Directors Nitesh Tiwari and Ravi Udyawar will helm a three-part film series based on the Ramayana. The trilogy will be filmed in 3D on an estimated budget of Rs 500 crore. Actors from multiple industries are expected to star in the adaptation. The films will be released in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu. The screenplay is written by Sridhar Raghavan.

Producers Allu Aravind, Madhu Mantena, and Namit Malhotra are backing the project. The makers are targeting a pan-Indian as well as a global release. The first part will hit theatres in 2021.

“Money and time are not a problem. Our producers have told us to be fearless and fly. So, we are flying visually,” says Nitesh. “There are many sci-fi films but only one Star Wars. We have access to the best technology and talent, so what better time to let the world see what our country has to offer,” Ravi adds.

It was announced last year that Kunal Kohli is making a film on the Ramayana. Live-action adaptations of the epic include Ramayan (1954) and Sampoorna Ramayana (1961). Ramanand Sagar had adapted the epic into a 74-part TV series in 1987. The series was remade in 2008 and aired on NDTV Imagine.