Babruvahana (1977): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1977, Babruvahana is a notable film.

What it’s about. Babhruvahana, like Arjuna at the beginning of the Kurukshetra war, faces a moral dilemma. Can he risk harming his parents? While Chitarangada alerts Arjuna to shoot an arrow at their son and take advantage of Babhruvahana’s momentary lapse due to a sense of devotion towards them (as Arjuna did with Karna), Uluci, the Naga princess and yet another abandoned wife of Arjuna’s, reminds Babhruvahana of the teaching of the Kurukshetra battle that in the battlefield there is no space for feelings even towards parents. What Babhruvahana must do is to establish his mother’s good name and thereby his own character. This film captures this conflict spectacularly. The eerie parallels with the moral dilemmas of the great Mahabharata battle aside, here all the familial relationships (in particular, strong mothers and dutiful sons) become exaggerated and demand our attention.

Who’s in it. Babruvahana stars Dr. Rajkumar as Arjuna / Babruvahana, Dr. Rajkumar as Arjuna / Babruvahana, B. Saroja Devi as Chitrangada and Jayamala as Subhadra, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.2/10, Babruvahana has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on Sun Nxt and Eros Now Select Apple TV Channel. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Babruvahana page.