Prabhas is back as Bhairava, with filming under way on the sequel to Kalki 2898 AD and the makers releasing new behind-the-scenes footage of the actor in costume. Prabhas joined the shoot around his 47th birthday on 23 October, when Vyjayanthi Movies shared a 32-second video that opens with the words ‘Bhairava is back’. The clip shows the actor arriving on a blue-screen set in his character’s armour before director Nag Ashwin calls action.
Prabhas back on the Kalki sets
The video keeps much of the actor’s look under wraps, showing him first in silhouette on an elevated structure and then in closer shots with long hair and a beard. He gets into Bujji, the vehicle from the first film, as the crew prepares the set around him. Text on screen reads ‘Happy Birthday Bhairava’ before the clip ends. The footage was posted on the film’s official account with a birthday message calling Prabhas the superhero of Indian cinema.
Prabhas had not yet joined the sequel when filming began. Nag Ashwin had already shot portions with Amitabh Bachchan and Kamal Haasan while waiting for his availability, and the birthday video marked his return to the production. The director hopes to complete principal photography by mid-2027, with a theatrical release tentatively expected in 2028.
The first film built a following for Bhairava, whose humour and one-liners made the character a favourite with fans. The birthday video gives away nothing about the plot or the next mission for Bhairava, and the makers have kept the rest of the production under wraps while filming continues. For audiences invested in that world, the sight of filming in progress is the news that matters.
Prabhas and the returning cast
Bachchan and Haasan have returned to the sets in the roles they played in the first film, Ashwatthama and Supreme Yaskin. Deepika Padukone, who played SUM-80, also known as Sumathi, in the first film, has left the sequel. Nag Ashwin said in September that no new characters are being added, and the makers have not said who will take over her part.
The first film, released on 27 June 2024, cast Prabhas in a dual role as the bounty hunter Bhairava and the warrior Karna, alongside Bachchan, Haasan and Padukone. It is set in a dystopian future where Supreme Yaskin controls essential resources while the rest of humanity struggles, and a settlement called Shambhala waits for a saviour. The film ends with the reveal that Bhairava is the reincarnation of Karna, and the sequel picks up from that point. Kalki 2898 AD won two National Film Awards this year.
Kalki 2898 AD was directed by Nag Ashwin and produced by Vyjayanthi Movies, with a cast that brought together Bachchan, Haasan, Prabhas and Padukone in one film. The production built a large dystopian world on screen, with Yaskin’s Complex holding the resources and the settlement of Shambhala resisting his rule. An animated miniseries, Bujji and Bhairava, followed on Amazon Prime Video in 2024, keeping the character in front of audiences between films.
What the sequel picks up
The birthday also brought news from the rest of Prabhas’s slate. Hanu Raghavapudi’s Fauzi, a period action drama in which he plays a soldier under the British regime, shared a new poster, although its planned 3 December 2026 release has been postponed. The actor’s other films in progress include Salaar: Part 2 and Spirit, the Sandeep Reddy Vanga film now dated for 29 October 2027. Salaar: Part 2 reunites him with director Prashanth Neel, who is expected to begin pre-production on the sequel after completing Dragon.
Prabhas was last seen on screen in The RajaSaab, the horror comedy directed by Maruthi that opened on 9 January 2026. His older work also returned to theatres this year, with Baahubali: The Epic, a remastered single film combining both Baahubali parts, reaching cinemas on 31 October 2025. With the Kalki sequel now filming, Bhairava is the character he returns to first, and the birthday footage was the first public sign of that return.