SS Rajamouli and Atheism: Tracing his complex relationship with religion
Director SS Rajamouli got into trouble for his statement regarding atheist and Lord Hanuman in the program ‘Varanasi’. But, do you know that he has spoken about being an atheist many times before?
Filmmaker SS Rajamouli, known for incorporating Hindu epics – Ramayana and Mahabharata – into his magnum-opus films, found himself at the center of a storm over his comments about Lord Hanuman and atheistic beliefs. At the grand launch of his upcoming film ‘Varanasi’, the filmmaker confessed that he was an atheist and expressed his anger at Lord Hanuman after a technical glitch at the event.
Addressing the crowd, Rajamouli said, “This is an emotional moment for me. I don’t believe in God. My father came and said, ‘Lord Hanuman is behind me and guiding me. Is this how he cares – thinking about it, I am getting angry. My wife is also fond of Lord Hanuman. She behaves as if he is her friend and interacts with him. I got angry at that too.’
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Emotional outrage over the barriers led to organizations including Vanarsena and Cow Raksha Sangh filing a complaint against the film producer. Their complaint, addressed to the Saroor Nagar Police Inspector, accused Rajamouli of “deliberately insulting Hindu deities” and making comments “with the intention of inciting religious hatred”. His letter has urged the authorities to take legal action against SS Rajamouli.
However, this is not the first time that SS Rajamouli has spoken about his beliefs and moved away from religion. Let’s take a look at the times the filmmaker gave a glimpse of who he is as a person and it has no bearing on the kind of films he makes.
When Rajamouli said that religion is exploitation
SS Rajamouli has always talked about his inclination towards Indian folklore and mythology. At almost every stage, he has spoken openly about his love for Ramayana and Mahabharata. However, in a 2023 interview New YorkerHe explained why he considered religion a form of exploitation.
The filmmaker was born in a religious family and has spent most of his life in a joint family. He recalled, “I remember, as a young child, I was skeptical after reading stories about Hindu gods. I thought, this doesn’t seem real.”
Rajamouli also confessed that he also lived like this monk Wearing saffron clothes once in life. “Then I got caught up in the religious fervor of my family. I started reading religious texts, going on pilgrimages, wearing saffron clothes and living like an ascetic for a few years. Then I converted to Christianity, thanks to some friends. I had read BibleGoing to church, all kinds of things. Gradually, all these things somehow made me realize that religion is essentially a form of exploitation,” he explained.
when he turned away from religion
In the same 2023 interview, he explained how he was inspired by Russian-American writer and philosopher Ayn Rand. His cousin and Telugu writer Gunnam Gangaraju introduced him to Rand’s ‘The Fountainhead’ and ‘Atlas Shrugged’.
Elaborating further, he said, “I read those novels and was very inspired. I didn’t understand much about their philosophy, but I understood the basics. That’s when I slowly started moving away from religion.”
Despite internal conflict, Rajamouli never lost his love and respect for the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. He said, “Even at that time, my love for stories like the Mahabharata or the Ramayana never diminished. I began to move away from the religious aspects of those texts, but what stayed with me was the complexity and greatness of their drama and storytelling.”
He could not pray even when his wife was in critical condition.
In the Netflix documentary ‘Modern Masters: SS Rajamouli’, released in 2024, he confessed that even when his wife Rama Rajamouli was seriously injured, he could not bring himself to pray to God.
Describing the horrific incident, the ‘RRR’ director told how during the shooting of Ram Charan’s ‘Magadheera’, his wife Rama got injured in a road accident and was bleeding profusely. The accident occurred in a remote location, limiting their chances of getting quick help.
“After the accident, I became unconscious and started crying. My wife was bleeding profusely and her lower back was paralyzed due to the shock,” he said.
“The nearest hospital was 60 km away. I was absolutely terrified. One thought came to my mind, ‘Am I praying to God to help me?’ But I didn’t do that. I just kept crying hysterically and calling doctors and doing whatever needed to be done,” he said.
When he drew parallels between Hinduism and Hinduism
In 2022, Rajamouli was in Los Angeles to promote ‘RRR’, where he talked about Hinduism as a religion and as a religion and what he identifies with.
At the Beyond Fest Q&A session, Rajamouli said, “A lot of people think that Hinduism is a religion, it is in the current context. But Hinduism existed before Hinduism. It is a way of life, it is a philosophy. If you take religion, I am not even a Hindu, but if you take religion, I am completely Hindu. What I am portraying in the film is actually a way of life that has existed for many centuries and eras.”
Referring to a scene in ‘RRR’ where Ram Charan’s character recites a Bhagavad Gita shloka and turns into a saintly person, he shared his view: “You can look at it as something that Lord Krishna told Arjuna, so it is a Hinduism shloka, but if you look at the meaning of it, it is what has been taught to Indians, no matter what caste they belong to and where they are born.”
Describing himself as a follower of Hinduism, he said, “It’s about how to look at life and not looking at the consequences of what you do. That’s what Hinduism says. So, I’m a follower of Hinduism.”
Choosing Karma Yoga as a lifestyle
Expanding on his spiritual philosophy in the same documentary, Rajamouli also confessed to practicing Karma Yoga. He said, “I think, at some point of time, I chose Karma Yoga as my lifestyle. My work is my God. I have a lot of respect for cinema.”
Despite coming from a spiritual family, Rajamouli’s faith has never been in conflict with the art he believes in. And be it ‘RRR’ or ‘Baahubali’ or ‘Varanasi’, it is his work that speaks for Rajamouli, not his views on faith and religion.
