This is a prestige collaboration between animation powerhouses — Studio Khara's legendary craftsmanship elevates Baahubali's cosmic mythology to unprecedented artistic heights, bringing Evangelion-level quality to Indian cinema.
Insiders say the deal took months to negotiate. Sources close to production reveal Studio Khara nearly passed until SlowCurve convinced them the '14 realms' concept aligned perfectly with Evangelion's apocalyptic aesthetic — a match made in anime heaven or a clash of creative visions waiting to happen.
Studio Khara, led by Anno Hideaki (Evangelion creator), has boarded Baahubali: The Eternal War Part 1 as announced June 25, 2026. Maeda Mahiro — whose credits include Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time — joins as key creative contributor for the dedicated animated sequence.
When you fuse Evangelion's existential dread with Baahubali's mythological grandeur, you're either creating animation history or spectacularly overextending both franchises. Annecy will tell us which.
Studio Khara — the Japan-based animation house that defined a generation with the "Evangelion" franchise — has officially boarded "Baahubali: The Eternal War Part 1," and this is not the crossover anyone saw coming. According to Variety, Studio Khara will produce a dedicated animated sequence for the film, marking one of the most ambitious cross-cultural collaborations in animation history. SlowCurve, the Japanese production company that brokered the deal, will handle planning and production coordination between the Japanese and international teams.
The segment will be directed by Honma Akira, with Ito Noriko serving as character designer. But here's where it gets interesting: Maeda Mahiro — whose credits include "Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time" — will also join as a key creative contributor. Maeda is currently on staff at Studio Khara, which is led by "Evangelion" creator Anno Hideaki.
That's not just a consultant arrangement; that's a full commitment from the studio that brought us Shinji's psychological breakdown in a mecha suit. The two-part animated feature is set within the world of the "Baahubali" franchise and picks up after the cliffhanger ending of "Baahubali: The Beginning." The story follows the betrayed and murdered prince Amarendra Baahubali into the afterlife, where he finds himself drawn into an ancient cosmic war between devas and asuras, navigating 14 realms of existence.
Director Ishan Shukla — previously known for "Star Wars: Visions" and the Indo-French co-production "Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust" — helms both parts, working from screenplays by Scott Mosier. Prabhas reprises his role as the voice of Amarendra Baahubali, while Ramya Krishnan returns as Sivagami. The production spans India, France, the U.K., and Japan, with additional partners including Mihira Visual Labs (the tech-first creative studio founded by Yarlagadda, Raja Koduri, and Rajamouli), Aniventure, Zaratan Studios, and Alcyde Studios.
M.M. Keeravani — the Oscar-winning composer behind "RRR" and the original "Baahubali" scores — is scoring the project. Part 1 has been selected for the Work in Progress section of the Annecy Animation Festival, where new footage will be screened this summer.
The panel will feature Shukla alongside art director Ajey Lele, co-writer Sowmya Sharma, animation director Antoine Charreyron ("Batwheels"), and CG supervisor Simon Brown ("Guardians of the Galaxy"). For context: the original "Baahubali" films were made on a combined budget of $70 million and collected $370 million globally. "Baahubali 2: The Conclusion" stands as the third highest-grossing Indian film of all time.
SlowCurve, founded in 2006 as an animation publicity and marketing firm before pivoting to original production in 2016, promoted more than 300 titles before developing its own projects. Arka Mediaworks provided Variety with several work-in-progress art board images from the film — showing that while cameras haven't started rolling on this particular sequence, both studios are all-in. The question everyone's asking: can Studio Khara's signature psychological intensity and apocalyptic imagery translate to a mythological Indian epic about cosmic warfare between gods?
Or is this a case of two enormous creative forces colliding without enough runway to find their rhythm? Annecy will give us the first real answers. But one thing's certain — when Evangelion meets Baahubali, we're witnessing something that has never been attempted at this scale.
