- Raghav Malhotra plays young Ravana due to his strong resemblance to actor Yash
- Yash, who plays Ravana, is also a co-producer of the Ramayana film
- Yash chose Ravana to highlight the contrast between good and evil in the story
Ramayana producer Namit Malhotra's elder son, Raghav Malhotra, has played the young Ravana in the film. Speculation was rife that Raghav played the young Ravana. Ahead of the film's release, NDTV has learnt that Raghav's physical resemblance to actor Yash, who played Ravana in the film, made the makers opt for him.
"His physique is so similar that he looks almost like Yash's body double," a source close to the film shared with NDTV.
Yash, who's also a co-producer on the film, earlier revealed why he chose to play Ravana over Ram.
"Ram ka bhalai dikhane ke liye Ravan ka burai bhi toh chahiye," Yash replied. (If we want to show the goodness of Rama, Ravana must personify the evil.)
Showing conviction in his calibre, Yash said, "Mujhse achcha burai koi dikha nahin sakta." (No one can portray evil better than I can.)
"Have you taken on the onus of being the bad guy on screen?" Rajat Sharma quipped.
"Jab main achha character bhi karunga na, mujhse achcha koi bhi nahin hoga," Yash said. (When I play a good character, no one can match me.)
"Ravan ko dekhkar lagna chahiye - 'isko kaise maara jaaye?'" Yash added. "We all have kept our egos aside. It's not about my stardom or me as a star in Ramayana. The best people are working on this project."
At the Hyderabad event recently, Sai Pallavi, who plays Sita in the film, applauded Yash's decision of playing Ravana. Sai Pallavi said Yash owned the character and won love from the people, instead of hate.
"Nobody chooses to play Ravana because it comes with hate. But Yash did it and won everyone's love instead," Sai Pallavi said at the event.
The film is set to be released in two parts, with the first instalment scheduled to release worldwide on November 5, while the second part is slated for Diwali 2027.
Apart from Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi, Sunny Deol, Ravi Dubey and Yash play pivotal roles in the film.