Nag Ashwin Reveals He Wanted to Edit Mahesh Babu’s Film

Nag Ashwin, the creative mind behind the futuristic film Kalki 2898 AD starring Prabhas, recently interacted with students and shared some interesting thoughts about filmmaking. Despite directing such a massive project, Nag remains humble and curious about the craft.

During the session, a student asked him if there was any film he wished he had directed. Nag gave a surprising answer. He said he would have loved to be the editor of Khaleja and Dear Comrade. He explained that both movies had great potential and he felt he could have helped present them better with small changes.

Khaleja directed by Trivikram Srinivas and starring Mahesh Babu, did not do well at the box office when it was first released. However over time, it gained a strong fan following and is now considered a cult classic. Nag Ashwin has always appreciated the film’s deeper themes and feels it could have been received better with different editing choices.

Similarly Dear Comrade starring Vijay Deverakonda and Rashmika Mandanna, didn’t impress many viewers when it released. But like Khaleja, it later connected with audiences for its emotional depth. Nag’s comments show his keen eye for storytelling and his desire to bring out the best in a film, even if it didn’t work initially.

Nag Ashwin started his journey with Yevade Subrahmanyam followed by the award-winning Mahanati and now Kalki 2898 AD. He is currently working on the second part of Kalki which is expected to start filming in December 2025. The sequel will continue the story of Karna played by Prabhas and Ashwatthama portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan with Deepika Padukone and Kamal Haasan also returning in important roles.