Set 5,000 years ago and revered by over 2.5 billion people across the globe, the Ramayana is not just a story — it’s a legacy. Namit Malhotra’s Ramayana is undoubtedly one of the biggest films ever made and is eagerly awaited by audiences. While everyone is eagerly waiting to hear more about the film, producer Namit Malhotra, in a podcast with Prakhar Gupta, revealed how The Lion King and Interstellar composer Hans Zimmer reacted when he was first introduced to the story of this Indian epic.
Namit recalled that when he began explaining Ramayana to Hans Zimmer, the latter stopped him midway. “He asked me not to explain anything,” said Namit. Curious, he asked the composer why. “Hans replied, ‘It’s clearly something beyond us. You and I don’t need to explain it.’”
Expanding on Zimmer’s words, Namit quoted him saying: “You don’t have to explain it (Ramayana) to me. Something that has lived through thousands of years, generations of people, and continues to be relevant after all of that time — you and I don’t need to explain it. Something is there, why it is relevant even today. Let’s acknowledge it and let’s do the best we can because it’s clearly something that’s beyond us.”
For Namit, Zimmer’s respectful response was humbling. “I was like that is so beautifully put by someone who doesn’t know anything about Ramayana. But he is giving reverence and saying just the fact that it exists and continues to be relevant… people feel emotionally about it and passionately about it. That’s it. I did not need more.”
Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra’s Prime Focus Studios in association with 8-time Oscar-winning DNEG and Yash’s Monster Mind Creations, the two-part epic will release in IMAX worldwide, Part 1 in Diwali 2026 and Part 2 in Diwali 2027.
