Ranbir Kapoor-Sai Pallavi’s much-awaited mythological epic — Ramayana: Part One is scheduled to release in theatres on November 5. However, international critics have already announced their verdict on the movie after the Los Angeles screening at the Academy Museum.
“…the film’s reception reflects the growing global interest in India’s timeless epic,” said film business analyst Tarun Adarsh.
According to reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and social media, the Diwali release is being hailed as an unequivocal blockbuster, with early viewers praising its immersive cinematic scale and highlighting career-defining performances by the stars — , , and .
Some even said that the film has “changed Indian cinema forever,” powered by VFX that reportedly rival those of major Hollywood productions and a strong emotional core.
With a runtime of 3 hours and 15 minutes, Ramayana received a ‘U’ certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).
Its Cinema rated Ramayana Part 1 a 4.5 out of 5 and called it an “EPIC BLOCKBUSTER”.
“Ranbir as Lord Rama is outstanding – graceful & divine. #Yash as Ravana is phenomenal & magnetic,” the reviewing channel said. “A grand spectacle with breathtaking visuals. Sure-shot BLOCKBUSTER. A box-office blast on Diwali and an All-time blockbuster.”
Another social media reviewer, Rama’s Screen wrote: “Ramayana Rise of a Legend was spectacular! The visuals, the dances, the music, the action were all colossal. Ranbir Kapoor was sublime, Yash was magnetic. One of this year’s most immersive cinematic experiences. A grand spectacle!”
International movie reviewer Next Best Picture said: “Overall, audiences can still be swept up by Ramayana, even if it feels so stuffed at times that it might’ve needed a Game of Thrones-level television adaptation to flesh out its narrative fully.”
“A visually dazzling action adventure with great set and costume design, but it’s bloated, clunky, exhausting, emotionally hollow and poorly acted. In a double feature with Sita Sings the Blues, it would be the inferior, overproduced B-movie,” NYC Movie Guru wrote.
“On a purely visual and technical level, Ramayana: Rise of a Legend is an impressive cinematic achievement,” Screen Rant added.
Indie Wire chose to describe the movie with a cliché — “epic”. “Calling “Ramayana” epic may be a cliché, but there’s really no other word that would suffice,” they wrote.
A social media user, whose critic friend in the United States watched the special preview of Namit Malhotra’s Ramayana, said he was blown away by the movie.
“VFX was not just on par with some of Hollywood’s major productions, but it is actually better in most parts. Visual effects are just 10% of the movie’s soul; the cinematography and emotions are even stronger,” the user said, describing his friend’s experience.
“Ranbir Kapoor and Sai Pallavi have delivered the performances of their lives. Namit and Nitesh have changed Indian Cinema forever,” he remarked.
However, the IGN reviewer was not impressed by Ramayana Part 1. “A majestic epic falls victim to clunky action, eye-sore CGI, and awkward AI lip-syncing in what is, unfortunately, just a Part 1 in Ramayana: Rise of a Legend,” they wrote.
According to a report by Sacnilk, Ramayana has sold approximately 3.48 lakh tickets for day 1 so far, generating ₹18.92 crore gross and ₹15.69 crore gross without block seats, across 8,375 shows.
For now, the Hindi version has contributed the most, at around 83% of the total, while Kannada is second with ₹ 2.48 crore gross.
Bookings in Telugu and Tamil are yet to pick up, as per the tracker. Even many single screens are yet to open.
Considering the film’s pace over the last 24 hours, the positive side is that it is at around ₹1.50 crore gross. The final five days are predicted to determine the box office collection.
Sacnilk predicted that if bookings close in the ₹40-45 crore gross range, Ramayana could easily open at approximately ₹75 crore net in India on day 1. Paid previews on November 4, if they take place, are likely to add another ₹10-15 crore net.
