Ramayana, the two-part Indian epic directed by Nitesh Tiwari, will hold its world premiere at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ David Geffen Theatre in Los Angeles on October 27. The evening screening, a little over a week before the film’s worldwide opening on November 5, gives one of Indian cinema’s most expensive productions a stage normally associated with Oscar-season events.
A Diwali red carpet in Los Angeles
The premiere has been timed to Diwali, and the invitation carries that frame: guests are asked to arrive in traditional Indian festive attire. The David Geffen Theatre is expected to host a full-capacity audience of 945, drawn from Hollywood, the international film press and the wider industry. The film will be screened in 3D.
That setting matters because it is not a conventional promotional stop. The Academy Museum is a landmark for film history and awards-season gatherings, so the choice frames Ramayana as an event aimed squarely at the global market rather than a domestic release with an overseas afterthought.
The scale behind the event
The production is backed by Namit Malhotra’s Prime Focus Studios with DNEG and Yash’s Monster Mind Creations. It is planned as a two-part epic: the first instalment opens worldwide on November 5, 2026, and the second is scheduled for Diwali 2027. The film will release in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam, with an IMAX run; Sony Pictures is handling distribution outside India, while Dharma Productions will distribute in the Hindi-speaking market.
At the film’s trailer launch in Bengaluru, Yash addressed the attention around its budget. The combined cost of both parts, he confirmed, is ₹4,000 crore. His explanation was direct: in the West, understating a film’s scale gets it dismissed as small, so the producers are choosing to speak confidently about what they have built. It is a positioning decision as much as a financial disclosure.
Who is on screen
Ranbir Kapoor plays Lord Rama, with Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. The wider cast includes Ravi Dubey, Anupam Kher, Kajal Aggarwal, Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, Kunal Kapoor, Adinath Kothare, Arun Govil, Indira Krishnan and Lara Dutta.
Why the Academy stage matters
Hindi cinema has long sought a stronger foothold in the North American theatrical and awards conversation. A world premiere at the Academy Museum, complete with a traditional dress code, a 3D presentation and a Diwali tie-in, signals that Ramayana wants to be judged by global benchmarks. Sony Pictures’ involvement and the IMAX run put the film into a distribution apparatus usually reserved for Hollywood tentpoles.
The risk of an event this size is that the pageantry raises expectations the film itself must then meet on November 5. For followers of Hindi cinema, the next date to mark is October 27 in Los Angeles, followed quickly by the worldwide opening on November 5. The second part’s Diwali 2027 slot gives the franchise a full year to see whether the global bet paid off.
Source: Hindustan Times
Comments