Brahmastra is the first film in the trilogy announced by Dharma Productions. Part 1: Shiva stars Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt along with Amitabh Bachchan, Nagarjuna, and Mouni Roy in pivotal roles. Shah Rukh Khan has an important 10-minute cameo in the film. The movie excels with heavy VFX and visual spectacles which we haven’t seen in Hindi films before. While the film is desi with its ‘astraverse’ universe, Ayan has borrowed references from western films. In an interview before, Ayan had mentioned his being a huge fan of the Universes created by the West and Brahmastra is his attempt at creating a desi universe for the global audience. Hence, it is no surprise to see a Harry Potter inspiration in the film or, for that matter, The Lord of the Rings as well. Check it out.
Astra Gurukul, for starters, is a close reminder of X Men’s school where the Professor (in our case, Guru) teaches all the skills.
Amitabh Bachchan as Guru mentoring Ranbir Kapoor in the Astra Gurukul might also remind you of Dumbledore in Harry Potter mentoring Harry. Do you remember how Dumbledore would speak about finding light in the darkness? Guru ji also motivates Shiva to find his true spirit and endure his fear to become powerful. Although, unlike Dumbledore, Big B doesn’t have a long beard.
In the film, Shiva is seen getting visions of what is to happen, as if his fate is attached to those on the dark side as well. A warm and fuzzy reminder of Harry getting visions of the Dark Lord which he couldn’t understand in the beginning. So does Shiva, till he finally understands it. A similar reference could be attributed to Frodo’s journey through the Ring to Mount Doom in The Lord Of The Rings.
In another scene, we see Shiva, who is also the Agny Astra, fearing fire because he believes the same fire took his mother’s life. However, a theory indicates that, like Lilly Potter, protected Harry in the series, perhaps a similar fate was shared by Shiva in Brahmastra where his mother, Amrita, accidentally develops an unfathomable connection between Shiva and Dev (his father) while protecting her child.
Meanwhile, Mouni’s appearance obviously seems like an ode to Scarlett Witch Wanda. However, her powers and her character are truly very different.
While the resemblance is there, one can say with full assurance that it doesn’t seem like a duplication. It is simply an inspiration with a desi touch to it, which makes it a Made In India production. There are a lot of new elements added as well. Be it the astras, the universe and the idea in itself is very novel.
Brahmastra has been released in multiple languages, including English, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam.(IndiaToday)
