d choose to give up her life instead when such situation arises. She willingly meets a car accident and is admitted to the hospital. Aditya, who is in London for his mother’s dance show, reads Prerana’s note in the diary. He calls the hospital and is shocked to know the condition of Prerana. He urges Prerana to live, promising to meet her soon. When Aditya is in a dilemma about his prediction, he comes across Tara who has lost her hand in the accident. She tells Aditya that since she does not have a palm now, she can write her destiny. Aditya, who is now in hurry to meet Prerana, boards a cargo ship to Italy which is captained by a person he met in the hospital. However, the ship is caught by a storm in the sea and everyone abandons the ship on the captain’s orders. Aditya, however, is trapped on the ship alone. Overwhelmed by the force of nature, Aditya struggles to survive. He recalls his Paramahamsa’s assertion that palmistry is only 99% accurate, and there are 1% of the people script their own destiny. Determined to survive, he uses all his strength to reach a high point and fires a . The captain returns with a lifeboat. The ship sinks but the drowned Aditya remains afloat. Later, Aditya arrives at the hospital and reunites with the recovered Prerana. Aditya proposes to Prerana and she accepts. The film ends with Tara winning in archery and Aditya and Prerana’s marriage. The story was originally conceived by director . He worked with his assistant to develop the script but the idea was dropped after they failed to give it a conclusion. Kumar borrowed the storyline from Yeleti, and worked on it for eighteen years to give the story a satisfactory ending. He narrated the script to actor while he was shooting for the (2015–17). Prabhas liked the script and signed up for the project. Kumar initially wanted to set the story in the backdrop of a in India. However, the story was moved to Europe following Prabhas’ suggestion. The romantic drama takes place in 1970’s Europe. Kumar revealed that the protagonist Vikramaditya’s character is inspired by real life European palmist . The film was formally launched on 5 September 2018 in , as . was cast opposite Prabhas. Hegde called the film a “fresh and mature love story”. Veteran actress is cast in a crucial role in the film. Several titles including ( ) and were considered for the film, before finalising which symbolises love between god and goddess The film is in Telugu and Hindi languages. Principal photography commenced on 6 October 2018. Filming took place in Hyderabad, (Italy) and Georgia, after which it was suspended due to in March 2020. Filming resumed in Italy in October 2020. In December 2020, several scenes were shot at the in Hyderabad. Final schedule of the film began on 25 June 2021 in Hyderabad. While much of the film was shot on location in London, a particular scene featuring Prabhas in London was shot in India using technology. Filming was completed on 28 July 2021. The film has distinct and albums. The Hindi soundtrack is composed by and while is composing the songs in the Telugu version (in addition to , , and versions). and are providing lyrics for Hindi and Telugu soundtrack respectively. was released in cinemas on 11 March 2022. Earlier, the film was scheduled to release on 30 July 2021, however, it was postponed due to the . Later in July 2021, it was announced that the film will be released on 14 January 2022 but in early-January, UV Creations announced that film was postponed due to the variant. In February 2022, it was announced that the film is scheduled to be released on 11 March 2022. The film was released in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam languages. The film had done a pre-release business of crore from the sale of theatrical rights. The film’s satellite rights were acquired by in all languages, while the rights were acquired by . stated “The film has fetched its makers a whopping amount of Rs 200 crores just from the satellite and digital rights before it hit the screens”. The film began streaming on Prime Video in , , , and on 1 April 2022. The version started streaming on after 3 May 2022. The version is also available on . According to the makers, the film had a total worldwide gross of crore on its opening day. On the third day the film had a worldwide gross of crore making the opening weekend collection crore gross. As of 14 March 2022 , the film had a total worldwide gross of crore. Jatinder Singh of wrote that “The film is a big disaster at the box office as the film netted crore from 4 days in India and it is even difficult for the film to reach even crore”. The makers claimed that the film grossed at the in 10 days, however, reported, “the other estimates put the film’s worldwide collection so far well below the Rs 150 crore mark.” The film had a huge dip in its collections on its first Monday with crore (nett). On the website , 20% of 10 critics’ reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.6/10. stated that reviews were mixed to positive, and received praise for the performances (particularly Prabhas and Pooja Hegde), music direction and production values. stated that reviews were mixed. and reported that reviews were mixed to negative, stating that the writing and narration met with criticism. mentioned that reviews were negative. A reviewer from gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote “Prabhas aka Vikramaditya and Pooja Hegde aka Perana’s heart-touching love story showcases how love wins the destiny!” Sowmya Rajendran of gave the film a rating of 3/5 and stated “Though the lead pair is likable together, they’re not really convincing as epic lovers like Radhe-Shyam, after whom the film is titled.” Rachana Dubey of gave the film a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote “The bland chemistry between Pooja and Prabhas is a deterrent in this love story. The VFX deserves an applause, and adds to the visual quality of the film.” Janani K of gave the film a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote “Prabhas and Pooja Hegde’s Radhe Shyam has great potential in its premise. However, apart from brilliant visuals and production design, the film lacks soul”. A reviewer from gave the film a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote “Prabhas is sincere in some scenes but looks demotivated when the writing fails him. Thaman’s background music lacks novelty.” A critic gave the film a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote “Perhaps better and stronger writing could have taken Radhe Shyam to a different level.” of gave the film a rating of 2/5 and wrote “Prabhas and Pooja Hegde are saddled with a screenplay that allows them little room for manoeuvre. The end result is calamitous.” Siby Jeyya of gave the film a rating of 2/5 and wrote “The first half of the film is artistically and visually stunning. The second period is slow and complex on the surdata-face. Even though the film isn’t genuinely bad, it still felt like wasting our money and time.” of gave the film a rating of 1/5 and wrote “Prabhas-starrer expects us to swallow, hook, line and so many sinkers, and we are constantly collecting our jaws off the floor.” Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of stated “A shallow story and lacklustre screenplay make Radhe Shyam a colossal bore.” Monika Rawal Kukreja of stated “Prabhas and Pooja Hegde’s film is packed with romance, songs, VFX, grand outdoors but not a lot of logic or good writing.” Sonil Dedhia of stated “The Prabhas and Pooja Hegde starrer ends up as one of those big budget attempts that’s highly ambitious and silly at the same time.”</p>