#teambaahubali

“Ah,” Sivagami says, and really, it is all one can say at dawn, the coronation day of one’s youngest son, when one is on one’s way to the temple tank for a ritual bath. Sivagami is the mother of lions, of stallions, of an Emperor-to-be and his Commander in Chief, but morning person she is not.

“Yes,” she says, and counts it a success, almost on par with that time she convinced her Baahu to wear his turban a full three hours. “Now If you will excuse me -- ” Sivagami pauses, attempting to remember his name.

“Kumar!” Sivagami hears from somewhere in front of her and, like the very image of the Mother Goddess Devasena steps from behind the Kuntalan Crown Prince having finished her own ritual bath. She is resplendent in that moment to Sivagami’s eyes even while wearing nothing more than her soaking silk bathing shift, her long, water-ladden hair down and around her shoulders. Sivagami, clad in her sari and jewels until she might disrobe in the privacy of the tank, would be horrified at Devasena’s lack of restraint had she not been overfull with gratitude for the rescue.

Still, something about the address niggles at the back of her mind, she manages to frown. Kumar is a common name, almost too common for royalty, even in a place like Kuntala which seems to pride itself in being so removed from royal ways. Strangely, Crown Prince Kumar seems to agree, if his loud clearing of the throat and widened eyes are any indication. But then, Sivagami thinks, perhaps he is coming down with an illness -- she tries to subtly lean back in case.

Devasena, calmly surveying both brother and mother in law while dripping on the path, only rolls her eyes.

“Kumara-varma, then, if you are so sure.” It is extraordinary, Sivagami thinks, that Devasena can command such authority even while wearing a single, sopping piece of cloth. Even without the sturdy silks and jewels of the station she still manages to stand like an Empress.

Or perhaps, Sivagami amends ruefully, Devasena simply stands like a confident woman, whose existence is so rare as to be confused with royal sovereignty. It is not difficult to imagine Devasena still standing so, even if she were stripped of all titles and left to fend for herself amongst the demons of the jungle.  

Kumaravarma, Crown Prince of Kuntala, looks upon the same sight and grins. “Thank you, my beloved sister-in-law, I am sure! I was just speaking to the Queen Mother, whose presence I seem to have been graced with by the Great God himself as I took my morning walk!”

Devasena’s lips purse with what Sivagami observes to be amusement, yes, but some fondness as well. “That is indeed a great blessing for you both,” she says, voice heavy with an irony that still seems to float over her brother in law’s head. “I myself have found, in the days since I arrived in Mahishmati, that my day is never complete without seeing my beloved new mother at least once.”

“How fortunate,” Kumaravarma crows with delight, “since I have heard that you stayed with the Queen Mother before your second wedding ceremony!”

Sivagami, unsure of what her place is in this conversation, and noting the ever rising sun, makes eye contact with Devasena and raises an eyebrow. Devasena smiles, her right hand deftly gathering her hair over a shoulder and then wringing it, as if she were a washerwoman. Sivagami is sure that palace has people to do such things.

“My dear brother in law,” Devasena begins again, “it is indeed fortunate, as all things have been since my husband arrived in Kuntala. Now, will you accompany me back to my chambers so that I might have time enough to wear the royal jewels? I would appreciate your insight as to my new duties while we walk, as well.”

For a moment, Kumaravarma seems taken back, but then Sivagami relies that he is only glad, ecstatic even to offer advice. “Of course,” he stutters, offering Devasena his left arm.

“I hope to have the honor of being in your august presence once more, Queen Mother,” he says as they leave, bowing so low that his nose seems to touch his knees. Devasena at his side deigns to lower her chin in what, given her negligible attire, Sivagami will accept as a courtesy. The increased light reveals that Kumaravarma wears four necklaces, each with a different ostentatious cut to the embedded jewel.

Sivagami takes a step forward, and then another, and proceeds towards the temple tank of the Great God. It would be a great crime, she reminds herself, to pollute her body with liquor on such a sacred occasion.  

How do I join?

Easy! Just go to the “Sign Up/Message” button at the top of the page, and send in an ask listing the name you’d like to be called and the Team you’d prefer to be in (if you have no preference, let us know and we’ll randomly assign one to you)! It’s as easy as that!

Wait, what’s a team?

This community has three teams: Kuntala, Mahishmati, and Ambuli, all named after locations in the series. Each team has its own members-only Tumblr page, and being part of a team is important in how points are tallied up (See later in the FAQ). We will try to make sure that all the teams are equal in number before we start.

Does it matter what team I’m part of?

Truthfully, not really. You aren’t restricted to write only about the characters from the location whose team you’re named after (ie, Team Kuntala is welcome to write about say, Sanga and company; Team Mahishmati can absolutely write about Devasena’s ancestors, etc.). Mostly your team is a bunch of your friends who you get to plan and have fun with, and who you get to engage in good-natured ribbing and rivalry with your so-called opponents.

Opponents?

Oh yes. So every week, there will be a set of challenges posted, and a team will get points for every submission that qualifies! The team with the highest number of points at the end of the competition (After 12 weeks) will be the winner!!

But I can’t write fic/create art/whatever else the challenge might include!

That is why there will always be four challenges: one will be vaguely fic-related, one graphic/gif-related, one will be meta-related, and one will be fandom-related. Each team gets 2 points for every  fic or artwork (there can be more than one), and 1 point for every submission to the Fandom or Meta category.

What if a team does something for every category?

If a team has a separate submission for the Fic, Art, Meta, and Fandom categories for the same week—i.e., four different contributions to the fandom—that is called a Hat Trick. That means you get double points for your submissions, or (2+ 2+ 1+ 1) x 2 = 12 points total!

Does one person have to do a Hat Trick alone to count?

No! Hat Tricks can be done by putting together the contributions of different members of a team (ie, Person A does Fic and a Fandom contribution, Person B does an Art contribution, and Person C does a Meta contribution--put together, that will count as a Hat Trick). Which is why sometimes it helps to talk things over with your team, to see who is creating what for a given challenge.

Can we create multiple Hat Tricks for a single week?

Yes, as long as there are 4 individual submissions for each Hat Trick. That is, you can’t use the same fic for two different Hat Trick groups - but as long as you have an all-new set of four contributions that qualify, that will be another Hat Tricks and another 12 points to add to your team’s tally. 

Where do I post my material?

Anywhere you want! Just tag with “team baahubali”. The main tumblr will have a place to list your submissions. 

How long will the competition last?

Twelve weeks total. It will start once we have enough people to have equal teams.

What do I need to follow?

The main teambaahubali Tumblr, and your respective team’s tumblr. Everything else is up to you!

I have another pressing question you haven’t answered yet.

For some odd reason, (Rana Daggubati at his evil best) this scene, amongst many other scenes in the franchise, stayed with me for a long, long time after I watched the movie for the first time. Now, since we have a chance of splitting hairs of the scenes that stayed with us the most, so, here goes:

One of the most repetitive lines that all of us have put a lot of emphasis on, is the grandeur of both the Baahubali movies, (for me, personally, the second one made a better impact than the first). Every single frame in the film is a spectacle, however subtle, and hence each one of them deserves a meta of its own, when it comes to cinematography. However, I’m derailing, so yeah, this is my version of hair-splitting of this particular scene. 

What we see here is an exasperated Bhallaladeva venting himself out in front of the Maahishmati crown, which is an object, he has so dearly coveted all his life. And yet, now that it is within his tangible reach, it still stays far away from him in spirit. 

Cinematographer K.K.Senthil Kumar, works his mojo excellently here, as he concentrates his camera on two focal points: The Antagonist, (though he would have done well to not torment us with Rana’s glossy, perfectly-crafted-Adonis-like-chest) and the object of his obsession (because, Bhalla’s desire for the crown is more of an obsession than an actual desire) . Between these as well, we see a magnified focus on the crown, in furtherance to the storyline, because, well... how else, would you show a megalomaniac other than in conjunction with his reason for seeking power. 

The camera first focusses on the crown, as it brings Rana’s face into a blurry focus. A noteworthy point here: Throughout the scene, wherever the camera focusses on the actor, it makes a special note of his eyes, while shifting between the crown and Bhallaladeva. 

Point 2: The colour scheme of the scene: Colouring is always a crucial point in films and scenes like these. Overdone, it makes it too gaudy for the viewer to watch, underdone, and the whole scene becomes bland. Set designers here, have emphasised on two main colours, red, and gold. While the red focusses on royalty, powerplay, and of course, also stands as an allusion to the bloodshed that is to follow, the gold further accentuates the royalty aspect of the scene. 

The lighting isn’t very bright, or gaudy either. Set designer Sabu Cyril, keeps it subtle, yet ferocious, here again, the red plays a pivotal part in subduing the brightness brought about by the golden hues, thus keeping the ambience perfect for a bone-chilling premise.

Point 3: The camera angles: K.K. Senthil Kumar scores yet another brownie point for the perfect assemblage, and timing of the camera angles in this scene. He literally takes the cake, when he focuses the camera solely on Bhallaladeva’s hand on the spikes of the crown (which in itself, supposedly finds its inspiration from the Iron Throne in Game of Thrones, considering the semblance), and the blood running down.