Ramayana Producer Says Ranbir Kapoor Starrer Was Made Out Of Frustration With Hollywood's View Of Indian Stories
Producer Namit Malhotra says Ramayana was born from frustration with Hollywood portraying Indians as victims, aiming to showcase Indian culture globally with pride and scale.
By ETV Bharat Entertainment Team
Published : February 14, 2026 at 12:48 PM IST
Hyderabad: Producer Namit Malhotra has said that his upcoming epic film Ramayana was born out of frustration with how Indian stories are viewed in the West. According to him, Hollywood has rarely shown Indian history and culture with pride and often reduced Indians to victim narratives.
At a recent event, Namit opened up about the origins of the ambitious two-part film directed by Nitesh Tiwari. He reflected on his early experiences working in Hollywood and the lack of cultural representation he noticed there. Namit, who heads the global VFX company DNEG, said the absence of authentic Indian storytelling pushed him to dream of a project on a global scale.
"When I went to Hollywood, I saw that we had no real presence. They didn't have any representation of our history or culture. I've spent the last two decades really trying to establish a foothold in Hollywood, and unlike other American industries like finance and medicine, where Indians have had success, they didn't have an appreciation for our industry, our history or culture," he said.
"It kept frustrating me through this lens of an emerging country, whether it was Slumdog Millionaire. We were always the victim. That always troubled me. I always thought we needed to show who we are, where we come from, and the richness of our history, in a way the world has never seen before. That really became the genesis of why Ramayana is the perfect story of our history that can be presented and shown to the world with pride," he added.
The film is being mounted on a reported budget of $500 million, making it one of the most expensive Indian film projects ever. It is produced by Namit's banner, Prime Focus Studios, in collaboration with actor Yash's production house Monster Mind Creations and Atlas Entertainment, led by Hollywood producer Charles Roven.
It’s a special day. My friend and a tremendous talent of the world, the one and only @HansZimmer 's birthday. Wish you great health, happiness and the ability to keep creating and mesmerizing all of us with your genius and your talent. Can’t believe you’re a part of our journey… pic.twitter.com/zUl2xj0rbw
— Namit Malhotra (@malhotra_namit) September 12, 2025
Highlighting the film's technical ambition, Namit said the team is aiming to match the scale of the biggest global spectacles. "We have everything that the biggest Hollywood spectacles have, and we have made sure that we mount it at that scale and budget. Technical engagement and visual scale are second to none. People should feel tremendous pride that we are making what is the largest film, as an independently financed film from anywhere in the world," he further said.
Ramayana stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, and Yash as Ravana, with Ravie Dubey playing Lakshmana and Sunny Deol portraying Lord Hanuman. The music is composed by AR Rahman along with Hans Zimmer, marking Zimmer's first project in Indian cinema.
The first part of Ramayana is scheduled to release ahead of Diwali this year, while the second instalment is planned for a Diwali 2027 theatrical release.
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