Rakul Preet Singh has pulled back the curtain on one of the year’s most demanding character transformations. To play Surpanakha in Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana, the actor spent four hours in the makeup chair every day before she even reached the set.
The revelation came in a weekend Instagram post, where Singh shared behind-the-scenes photographs from the production. One image shows the makeup team at work; another places her on set preparing for a scene as the team gives direction.
A journey she waited to share
Singh framed the role as more than a job. In her note she described the experience as a special journey, saying she had waited a long time to speak about the film and was glad it had finally reached audiences.
“It’s not every day that you get to be a part of a story that has been a part of our lives and culture for generations,” she wrote. She went on to thank producer Namit Malhotra and director Nitesh Tiwari, and credited the cast and crew for their contribution.
Why the hours matter
Four hours of daily makeup is a production decision, not a vanity detail. In an epic adaptation, the physical design of a character like Surpanakha does narrative work: it tells the audience who this figure is before a word is spoken. The commitment also signals the film’s broader approach to craft at scale.
Tiwari’s Ramayana adapts the epic traditionally attributed to Valmiki and also draws on Tulsidas’ Ramcharitmanas. The cast is led by:
- Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama
- Sai Pallavi as Sita
- Yash as Ravana
- Rakul Preet Singh as Surpanakha
That lineup, and the attention being paid to a supporting antagonist’s transformation, suggests a production treating every role as part of the epic’s weight. Surpanakha is a pivotal figure in the exile narrative — her encounter with Rama is one of the turning points that sets the larger conflict in motion. That a character secondary to the leads is receiving this level of attention tells its own story about the production’s priorities.
What to watch for
Singh’s post is an invitation to notice the craft. When the film is on screen, look closely at Surpanakha’s design — the prosthetics, the texture, the way the look shapes performance. The four hours are not invisible; they are part of the storytelling.
For followers of Hindi cinema, it is also a reminder of how much of an actor’s day happens before the camera rolls. The most quoted number in film news is usually a box-office figure; the quiet figures behind a performance can matter just as much.
Source: India Weekly
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