With just two months until the worldwide release of director Nitesh Tiwari’s epic mythological action-adventure film Ramayana: Part 1, fans are eagerly monitoring the latest developments and awaiting more promotional material offering further sneak peeks into the movie.

Although the film’s trailer, unveiled in late July, was well received, a section of the audience remains sceptical about whether the makers will do justice to Ramayana, particularly given that the last movie adaptation of the Hindu epic was the critical and commercial bomb Adipurush (2023).

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While Ranbir Kapoor’s appearance as Rama in the trailer was met with widespread acclaim, it seems that the grandson of legendary filmmaker Ramanand Sagar, who scripted and directed the television serial adaptation of Ramayana, isn’t fully impressed with his casting. He recently said it is hard for him to accept the actor as Rama because of his past roles, particularly the one in director Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal (2023).

Why Shiv Sagar is not impressed by Ranbir Kapoor as Rama

Pointing out that a fresh face would have been better suited for the role, producer-director Shiv Sagar said Ranbir Kapoor “has a lot of baggage.” He told news agency ANI, “Except for that one casting, I like the rest of the casting very much. Personally, I cannot accept Ranbir Kapoor as Rama because… after Animal, I cannot accept him as Rama. When I look at Ram ji, I feel that a fresh face should have been chosen.”

Shiv Sagar added, “You can take a very strong supporting cast, like Yash is looking very good, Sai Pallavi is looking very good; they don’t have that much baggage. He (Ranbir) has a lot of baggage. That’s why we usually take a new face in our serials, so they don’t have any baggage or history.”

He clarified, however, that he harbours no personal issues with Ranbir and noted that he is a strong performer. “We have seen Ranbir in different roles; he is a very good actor. Personally, I don’t have anything against him. I think they must have taken him for the project because they want a marketing push, and maybe if they didn’t take Ranbir, the film wouldn’t have been marketed so well. So that’s also something to think about. But I personally believe that for such characters, it’s better to take a new face,” he pointed out.

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‘This is not mythology’

He continued, “Because after Ramayana, will he be accepted again in a film like Animal? Especially when it comes to Ram ji and Ramayana, people are a bit more touchy and emotional, and this is not mythology. In the West, we call it mythology; even in India, it is called mythology. But it is our history. People worship them every day; he (Ram) is our history.”

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Shiv Sagar, however, added, “In reality, the public is the king, and whatever the public says will be the final verdict. I didn’t like the casting and costumes of some parts; that could have been better.”

Produced jointly by Namit Malhotra and Yash, Ramayana’s music is crafted by Oscar-winning composers Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman. The movie features Yash as Ravana, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman, and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. Part 1 of the duology will hit the screens in November, coinciding with Diwali.