- Ramayanas trailer will premiere worldwide on July 24 at San Diego Comic-Con
- Pratham Sankalp event showcased the film's cast, creators, and visual world in New Delhi
- Ranbir Kapoor plays Lord Rama, expressing admiration for Arun Govil's iconic portrayal
Ahead of the global launch of Ramayana's trailer at the San Diego Comic-Con on July 24, a grand promotional event, 'Pratham Sankalp', was held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Friday.
The event brought together the film's cast and creators, including Ranbir Kapoor, Yash, Sai Pallavi, Shobhana, Sunny Deol, Ravie Dubey, Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, Ajinkya Deo, Arun Govil and Kunal Kapoor, while offering audiences a first detailed look at the film's expansive visual world and its principal characters.
A select audience also got an exclusive preview of the trailer.
Ranbir Kapoor, who attended the event wearing sunglasses due to an eye infection, said portraying Lord Rama was a role that 'chose' him.
Addressing veteran actor Arun Govil, whose portrayal of Lord Rama in Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan remains iconic, Ranbir expressed his admiration, saying he had grown up with Govil's image of Lord Rama.
The actor went on to add that Arun Govil fulfilled this responsibility with beauty, sincerity and dignity for several years. 'If I can portray Shri Ram even a little as you did, I would feel that my hard work has paid off,' he said.
Whereas, Sai Pallavi thanked the makers for entrusting her with the role of Sita, calling it one of the most challenging and prestigious opportunities of her career. Speaking in Hindi, she said, 'It's not easy for actors to get roles like this because it's a challenge to essay a goddess on screen.'
Director Nitesh Tiwari shared why Ranbir Kapoor and Sai Pallavi were his first choices to portray Lord Rama and Sita. He said that an artist's eyes never lie and went on to add that he saw Lord Ram in Ranbir's eyes & Goddess Sita in Sai Pallavi's eyes.
"An artist's eyes never lie. I always saw Lord Ram in Ranbir's eyes and Goddess Sita In Sai's eyes. Their eyes never lie. I see truth in their eyes."
Now, the event reached its peak when the makers surprised the audience in presence, with the entries of Yash who is playing Ravana's role & Sunny Deol who will be seen as Hanuman in the movie.
Yash also spoke about the film's larger vision, while Sunny Deol described his character as 'natkhat' and hinted that his journey has only begun, with a much bigger role in the second part of the film.
The evening opened with a special musical performance by Rishabh Rikhiram Sharma, who is composing for the film alongside Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman.
The makers also went ahead with announcing that Rishab will be joining the Ramayana family.
Years of work and planning has gone into bringing Ramyana to life. The producer of the film Namit Malhotra reflected on his decade-long journey of bringing Ramayana to the screen. He said the epic's enduring appeal lies in its timeless values rather than its scale, adding that the team's focus has always been to honour its legacy with honesty, authenticity and reverence.
Namit Malhotra highlighted how this movie is a combined effort of 10,000 people.
The makers had earlier announced that the Ramayana trailer will premiere worldwide on July 24, describing the film as one of Bharat's greatest civilisational epics, presented to the world on a scale never attempted before in Indian cinema.