Ranbir Kapoor’s Transformation For Ramayana: From Animal’s Intensity To Lord Ram’s Calm, Trainer Reveals Preparation

Ranbir Kapoor is no stranger to physically and emotionally demanding roles. But his preparation for Ramayana appears to have required a different kind of transformation, one that went beyond building a particular physique or changing his appearance.

After playing the volatile and violent Ranvijay in Animal, Ranbir is stepping into the role of Lord Ram in Nitesh Tiwari’s ambitious two-part adaptation of the Ramayana. According to celebrity trainer Shivohaam, the actor’s preparation involved not just physical training but also posture, breathing exercises, yoga and an effort to understand the character from within.

In a recent interview with Pankaj Sharma on his YouTube channel, Shivohaam explained that portraying Lord Ram required Ranbir to change

the way he carried himself.

“When Ranbir started preparing for Ramayana, there was someone who would come in and teach him how to sit in the correct posture and how to carry himself,” the trainer said. He pointed out that the preparation was particularly important because Lord Ram is vastly different from the character Ranbir played in Animal.

From physical transformation to becoming the character

For Shivohaam, playing Lord Ram could not simply be about changing Ranbir’s physical appearance. The actor also had to understand the temperament and presence associated with the character.

“It’s not just about acting like Lord Ram; it’s about trying to become the character. Otherwise, you won’t be able to bring that same calmness to your face,” he said.

That emphasis on calmness marks an interesting contrast with Ranbir’s previous role in Animal, where his character was defined by aggression, violence and emotional volatility. In Ramayana, the challenge is seemingly not about projecting intensity but about conveying restraint, composure and dignity.

Shivohaam revealed that Ranbir worked with people who helped him with breathing exercises and yoga, while also studying scriptures and the character’s backstory.

“There was someone working with Ranbir on breathing exercises, yoga, understanding scriptures, understanding the backstory and all of that. That is very important,” he said.

The preparation, therefore, appears to have been designed to influence not just how Ranbir looks as Lord Ram, but how he moves, sits, breathes and carries himself on screen.

Why Ranbir’s Ram needed a different kind of preparation

Physical transformation is often an obvious part of an actor’s preparation for a demanding role. But according to Shivohaam, the process for Ramayana required several specialists working together.

“When I’m training them, there is a chef who prepares their food. Then there might be a nutritionist who works alongside me to make their nutrition plan better. There is a coach, there is a physiotherapist, they have a full team working with them,” he explained.

That larger support system becomes particularly relevant for a production as physically and technically demanding as Ramayana. The film has been mounted on an enormous scale, with extensive pre-production and visual-effects work. Cinematographer Pankaj Kumar recently revealed that the filmmakers virtually animated every scene during pre-production to plan the film’s visual language.

For Ranbir, however, the challenge was also internal: to move away from the energy associated with one of his most intense recent characters and inhabit a role whose power is conveyed through composure.

Ranbir Kapoor’s Ramayana journey

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Ramayana stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Goddess Sita, Yash as Ravana, Sunny Deol as Hanuman and Ravi Dubey as Lakshman. The film is being released in two parts.

The first part is scheduled to arrive around Diwali 2026, with the second instalment planned for Diwali 2027. The film’s international release is scheduled for November 6, 2026, while the India release is planned around Diwali.

Interestingly, Ranbir recently revealed that he and Yash have yet to shoot their major face-off as Lord Ram and Ravana. Speaking about Yash’s portrayal of Ravana, Ranbir praised the actor’s “swag, aura, and honesty” and said the pivotal confrontation comes later in the story.

With Ramayana now entering a major phase of anticipation, much of the curiosity around the film is naturally centred on its casting and visual scale. But Shivohaam’s account offers a glimpse into another aspect of the project, the work that goes into making an actor feel like a character long before the audience sees the finished performance.

For Ranbir, becoming Lord Ram appears to have involved more than getting into shape. It meant learning to embody a different physicality, cultivating stillness and understanding the character’s world, a transformation that could prove just as important as the film’s grand visual spectacle.