‘Can't accept Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama’: Ramanand Sagar's grandson Shiv Sagar says ‘fresh face’ was needed in Ramayana

Ranbir Kapoor's casting as Lord Rama in Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana has divided opinion, with Shiv Sagar now weighing in.

Ever since he was announced as Lord Rama in Nitesh Tiwari's upcoming Ramayana adaptation, Ranbir Kapoor has divided fan opinions. After the release of the teaser and first look, many viewers were convinced he was the right choice, but others remained sceptical. Now, Shiv Sagar, grandson of Ramanand Sagar, who made the most memorable adaptation of the epic, has said that Ranbir will bring baggage from his past roles into the film.

Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama in Ramayana Part 1.

‘Can't accept Ranbir Kapoor as Rama’

Shiv Sagar is the grandson of legendary filmmaker Ramanand Sagar, who famously made the 1987 Doordarshan show Ramayan, and its follow-up, Lav-Kush. Recently, Shiv expressed his displeasure with the casting of Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, particularly after Ranbir had played a violent man in Animal.

“Except for that one casting, I like the rest of the casting very much. Personally, I cannot accept Ranbir Kapoor as Ram because after Animal, I cannot accept him as Ram. When I look at Ram ji, I feel that a fresh face should have been taken,” Shiv Sagar said, as per ANI.

“We have seen Ranbir in different roles; he is a very good actor. Personally, I don't have anything against him. I think they must have taken him for the project because they want a marketing push, and maybe if they didn't take Ranbir, the film wouldn't have been marketed so well, so that's also something to think about, but I personally believe that for such characters, it's better to take a new face,” he elaborated.

The director-producer praised the rest of the cast, including Yash as Ravana and Sai Pallavi as Sita. “You can take a very strong supporting cast, like Yash is looking very good, Sai Pallavi is looking very good, they don't have that much baggage. He has a lot of baggage. That's why we usually take a new face in our serials, so they don't have any baggage or history,” said Shiv Sagar. However, the filmmaker conceded that, in the end, his personal opinion will not matter if the audience accepts Ranbir in the role. He said that ‘the public is the king’ and they will have the final word on the matter once the film is released.

All about Ramayana

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, the upcoming Ramayana is a two-part film starring Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi, Yash, Ravie Dubey, and Sunny Deol in lead roles. Arun Govil, who played Lord Rama in Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan, plays King Dashrath in this film. Part One will release in theatres this November, with the concluding part slated to release in time for Diwali 2027.