Nitesh Tiwari reveals his most favourite and emotional scene in Ramayana ahead of Ranbir Kapoor's epic

When a film carries the weight of an entire civilization's faith, you might expect its director to point to the climactic battle, the golden arrow, the burning of Lanka, as the scene that defines everything. Nitesh Tiwari, the man who gave India Dangal and is now tasked with bringing the Ramayana to the big screen, chose something quieter.

"It's a very emotional moment — the whole city is out there, not wanting him to leave, crying along with him," Tiwari said in a recent interview, describing the scene where Lord Ram departs for exile. "It's something which gets me emotional every time I see it."

That moment — a prince walking away from everything he was promised, surrounded by people who love him and cannot stop what is happening — is the one Tiwari says he is most anxious to share with an audience. Not because it is spectacular, but because it is human. The exile of Ram is not a defeat engineered by enemies. It is a wound inflicted by the people closest to him, absorbed without bitterness, and that particular kind of pain does not need visual effects to land.

Six Hours of Epic, Split in Two

While the director reflects on quiet heartbreak, the actor carrying the entire enterprise has been busy putting the film's scale into perspective.

Ranbir Kapoor, speaking to outlets including Collider during a promotional visit to Los Angeles, reached for the biggest comparison available to him. "Ramayana is nothing but our Lord of the Rings," he said, "our biggest epic movie, coming from our country." He added that across both parts, the story spans roughly six hours of footage — battle sequences, emotional confrontations, mythological spectacle, and everything in between.

"It makes you learn to become a better son, better husband, better brother," Kapoor said. "It is basically the victory of good over evil."

Part 1 is scheduled for a Diwali 2026 release. Part 2 follows a year later, during Diwali 2027. If each part runs approximately three hours, the complete Ramayana would clock in as one of the longest Indian film projects ever mounted.

The Cast, The Crew, The Ambition

The first look of Ranbir Kapoor as Ram, unveiled on April 2, 2026, ignited conversation across the country — and beyond. The image carried a stillness to it that was clearly intentional, presenting Ram not as a warrior king mid-battle, but as something more considered.

The cast assembled around him reflects the same level of intent. Sai Pallavi plays Sita, Yash steps into the role of Ravana following his KGF franchise dominance, Sunny Deol takes on Hanuman, and Ravi Dubey portrays Lakshman. It is a lineup that cuts across industries, fan bases, and regions in a way few Indian productions have attempted.

Behind the camera, the ambition matches the casting. Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman — between them holding multiple Oscars and Grammys — are jointly composing the score, a collaboration that has never been attempted on an Indian production before. Hollywood stunt coordinators Terry Notary and Guy Norris are handling the action. The screenplay comes from Sridhar Raghavan, and the production is led by Namit Malhotra under Prime Focus Studios, with KGF's Yash also serving as co-producer.

What Tiwari Is Really Building

There is a version of this film that could have been pure spectacle — armies, arrows, divine weapons rendered in expensive CGI, designed to fill IMAX screens and justify the ticket price. Everything about Nitesh Tiwari's stated priorities suggests he is reaching for something less comfortable and more lasting.

A director who names a farewell scene — a man walking into a forest while his city weeps — as the moment closest to his heart is telling you something about what he believes the Ramayana actually is. Not a war story. Not a superhero saga. A story about what it costs to be good, and who pays that price alongside you.

Whether the film delivers on that reading is a question only November will answer. But the intention, at least, appears to be serious.