Ram Gopal Varma hails Ranbir Kapoor's Ramayana Part 1

"The opening statement of a new standard for Indian cinema": Ram Gopal Varma hails Ranbir Kapoor's 'Ramayana: Part 1'

Mumbai, November 11

Sharing the review on social media after watching the film for the second time, the ace director clarified that he was assessing it purely as a film enthusiast and not from a religious perspective, identifying himself as an atheist.

"Watched #Ramayana for the 2nd time and incidentally I am an atheist and so this analysis is from a film watcher and not as a ram bhakt," he wrote on X.

Praising director Nitesh Tiwari and producer Namit Malhotra for their ambition, Varma argued that the film's emotional impact lay in its enormous scale rather than in conventional storytelling elements that some reviewers had criticised.

He said the filmmakers had taken a familiar epic and presented it on such a grand cinematic canvas that even some of Hollywood's biggest productions appeared like stage plays in comparison.

"NiteshTiwari22 and NamitMalhotra have achieved what no one in Indian cinema never even dreamt of.. They have taken the devotional Juice from a well known epic and placed it on a canvas that made me as a viewer feel , the greatest Hollywood films as stage plays," he said.

"The opening cosmic battle, Ravana's ten heads materialising not as a gimmick but as a living expression of knowledge and internal conflicts, the forests that feel more creature like themselves than the creatures they host, and standing high above all the breath stopping climactic Jatayu sequence ... these are not mere Vfx effects," he added.

Varma described the film as a significant achievement for Indian cinema, saying Malhotra had demonstrated what was possible with ambition and conviction. He also praised the film's visual effects and its attempt to create a cinematic experience rooted in India's own cultural and mythological stories rather than borrowing the visual language of international franchises such as 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'Avatar'.

"This is the first ever Indian film that can stand above each and every large scale international production with its head held high and with an immense pride . That's because it does not borrow the language of the Lord of the Rings or Avatar . Instead it takes inspirations to dig into its own rich Indian backyard with the greatest ever stories which have been waiting to be excavated..Reviews might have given 2,3,5 whatever starts but I feel It's an insult to india and it's cinema to review this film The negative reviewers are looking at a mountain and complaining that the path is steep and uneven but that's because they are too small in comparison to the garangutan architects who built this mountainous Taj Mahal of cinema," he wrote while praising the film.

The filmmaker reserved particularly strong praise for Yash's portrayal of Ravana, calling it a performance that would remain memorable for decades. He said the actor had portrayed the character as a powerful individual shaped by penance, intelligence, devotion to Lord Shiva and ambition.

According to Varma, the character's backstory, trauma and internal conflicts, written by Sridhar Raghavan, gave Ravana considerable depth.

He particularly highlighted the sequence in which Ravana deliberates with his ten heads before deciding to abduct Sita, describing Yash's portrayal as a combination of clarity, intensity and magnetic screen presence.

"Every review that calls him the show stealer is correct, but what they missed is the larger picture that his portrayal made Ravana look like the gravitational centre of Rama. In short there's no Rama without Ravana," Varma wrote.

He also defended Ranbir Kapoor's portrayal of Rama against criticism that the actor maintained largely similar expressions throughout the film.

Varma argued that Rama's character was defined by restraint rather than overt emotional expression, pointing to his acceptance of exile, controlled aggression in the forest sequences and composed demeanour as examples of the difficulty of portraying the character.

"Ram is defined by what he withholds and not by what he expresses," he wrote, adding that the character's principles were as significant as his physical actions.

Varma also praised the musical collaboration between Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman, saying the composers complemented the film's visuals instead of competing with them. He appreciated the background score, particularly the music accompanying the Tandav sequences and aerial combat, while noting that the songs maintained the narrative momentum of the three-hour epic.

Addressing criticism over the film's length and pacing, Varma said the runtime was necessary to establish the scale of Ravana's character and portray Rama's exile without reducing important developments to a montage.

He also praised Tiwari for maintaining the story's moral stakes instead of turning it into a conventional masala action drama. According to Varma, the film had the potential to connect with family audiences, youngsters, Gen Z viewers and audiences in smaller towns.

"The so called length is very necessary because one cannot establish Ravana's scale and then compress Ram's exile into just a highlight reel without losing the predicament of an impending inevitability . I love Tiwari because he refuses to cheapen the moral stakes and turn the story into a masala action drama and the result of that conviction of his is a film that can be watched by families , youngsters , Gen Z etc etc and still hit the front benchers of the small and tiny towns," he shared.

Calling it a production that could stand alongside major international films, he said its strength lay in drawing from India's own rich storytelling traditions.

Concluding his review, Varma described 'Ramayana: Part 1' as the beginning of a new standard for Indian cinema and said subsequent films would be measured against it.

"Ramayana: Part 1 is the opening statement of a new standard for Indian cinema and whatever film will be made after November 5 th will now be measured against it , and the only thing which will destroy Ramayana part 1 will be Ramayana part 2 ," he wrote.

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, 'Ramayana: Part 1' is the first instalment of a two-part cinematic adaptation of the ancient Indian epic.The film features Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. Anupam Kher voices Jatayu, the divine bird who plays a pivotal role in the narrative by attempting to rescue Sita from Ravana's abduction. Others in key roles are Arun Govil, Lara Dutta, and Rakul Preet Singh.

— ANI