The film, directed by Nitesh Tiwari, is releasing globally on 70,000 screens, more than twice as wide a release as any Indian film has had before. Now, in a new interview, he re-emphasised this dream, comparing himself to cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar.
Producer Namit Malhotra has said that the scale of Ramayana ’s global release is unprecedented. Namit, who has bankrolled the film, has said that it is his dream to take Indian storytelling globally with the film.
Ahead of its release, Ramayana had its world premiere at the David Geffen Theatre at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, where the films nominated for Oscars are screened. This was hailed as a monumental achievement for an Indian film. There are generations of filmmakers who have come before me who are brilliant in what they’ve done in India. But a Ramayana like this has never been made by any Indian filmmaker. It’s like Sachin Tendulkar getting picked to play the World Cup on his debut.”
Talking with PTI, Namit said, “The biggest thing I feel right now is gratitude because, to me, the fact that we have a film industry for over 100 years, and I get to have this golden opportunity to produce Ramayana and to present it to the world like never before, is unbelievable. And I get to be that person today.
Based on the epic by Valmiki, the Ramayana is a story widely known to almost every Indian. But to Westerners, it is largely new. He added, “Just imagine I’m standing here and saying, ‘You guys know The Odyssey, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Star Wars, but do you know that Ramayana came before all of these great epics? And it’s not trying to copy or borrow from you. In fact, it’s an original story. It’s original characters and an original world that have been envisioned. So they are excited about it. And that’s why I think that the opportunity to connect with the audience is very exciting. Sony Pictures will handle global distribution, excluding India, while Dharma Productions will distribute the film in the Hindi-speaking market.
Namit says that with the film, he hopes to introduce Western audiences to the story.
