ENGIndian-made RRR is one of the best movies of 2022. An inside story of how it was filmed in Ukraine

RRR is the most expensive film in the history of Indian cinema, one of the highest-grossing Indian movies, and a Netflix global hit. The film’s key scenes were shot in Kyiv, including at the Mariinskyi Palace. Yaroslav Druziuk, The Village Editor-in-Chief, spoke to Anna Palenchuk (435 Films) about the filming process in Ukraine.

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Making RRR in Ukraine

RRR’s filming began in 2018 but had to be repeatedly suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The fact that the film had so many complex action scenes further affected the filming process: for instance, it took 32 days to shoot the film’s introductory scene alone.

After the film crew resumed their work in 2021, they faced the challenging task of filming key scenes involving the film’s antagonists, played by Ray Stevenson and Alison Doody. However, the new strain of coronavirus meant that the British and Irish actors could not enter India, and the Indian film crew could not enter the European Union or the UK. The crew considered several other countries where they could shoot those scenes, finally settling on Ukraine.

That was how 435 Films, a Ukrainian production company, joined the filming process. Anna Palenchuk, the company’s founder, said that her team already had experience working with seven other Indian films shot in Ukraine and has worked with one of India’s top location scouts, Ramji Nataradjan.

“This is almost a Hollywood-level production: an enormous crew, high professional standards. We have spent two months making sure that everything was at a standard that was expected of us,” Palenchuk said about her experience working on RRR.

A local team of around 200 film industry professionals joined the filming process in Kyiv; 142 Indian cast and crew members arrived in Ukraine on two chartered flights. “At our busiest, we had up to 800 people on set; there were 450 extras involved in crowd scenes,” Palenchuk recalled.

Filing the Mariinskyi Palace scene

Mariinskyi Palace was the setting for one of RRR’s crucial and most difficult scenes. The scene, almost five minutes long, contains a dance performance and captures the moment when two of the film’s protagonists meet; it was filmed across several locations. Mariinskyi Palace thus even ended up on one of the RRR posters.

Anna Palenchuk said that at first there was no plan to shoot near Mariinskyi Palace, but the film’s director, S. S. Rajamouli, suggested it as a location. “Of course they could build a set like that in India,” Palenchuk said. “But when Mr Rajamouli saw Mariinskyi Palace, he said that it was exactly the building he imagined as a setting for that scene.”

“At first everyone told us it was impossible,” Palenchuk recalled when recounting the process of negotiating access to Mariinskyi Palace. Built in the 18th century, the palace is situated near the Verkhovna Rada [the Ukrainian parliament] and is the official Presidential residence. It was reopened in 2018 following an extensive renovation and has hosted guided tours since 2020. But in order to use it as a film set, the film’s producers had to obtain a special permit; the matter was complicated by the fact that the film crew had to be able to access the location for a long period of time.

Palenchuk said that they were eventually able to rent Mariinskyi Palace for almost two weeks through direct contact with the Office of the President of Ukraine: “The president is very supportive of the development of the film industry in Ukraine; it was also an important gesture with regard to Ukraine’s cooperation with India, a country that is very important for us both politically and economically, and in terms of tourism opportunities.” She added that the reputation of S. S. Rajamouli was an important factor, too: “ I explained who was making the film, that it was being made by the most famous Indian director, practically an Indian Steven Spielberg.”

The film crew spent about 10 days shooting in Mariinskyi Palace. Palenchuk said that much of that time was spent building the set: “We had to do a lot there, building the set to fill out the background. For example, we built stairs and gazebos, and installed special lanterns.” She added: “This is the President’s residence and we knew that he could at any moment decide to hold a meeting or a reception there. That was quite scary, so I was constantly in touch with the State Protocol and Ceremonials Service about the President’s and the First Lady’s schedules: I begged them not to arrange any unplanned meetings. Simply because we wouldn’t have been able to dismantle the set in a matter of hours.”

Ten vintage cars were also used on set. “During most of the time we were filming near Mariinskyi Palace, there were these ten exquisite cars in the background,” Palenchuk said. “Everyone knows that it costs ridiculous money [to rent luxury retro cars]. We told the producers several times that we could avoid spending that money and optimise expenses. But they told me, ‘Ania, that’s how we make movies. What if we suddenly decide to focus on the background and we need those cars there?’”

The main focus of the scene filmed at Mariinskyi Palace was a choreographed dance piece involving a large number of people. A choreographer from India was in charge of the overall choreography, but two Ukrainian choreographers, Olena Shoptenko and Max Leonov, were responsible for working with Ukrainian extras involved in the scene.

Aside from Mariinskyi Palace, RRR was filmed at several additional locations in Ukraine, including the Mezhyhiria park (the former residence of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, which was turned into a public park after Yanukovuch fled Ukraine in 2014 in the wake of Revolution of Dignity) and Victoria Film Studios near Kyiv. A set built at the film studio replicated the one in India and allowed the crew to finish filming scenes involving Ray Stevenson which could not be completed in India. “The film wouldn’t have made sense without those scenes. They were the reason the film crew came to Ukraine,” Palenchuk said.

“This is a film to watch on a large screen”

Anna Palenchuk said that working on the RRR set was a dream come true for her: “It was my dream as a producer. I don’t even mean the budget, but just working on a production of that level. I’m proud that we were part of a project like that.”

She added that RRR’s commercial success was important not just for the Indian film industry but for the film industry globally: “The pandemic raised many questions regarding how the film industry and the experience of going to the movies would change. But RRR is a film that definitely has to be seen on the largest screen possible; its visual effects are flawlessly spectacular. RRR proves that people will still go to the cinema if the film is worth it.”

Russia’s full-scale invasion may have suspended all film-making in Ukraine and has made Ukraine an unviable location for foreign film-makers, but Palenchuk remains hopeful: “If it wasn’t for the war, I think we would have already been filming another Indian movie in Ukraine. S. S. Rajamouli has said that he will certainly be back. I think after the war is over we will invite Mr Rajamouli to Ukraine through the Indian Embassy in order to view the film on a big screen.”

Palenchuk added that movie-inspired tourism, popular in India, is an important factor for Ukraine: many film lovers from India travel to visit the locations where popular movies were filmed. “The people of India tend to travel a lot, they can afford to travel. And movie-inspired tourism is very popular there. I’m sure that when the war is over, our partners will do everything they can to allow Indian filmmakers to resume shooting in Ukraine, to enable this influx of tourism,” Palenchuk said. “We were even joking that we should set up a kiosk near Mariinskyi Palace and sell souvenirs.”

Photos: 435 Films