Baba poster

Baba

  • 15 Aug 2002
  • 2h 59m
  • Action, Drama, Fantasy
2.7/5
2K+ users
Baba is a 2002 Indian Tamil language supernatural political thriller film written and produced by Rajinikanth under his banner Lotus International and directed by Suresh Krishna. With Rajinikanth in the lead role, the film's cast included Manisha Koirala, Vijayakumar, M. N. Nambiar, Goundamani, Sujatha, Karunas, Ashish Vidyarthi, Amrish Puri, Sayaji Shinde and Riyaz Khan.

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Details

  • Status Released
  • Release date 15 Aug 2002
  • Running time 2h 59m
  • Genres Action, Drama, Fantasy

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Rajinikanth, Manisha Koirala, M. N. Nambiar, Ashish Vidyarthi, Sujatha, Goundamani, Riyaz Khan, Vijayakumar, Karunas
Action, Drama, Fantasy

The film opens with the birth of Baba (Rajinikanth), who is the reincarnation of a saint that was a devotee of Mahavatar Babaji. Baba grows up as a atheist and hot-blooded man, but becomes a good samaritan with his thoughts and actions. His lifestyle includes consuming alcohol, smoking beedi, and chewing tobacco. His mother (Sujatha) and maternal uncle (M. N. Nambiar), for whom Baba has great respect and love, are ardent devotees of Mahavatar Babaji. Chamundeswari (Manisha Koirala) stays in the neighbourhood of Baba's residence which often quarrels with Baba but eventually falls in love with his style and attitude.

Baba involves in a physical feud with the son (Riyaz Khan) of the state Deputy chief minister Ippo Ramaswamy (Ashish Vidyarthi) for the former had interfered with the sale of land by his neighbour. Ramasamy is the current leader of a party in the ruling coalition. Ramaswamy demolishes Baba's colony in retaliation for hurting his son. When Baba is about to confront Ramaswamy, Baba's mother urges him to maintain calm and not meet Ramaswamy. Baba decides to work hard to rebuild the colony and joins as a labourer in his neighbour's shop and earns money. Chamundeswari's mother, upon seeing this, threatens Chamundeswari with homicide if she does not heed to her words of marrying someone else. Chamundeswari is left with no choice and tells Baba that she is not willing to marry a daily labourer. Then Baba realizes that so far, he has been only answerable for his mother. And if he gets married, then he has to live for his wife and kids and would become answerable to them. He feels that Prema (love) is Maya (illusion) and immediately breaks up with her.

Later, a dishevelled sadhu, Divyananda Bharathi, approaches him and tell him that it is time for enlightenment. Baba is taken to the Himalayas, where he meets Mahavatar Babaji, who tests him by granting seven mantras (wishes; five in the remastered version) to Baba. He can use these mantras anytime he likes; but unbeknownst to him, if he happened to use the mantras for his own personal gains, the karma of rebirth is bound to follow him forever. Baba is sent back to Chennai but baffled, he decides to test one of the mantras by wishing a kite to come and fall in his hand. He waits for a few seconds and decides that it was all his illusion, but the kite follows him to his house and falls on his hand. He feels that it is coincidental and tries the second mantra on a different kite to fall on his lap. He goes into his house and closes all the possible entries into the house. But the kite makes its way and falls on his lap. In the meantime, Chamundeeswari learns of Baba's origins from his mother that he is a reincarnation of a saint who had disobeyed Babaji and that he himself does not know so and tries to patch up with him. Baba retorts by saying that he no longer loves her, leaving her heartbroken.

Despite the mantras coming true, Baba remains skeptical and tests the other two mantras for trivial things. His uncle scolds him for his pointless skepticism in spite of the truth and develops chest pain then. While on his death-bed, his uncle tells Baba to use a mantra to renovate his surroundings that will finally instill his belief in Babaji, and he dies. As predicted, the use of the fifth mantra causes the government officials to renovate Baba's area. Baba learns the truth and ends his tryst with alcohol, and reforms himself spiritually. He reserves the remaining two mantras for his mother. However, he uses the penultimate mantra to revive a newlywed Japanese neighbour fighting for his life due to food poisoning. Meanwhile, Ramaswamy learns about the mantras from Baba's two-timing companion.

Purushottaman, the current chief minister of Tamil Nadu, wants to become the permanent CM of the state using Baba's boons, which Baba refuses. He threatens Baba's mother and also tries to kill him, but fails. Baba's friends Annamalai, Perusu, Samundi, Kathirika urge him to use the final wish to become the permanent CM himself as the state would be great under him. But Baba uses the last wish on Kanthan, an old honest party member of Ramasamy, to become the next CM with a single greater majority. Then, by the wish, Ramasamy's paralysed father (the first leader of the party) wants to prove that the older generation is better as his son is reckless. The elections come, and Kanthan becomes CM. Ramaswamy calls a tantric Guruji, to foil Baba's magical powers. Guruji asks Ramaswamy and Purushottaman to bring the chain in Baba's neck and his backbone to nullify the effects of the mantras. A fight ensues, with Baba's mother getting mortally wounded by Ramaswamy and Baba himself knocked unconscious by the henchmen. They try to kill him by burning him in a pyre. Their attempts fail when a temple elephant puts out the fire, with Baba regaining consciousness and battering the villains badly. When Baba is about to kill Ramaswamy and Purushottaman, Divyananda Bharathi stops him. Baba's dying mother advises Baba to leave the world and ascend to the Himalayas and dies in his arms. Baba decides to live under Babaji's tutelage since he now disdains living in the materialistic world without his mother.

As Baba is just about to ascend to the Himalayas, the new chief minister Kandhan is assassinated by Ippo Ramasamy's son. In a change of mind, Baba turns back to remain in Tamil Nadu, to the cheer of the crowds that were hopeful that he leads the state.

In the re-edited 2022 re-release, Baba ascends to the Himalayas and meets Mahavatar Babaji, who tells him he had not served his mother, a virtue even more important than helping others. Baba is told than he would be reincarnated once again to the same mother, after which he will be allowed to return to the Himalayas.

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