S.S. Rajamouli’s Varanasi already sounds like a massive production, but its reported global release plans could take things to another level.
The upcoming film, starring Mahesh Babu and Priyanka Chopra, is reportedly set to be dubbed in an incredible 50 different languages and released across 120 countries worldwide.
And there is another interesting detail: Rajamouli reportedly plans to do it without using AI-generated voices.
Instead, the filmmaker is said to be turning to human voice artists to dub the characters in each language, with the team reportedly considering around 1,500 different voice performers as they search for the right voices.
The reasoning comes down to more than simply translating dialogue.
Rajamouli reportedly wants each dubbed performance to capture the tone, personality and emotional range of the characters, qualities he believes real performers can deliver in a way AI cannot.
That makes the reported undertaking especially significant.
Dubbing a full movie into 50 languages would already require an enormous amount of work. Choosing to find and cast individual voice artists rather than relying on emerging AI tools only adds to the scale of the process.
But it also fits with the massive global ambitions surrounding Varanasi.
The movie, which is currently expected to arrive in April 2027, is being filmed in locations around the world and is being positioned as a major international release.
It is also being filmed entirely using digital IMAX cameras, making it only the second movie to be shot completely for IMAX and the first Indian film to do so.
Now, a planned release across 120 countries, with audiences potentially able to experience the movie in dozens of languages, shows just how seriously the team appears to be taking its international reach.
For an Indian movie hoping to connect with audiences far beyond its home market, language can be one of the biggest barriers. Creating localized versions with human performances could give viewers around the world a chance to experience the characters’ emotions in their own languages.
And considering the team may reportedly audition or evaluate around 1,500 voice artists to make that happen, this clearly is not a small undertaking.
With 50 languages, 120 countries and a commitment to human voice performers, Varanasi is making its global ambitions very clear.
Now the question is whether the movie can turn that enormous release strategy into an equally enormous worldwide audience.
Priyanka Chopra has spoken about what it was like filming in a language she doesn't speak. Click to read that story.
And to learn more about how "Varanasi" is being filmed entirely in IMAX, click HERE.
