How An Assam Craftsman Created Ranbir Kapoor's Unique Cane-And-Rubber Armour For Ramayana

Namit Malhotra's Ramayana is ruling the box office. As cinephiles continue to flock to theaters, the film continues to earn crores. The first part was released on November 5, and it has already minted around Rs 350 crore.

One of the key details in the film was the armour worn by Lord Rama and Lakshman during their exile. In one of the key scenes, when Lord Rama, Lakshman, and Sita prepare to fight the giant army of Khar and Dushan, Ranbir Kapoor and Ravi Dubey are shown putting on armour made of cane and rubber.

These special shields were designed by master artisan Jaynal Abdin, who hails from Jania Banglipara village in Barpeta district. He led a team of 15 locals and crafted 30-35 pieces by hand over 3-3.5 years.

Cane And Rubber Armour

Speaking to ANI, Abdin shared that the Ramayana team did not reach out to him directly. Instead, he was approached for the project by Abdul Malek of the local organisation Gram Unnayan in Jania.

"It first came to Abdul Malek ji of Gram Unnayan here in Jania. He called me over and said a project had come in and asked me to take a look. They had initially sent a file containing the drawings and designs," he said.

After examining the drawings, Abdin confirmed that he could make the armour and discussed it with his team leader. "Soon after, 5-6 members from their team arrived here, and a member named Sagar stayed back with us to help oversee the measurements and corrections," he added.

Crafting armour that actors would wear for high-intensity action scenes was challenging. The first designs had fitting issues and were returned for corrections. Once they were refitted, the pure cane armour proved to be rigid and restricted movement.

"After we fixed the initial cuts, they made the main actor of the film wear it, and he said it was very hard and tight, which cane naturally is. They asked what alternative material could be used. I told them we could craft it from whatever material they provided," recalled Abdin.

He shared that the Ramayana team got back to him with black and green rubber. However, weaving rubber did not work out either. "When I spoke to costume designer Ajay, I suggested using half cane and half rubber. He agreed and asked us to make one sample," the Assam-based artisan remembered.

Once the hybrid cane-and-rubber design was approved, the artisans worked on tight deadlines to deliver the agreed-upon number of armour pieces. "The work was continuous; sometimes there would be no news for three to six months, and then suddenly a call would come asking for eight or ten pieces on very short notice before shooting resumed," Abdin told the agency.

When the artisans were working on the armour, they were not aware that they were designing it for Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana. "They only told us it was for a film shoot and assured us that our work would bring us recognition later. Now that the film has been released, we finally know the truth. I have not watched the film yet, but I will definitely watch it because a small part of my own handiwork is in it," the artisan concluded.

Also Read | From Maya Sita To Romantic Hanuman: 5 Fascinating Tales From The 300 Ramayanas Across India And Asia