Tamannaah Bhatia, who played Avantika in SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali franchise, has finally addressed the criticism surrounding her much-discussed romantic scene with Prabhas in Baahubali: The Beginning (2015).
The sequence, which shows Prabhas’ character Shiva romancing Avantika, had drawn flak for allegedly objectifying the warrior character through camera angles and the hero’s advances.
In an interview with The Lallantop, Tamannaah dismissed the negative interpretation. “Those who can’t control you, they use a technique to do that — shame and guilt. When they make you feel ashamed, they gain control over you,” she said, adding that sexuality on screen should not be vilified.
“We’re so repressed. We look at the purest of things with such a pathetic gaze… People make you feel wrong, but this is the most basic of processes,” she stated.
‘Not Objectification, But Avantika’s Rediscovery’
Tamannaah defended Rajamouli’s vision for the scene, explaining how the filmmaker intended to portray Avantika’s emotional journey.
“When Rajamouli sir was explaining that entire sequence to me, he said she’s that divine feminine being who’s wounded… She holds boundaries, but there’s a young man who’s merely trying to woo her to make her see how beautiful she is,” she said.
Rejecting the harsher interpretations, Tamannaah added, “A filmmaker wants to show you something beautiful. But you see something else only. I don’t think I can take the burden of that. As a creative person, I don’t think it was ‘the rape of Avantika.’ I think it was Avantika finding herself through a young man who’s wooing her.”
On Training and Shooting for Baahubali
Tamannaah also recalled the physically demanding nature of her role. “I got the least time for training… One day they just got me to the set and said, ‘Now, you do sword fighting.’ I had never even held a sword before. I remember going to Prabhas and asking him how to do it. He actually taught me the technique, and I practised in the middle of the night,” she said.
Did She Know Why Katappa Killed Baahubali?
When asked about the franchise’s biggest mystery — “Why did Katappa kill Baahubali?” — Tamannaah revealed she was initially as clueless as the audience.
“Actually, I didn’t know it for some time because I hadn’t shot for the second part till then. So I had no clue. But after some time, somebody told me. People used to keep asking me, but I didn’t disclose it,” she admitted, adding that her role in Baahubali: The Conclusion was included later due to the massive success of the first film.
