Quotes from S. S. Rajamouli

I wanted to complete 'Maryada Ramanna' in a short time, but it took me almost a year, and now 'Eega' took double the time, but in the end, it was worth it.

Indian epics are full of violence, and such stories have shaped India. As filmmakers, I don't think anyone in India would tone down violence, keeping in mind the censorship.

I am a filmmaker. My job is to make films. When something excites you - a story or characterisation - you immediately forget about everything else. You only think how to make a movie out of it. The economics come only later. You shouldn't let money dictate the kind of films you should make.

To make a film with Rajinikanth will be a dream come true for any director, and I'm not an exception. But I always believe that it's the story that should drive you. If I come up with something like that, and if the story inspires me, I would be happy to work with him.

I am always in self-doubt... every moment of my filmmaking. I am supremely confident when the story is being written and everything is in our head. But the moment we get into the filmmaking, I start doubting myself - from the camera angle to the re-recording to getting the actors to do their shots.

I have huge respect for Sridevi ji as a flag-bearer of the southern film industries in Mumbai for many years. I wish her all the best. And I wish 'Mom' a big success, as the trailer looks very intriguing and promising.

I shoot a scene, edit it, and then, two days later, I doubt whether or not it has turned out right. I reshoot a small part of it, go back to the first edit of it, and do all sorts of things.

Without my family, I'm nothing. They kept me in the right place. I believe that I'm the luckiest person in the country when I'm with them.

As a film enthusiast and a lover of stories, I have read biblical stories and I've seen biblical films with the same zeal as I have read and seen my own country's stories. Most of the time, the creator doesn't know where he gets his inspiration from.

I don't believe in luck. Everything is our doing or undoing. If something doesn't come out right, then as a director, you have to take full responsibility. You can't just say, 'No, I gave this job to the music supervisor. They promised me they would do it, and they didn't do it.' You can't blame anyone else.

In childhood, we used to read stories from the Arabian Nights. Why were we so interested when it happened somewhere in Arabia, in a different culture? Until now, we hadn't gone to the Hindi audience with a good story.

Creating is one thing; telling the story is one thing. I see myself more as a storyteller than a story creator.

To be very frank, I never got very good offers from Hindi cinema until 'Eega.' Now, I'm flooded with offers.

No director can ever deliver what's on his or her mind totally, but 'Baahubali-2' is the closest I can get in executing what I had envisaged onto the celluloid.

I keep my options open about my next story, there will always be those vague discussions at home.

If we make films only for the frontbenchers, we can't make money. Hence, we have to make it for a majority audience. As my films are mass films, I deal with emotions in raw form - they are not subtle. I don't mind being branded. That does not mean I like only those kinds of films.

People like to see Ravi Teja as a vibrant, massy character. We needed to do something more. So I gave him the extra flavour of the cop character and high emotions. And Ravi did a good job.

Audiences are always open to an interesting story.

I really want to complete films in a shorter duration, but somehow it does not seem to happen.