Mahavatar Narasimha Review: Packed With Spine-Chilling Thrills

By Bollyy 26 Jul 2025 in Reviews

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By Shanti Swaroop Tripathi

Rating: 3.5 Stars
Producers: Kleem Productions and Hombale Films
Writers: Jayapurna Das, Ashwin Kumar, Rudra Pratap Ghosh
Director: Ashwin Kumar
Voice Cast: Aditya Raj Sharma, Haripriya Matta, Sanket Jaiswal, Priyanka Bhandari, Vasundhara Bose, Harjeet Walia, Sanchit Vartak, Sanvari Yagnik, Dinesh Verma, Uplaksh Kochar, Akshay Joshi, Dinesh Verma, Harish Moily, Ajay Singhal, Sankalp Jaiswal, Karan Trivedi, Abhishek Sharma, Dixon Shah, Shahid Zafar, Rakesh Soni, Ayushi Anand, Anshul Sharma
Duration: 2 hours 21 minutes

We are living in an era dominated by technology, where the youth are increasingly influenced by Western civilization and culture, often distancing themselves from Indian traditions, values, and mythology. To revive interest in India’s spiritual heritage and reconnect today’s generation with sacred scriptures and ancient wisdom, filmmaker Ashwin Kumar has laid the foundation of the Mahavatar Cinematic Universe. In collaboration with his team of animators, he aims to present a seven-film saga based on the ten avatars of Lord Vishnu. The first in this series is the animated feature Mahavatar Narasimha, which released in theatres on July 25 under his company Kleem Productions.

This animated film tells the compelling story of Lord Vishnu’s avatars Varaha and Narasimha, and the tale of the young Vishnu devotee Prahlad—the five-year-old son of the demon Hiranyakashipu—who is remembered as one of the greatest devotees of Lord Vishnu. Unafraid and unwavering, Prahlad continues to endure his father’s tyranny while staying firmly rooted in his faith.

Story

The film begins with sage Kashyapa performing evening prayers when his thirteenth wife, Diti, expresses her desire to conceive. Kashyapa warns her that, according to the Vedas and Puranas, it is inauspicious to engage in intercourse during twilight, as negative and demonic energies wander at this time and can influence the fetus. Despite his warnings, he eventually gives in. The next morning, Kashyapa is furious and tells Diti that due to her insistence, she will give birth to two powerful demons—Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu—who will terrorize the world.

Under the guidance of Guru Shukracharya, the two demons are trained in powerful knowledge and become even more dangerous. They are told that Lord Vishnu is their greatest enemy, prompting them to seek him out and destroy him. As they begin to spread terror both in heaven and on Earth, killing devotees of Vishnu, Hiranyaksha devises a plan to force Lord Vishnu to appear—by submerging the Earth into the ocean.

To save the Earth, Vishnu takes the Varaha (boar) avatar and kills Hiranyaksha. Enraged by his brother’s death, Hiranyakashipu goes into deep meditation to seek a boon from Lord Brahma. Meanwhile, his wife, pregnant with Prahlad, becomes immersed in Vishnu devotion. Hiranyakashipu is eventually granted a boon that he cannot be killed by man or beast, day or night, inside or outside, on land, water, or in the sky.

He becomes king of the demons, and Prahlad is born. While Hiranyakashipu despises Lord Vishnu, Prahlad grows up as his ardent devotee. This leads to constant clashes between father and son. Hiranyakashipu tries multiple times to kill Prahlad, only to fail each time. Finally, Lord Vishnu appears in his Narasimha (half-man, half-lion) form and slays Hiranyakashipu—fulfilling the divine prophecy.

Review

Director Ashwin Kumar has successfully used animation to bring Indian mythology and the fierce avatars of Lord Vishnu to life in an engaging and visually powerful manner. The script, penned by Jayapurna Das, Ashwin Kumar, and Rudra Pratap Ghosh, is gripping from beginning to end, although the post-interval portion is especially intense and impactful. The storyline has been preserved without distortion, with only visual enhancements to make it more appealing and cinematic.

The film evokes a deep sense of devotion while also exploring strong emotional currents. The portrayal of Lord Vishnu’s avatars—especially Narasimha—is a standout. His fierce form, his roar, and his ultimate appearance are enough to give viewers goosebumps.

Interestingly, the film does not rely on religious preaching but rather emphasizes the greatness of devotion through narrative events like the Holika Dahan festival. The message that emerges is the unmatched power of a true devotee.

Given the presence of demons and divine wrath, the film naturally contains intense action and violence. These sequences are the heart of the film, and the filmmakers have executed them exceptionally well using animation. The climax—Narasimha’s arrival and the slaying of Hiranyakashipu—stands out for its masterful animation and VFX. It’s so impressive that it could serve as a lesson to Nitesh Tiwari, director of the upcoming Ramayana film.

According to Ashwin Kumar, the animation was created in Maya, effects in Houdini, rendered in Blender, and composited in Nuke—with no AI tools used.

The music by composer Sam CS adds a divine and immersive feel. The voice acting by the cast is outstanding. Even though audiences may be familiar with Prahlad’s story, they will still find themselves drawn to this version due to the way it is presented—rich in emotion, power, and visual grandeur.

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