Throwback Thursday: Here's How 'Kalki 2898 AD's Futuristic Bujji Was Made By Engineers And Not CGI

After teasing the audience with multiple posters and teasers and dropping hints, Nag Ashwin’s magnum opus – ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ is here. The film has been made on a budget of Rs 600 crores and it stars some of the biggest names in the country – Prabhas, Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, and Kamal Haasan among others. The movie has grabbed eyeballs for its scale and the use of futuristic weapons and vehicles.

But did you know that one of the vehicles, Bujji – Bhairava’s aide, is an actual vehicle that has been made specifically for the movie? The AI-powered robot car is an actual vehicle and not made with the help of CGI.

In an earlier tweet, Anand Mahindra revealed that the team at the Mahindra Research Valley in Chennai had brought the vehicle to life. The Mahindra and Mahindra chairperson had revealed that engineers had built Bujji by using computer simulations to design and test the vehicle’s power system, layout, and performance. Bujji is powered by two Mahindra electric motors that drive the rear spherical wheel.

Take a look at the tweet here.

As reported by AutoCar India, Bujji weighs approximately six tonnes. The car features a custom-built 34.4-inch hubless rim at the front, with a single wheel at the rear. This design allows it to move freely in any direction. The vehicle also has a special canopy on the driver’s side, making it look like a futuristic aircraft. In terms of size, Bujji measures 6075 mm in length, 2186 mm in height, and 3380 mm in width. Additionally, it is powered by a strong 47 kW battery setup, delivering a maximum power of 126 bhp and 9800 Nm of peak torque. This roughly equates to the speed of heavy-duty electric trucks or high-performance electric SUVs.

In an earlier interview, director Nag Ashwin had called Bujji “the toughest part of the production.” He said, “Bujji may sound small, but it's incredibly special.”

Now, we know why ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ took so long to produce!