Ranbir Kapoor Is A 'Pure Actor, Can Bring Reality' To Lord Rama In Ramayana, Says Imtiaz Ali

Director Imtiaz Ali recently opened up about Ranbir Kapoor’s casting as Rama in Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana. Imtiaz Ali said that Ranbir Kapoor is a pure actor who becomes the characters he plays. The director said that it would be interesting to see Ranbir approach Rama in a personal way and even benefit from playing the character.

Imtiaz said, “Ranbir can do anything as an actor. He should do different roles, and when he does different roles, he’ll become them. He is a pure actor, and I hope he does all kinds of roles. I am very happy he is doing Lord Rama’s role because he can bring a certain effect or reality to the character. It will be nice to approach Lord Rama’s character in a humane and personal way.”

The director, who has worked with Ranbir

in Tamasha, also told Filmibeat in the same chat, “It’ll be hugely beneficial for Ranbir to have played Rama because he is the kind of actor [who] imbibes from the character. He will take from Rama, and that will be so enriching for him.”

Recently, in an interview with director Nitesh Tiwari for Top Magazine, Ranbir admitted that he initially questioned whether he was worthy of playing Lord Rama. However, that fear gradually turned into gratitude as he began understanding the depth of the epic and the values associated with Rama’s journey.

He shared, “Will I be able to do justice? Am I worthy enough?” The actor added that the anxiety soon transformed into love and reverence for the part. He said, “But I think very soon that fear turned into love and gratitude because I understood not that it would be something like a career-defining move for me, but it was definitely life-defining, you know, it changed my life.”

He added, “You know, it got me closer to understanding the Ramayana, to understanding Lord Rama’s journey. I think it made so many positive changes in my life. You know, my bad habits, it changed my value system, the way I look at life, the way I look at loss, the way I look at sacrifice, the way I look at Dharma, and I think I really needed that in my life.”

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Ramayana is being mounted as a two-part cinematic spectacle. The first instalment is scheduled for a worldwide theatrical release in October 2026. The film stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana. Adding further scale to the project is the musical collaboration between A.R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer, making Ramayana one of the most anticipated Indian films in recent years.