Ranbir Kapoor reveals playing both Lord Rama and Lord Parshurama in Ramayana; calls it ‘fantastic opportunity’

Ranbir Kapoor discussed his preparation for his dual roles in Ramayana, emphasizing understanding the characters' spirituality and emotions.

One of the most anticipated films of the year is Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana. The film features Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, and a glimpse of his look was first unveiled to a select audience at a grand event in Los Angeles. At the same event, the actor also confirmed a surprise for fans about his double role in the film.

Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama in Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana films.

Ranbir Kapoor confirms playing double role in Ramayana

Talking to Collider at the LA event, Ranbir confirmed that he is playing a double role in Ramayana and said, “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.”

He further explained how he prepared for both roles and said, “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.”

Fans expressed excitement about Ranbir’s double role. One of them commented, “damn, that's so interesting. Opposite characters, calm and storm. If RK balances both of them, it's a huge win.” Another wrote, “I hope you get your answer from this video, that's why Ranbir was holding Farsha instead of Danush in the trailer.” Another comment read, “Another iconic role.”

About Ramayana

Helmed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, the mythological epic stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama and Lord Parshurama, Yash as Ravana, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. The teaser of the film, titled the Rama glimpse, focused on Ranbir’s look as Lord Rama but also offered fleeting glimpses of other characters, including Lakshman and Sita. It also showed Yash’s Ravana stepping out of the Pushpak Vimana towards the end.

The teaser received mixed reactions from the audience, with many saying that Ranbir does not fit the bill to play Lord Rama. While some were impressed by the VFX and CGI in the film, others criticised it for not being up to the mark. Namit revealed that the two-part film is being made on a budget of ₹4,000 crore, making it one of the most ambitious projects in Indian cinema. The filmmaker also compared the scale of the film to that of The Lord of the Rings and Avatar. The first part of the film is scheduled to release this Diwali, while the second will arrive on Diwali 2027.