The trailer of Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana: Part 1 was unveiled by the makers today. While many are praising the trailer for its visuals and scale, on social media there is a renewed doubt over Ranbir Kapoor’s casting choice as Lord Rama. A section of social media users has argued that the actor is a misfit for the role, questioning the casting choice.
Amid the criticism, it is important to know that Ranbir recently addressed the debate on his casting choice while promoting the film at San Diego Comic-Con alongside director Nitesh, producer Namit Malhotra and co-star Yash, who plays Ravana in the film.
The actor, in a conversation with Review Nation, said he believes there can never be one definitive actor who can play Lord Rama. “The first question that popped into my head was, am I worthy? Am I the right person and why am I being gifted this responsibility to not play Lord Rama but represent him? But very soon you understand the value, the responsibility and the noble intention of the filmmakers to present the story, which has been relevant for 4,000 years. It’s deeply ingrained in our subconscious. So I don’t think there’s a right actor to play Lord Rama,” he said.
The actor further said that every devotee has their own image of Lord Rama, making it impossible for any one choice to satisfy everyone’s expectations. “All the people who have watched Ramayana, they all have their own interpretation of Lord Rama. There is no fixed face to it. Many people will probably feel like I am the wrong casting. Some people will say I am the right casting. But the honest truth is that the right casting for Ram would be any actor who has the right intentions and who has belief and faith in the journey of Lord Rama.”
Interestingly, Ranbir will have a double role in Ramayana. Apart from portraying Lord Rama, he will also play the role of Lord Parshurama. Speaking to Collider about taking on both characters, Ranbir said he relied on their distinct emotional and spiritual identities, along with differences in body language and voice, to portray them.
“Lord Vishnu had different avatars. Lord Rama was an avatar, and Lord Parshurama was an avatar before Lord Rama. Just to get the opportunity, you know, how I got to play Lord Rama, to also play Lord Parshurama was fantastic. I think as an actor, apart from body language, I think if you deeply understand the spirituality and the emotionality of the characters, I think everything starts from there. I think that’s what I did the year leading up to the shoot of Ramayana, to understand who these people and characters are, what they stand for and what their motives are,” he said.
Ramayana is planned as a two-part epic, with the first instalment scheduled to release on Diwali 2026. The film also stars Sai Pallavi as Sita, and Sunny Deol as Hanumana.
