It's Ramayana, Don't Be Divisive: Producer Namit Malhotra Dismisses India Vs US Debate Over Teaser Launch

It

was a major week for Indian cinema. Ranbir Kapoor and Yash’s upcoming magnum opus, Ramayana: Part 1, took the global stage with its first look teaser, titled Rama. As it suggests, the 2-minute and 38-second video revealed Ranbir as Maryada Purshottam. Before launching it in India on Hanuman Janmotsav on April 2, director Nitesh Tiwari and producerNamit Malhotra travelled to the U.S. with Ranbir, where they also interacted with the media and fans at a special screening in Los Angeles. A section of the internet was not happy with them for choosing an international premiere before the film’s home turf, India.

Namit Malhotra on launching Ramayana teaser in U.S. before India

At the Mumbai event, Namit, who is co-producing Ramayana with Yash, revealed the reason behind launching the teaser titled Rama in Los Angeles before India. He urged not to be divisive when it comes to Ramayana. “There’s no division, it’s one world, one Ramayana and one Rama,” he said before adding that the idea is to show Ramayana and spread awareness about India’s glorious history even on international platforms.

Namit also reacted to whether the international audience isn’t familiar with the Ramayana and said he wants everyone to know about the epic. “It’s harder for us in the middle of the shoot to stop work and go and meet people and spread awareness; we are not selling tickets,” he added. Malhotra, whose company DNEG has worked on Ramayana’s visual effects, spoke about the positioning of Indian cinema globally. “We want to take Ramayana to the world,” is his clear brief. Namit mentioned that cinema produced locally haven’t made a mark in the West until now, but with Ramayana, he wants to show the world what Indian cinema is capable of.

Namit Malhotra calms angry fans

Namit appealed to angry fans, “Don’t divide. This is not the time to be divisive.” He said the Indians in the U.S. thanked them for hosting an event there. “You need to understand the emotion of the Indian people over there,” Malhotra concluded.

About Ramayana

Besides Ranbir, Ramayana features Yash as Ravana, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Sunny Deol as Hanuman, Ravi Dubey as Lakshman, Lara Dutta as Kaikeyi, and Arun Govil as Dashrath. Kajal Aggarwal will portray Mandodari, while Rakul Preet Singh takes on the role of Shurpanakha. The cast further includes Amitabh Bachchan as Jatayu and narrator of the film, Vivek Oberoi as Vidyut Jihva, Suhail Nayyar as Sugriva and Kunal Kapoor as Indra. Ramayana: Part 1 releases in Indian theatres on Diwali 2026. The second part is currently in the production stage. It will release worldwide in 2027.