From Hyperbolic Actions to Poignant Emotions: Can One Trace the >Animesque< in the South Indian Cinemascape?
- ananya saha
- Jan 24
- 3 min read
This was back in 2018. I was in Stockholm for a conference when a senior, esteemed Japanese academician revealed her love for S. S. Rajamouli's Baahubali. I was taken aback when she confessed she had been to a movie theatre in Tokyo for more than ten screenings of the film! Back then, I had not been introduced to the wonders of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam (South Indian industry, for the sake of convenience) cinema. Hence, I hadn't watched Baahubali. Upon learning that, she gasped. She couldn't believe that an Indian had missed out on the experience.
Digging further, I discovered something surprising. Rajinikanth, the great 'thalaiva', has been popular among Japanese audiences for a while now. His screen presence is applauded and is considered unmatchable by several A-listers in the anime industry. (source: https://www.indiatoday.in/entertainment/story/demon-slayer-star-takahiro-sakurai-shares-his-love-for-rajinikanth-rrr-2780527-2025-09-02) I also learnt that 'the Rajamouli fever' has escalated so high in Japan that a limited-edition Baahubali manga by Akira Fukaya has been published.
Apart from Baahubali, RRR became a blockbuster release in Japan and was immensely enjoyed by the audience. Rajamouli has expressed his interest in collaborating with Japanese animation studios, which designed anime-style release posters for the two heroes in RRR.
In 2021, I married someone who happens to be a hardcore fan of South Indian cinema. Through him, I was brought up-to-date with the grandiosity of Baahubali, RRR, Kantara, Ponniyin Selvan, Mirai; the unsurpassable heroes of Pushpa, KGF; the poignance in Jaya Jaya Jaya Jaya Hey, Jalikattu, the passionate romances from Theri, Ye Maaya Chesave; and much more. In turn, I introduced him to anime beyond Dragon Ball Z and One Piece. Through these exchanges, certain commonalities in our interests were noticed, which brings me to the purpose of this piece.
Resonances between anime and the South Indian cinemascape can be detected through certain overlapping characteristics. The initial scenes of Mirai, a mythical sci-fi, have been delivered through a sequence that looks noticeably animesque. The hyperbolic action-comedy scenes in One Punch Man can be compared with Allu Arjun's exaggerated, power-packed movements in Ala Vaikunthapurumula. Baahubali's lifting of the shivalinga and carrying it to the fountain can remind someone of Eren Yaeger's efforts in Attack on Titan (S1) to plug the hole in the cyclopean wall with a boulder. The tropes of larger-than-life heroic sacrifice and feudal wars among communities are perhaps also common to both. The complicated camaraderie between Rama and Bheema in RRR can be located in the layered partnership of Naruto and Sasuke. Kantara's mythological landscape renders itself comparable to the many yokai-powered fantasy anime. Inspired by the Garuda Purana, Aparichit's delusional delivery of justice could be identified in Light Yagami from Death Note, who wanted to be a human shinigami (death angel). Basil Joseph's sensitive performances in Palthu Janwar, Falimy, have a conspicuous slice-of-life anime genre appeal. Similar to anime seasons, myriad films are now produced in instalments (Kantara, Pushpa, KGF, Ponniyin Selvan, Baahubali), as the narrative arcs require space to unravel.
Each medium has inspired dedicated fandoms. Japan practices 'media mix' for successful manga plotlines, celebrated by fans with conventions, cosplay walks, themed cafes, amusement parks, and others. South Indian cinema fans worship actors as no less than deities. Each actor has beloved nicknames bestowed by the fan communities. They carry large cut-outs when their favourite actors' films hit the theatres. Both industries invest in creating original musical numbers for individual productions, which have separate fanbases for themselves. Furthermore, the practice of dubbing is largely operational for both, as they serve to increase reach among larger audiences, especially via subscription-based OTT platforms.
I am aware that these are mostly surface-level comparisons. To develop this into a full-fledged academic idea for a paper (which I plan to do sooner than later), I need to examine specific case-studies to establish genre-aligned parallels via critical and computational methods. Till then, this can be out there as a brain teaser, for others to add to and/or take away from.
Cheers!
Stay tuned for more, @drotaku
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