Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana, India’s Most Expensive Film, Opens This Diwali

Ramayana: Part 1 releases worldwide on 6 November, in time for Diwali. With a combined budget of around ₹4,000 crore for both parts, roughly 420 million dollars, it is set to be the most expensive Indian film ever made.

Nitesh Tiwari, director of Dangal, is at the helm. The producers are Namit Malhotra, head of visual effects company DNEG, and Yash, who also plays Ravana. The film is expected on about 59,000 screens, 50,000 of them outside India, including IMAX.

What the film is about

Part 1 follows the early life of Prince Rama, heir to Ayodhya. Guided by the sage Vishvamitra, he defeats the rakshasi Tataka, then strings the divine Pinaka bow in Mithila to win Princess Sita’s hand. His stepmother Kaikeyi invokes her boons and forces Rama into a 14-year exile. With Sita and his brother Lakshman he sets out for the Dandaka forest, where Ravana uses an illusory golden deer to abduct Sita.

Who is in it

• Ranbir Kapoor as Rama;
• Sai Pallavi as Sita;
• Yash as Ravana;
• Sunny Deol as Hanuman;
• Ravi Dubey as Lakshman;
• Lara Dutta as Kaikeyi;
• Arun Govil as King Dasharatha;
• Rakul Preet Singh, Kajal Agarwal, Vivek Oberoi and Kunal Kapoor.

Arun Govil, who famously played Rama in Ramanand Sagar’s 1987 television series Ramayan, now plays his father.

How it was made

Part 1 was filmed from 2 April 2024 to 1 July 2025 at Film City in Mumbai under the working title God Power. Tiwari wrote the screenplay with Shridhar Raghavan. DNEG handled the visual effects, while Hollywood specialists Terry Notary and Guy Norris worked on the action. The music is by Hans Zimmer, in his full-fledged Indian film debut, and A. R. Rahman.

Filming on Part 2 began in March 2026. The Part 1 trailer was showcased at San Diego Comic-Con, and the first song, Jai Jai Ram, sung by Shreya Ghoshal and Arijit Singh, was released on 14 September.

When to watch

Ramayana: Part 1 opens on 6 November, with Sony Pictures handling the international release. Cast and stills are on the film’s page in our AMDB database.