Ranbir Kapoor has asked the international press to retire a word that has long served as shorthand for Hindi cinema: Bollywood. Speaking to ITV in London while promoting Ramayana with Sai Pallavi and Yash, Kapoor argued that the label is borrowed from Hollywood and flattens a multilingual industry into one convenient box.
“It’s just a term used as a derivative of Hollywood,” he said. The actor traced the etymology: Bombay became Bollywood, the Telugu industry became Tollywood, and several other regional cinemas acquired similar constructions.
A positioning statement, not just a preference
Kapoor said he would rather be known as “a representative of Indian cinema.” He described a country of many cultures, languages and states, all striving to make art. Authentic stories rooted in culture and tradition, he added, can speak to the world—pointing to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Korean cinema and Life Is Beautiful. The aim, he said, is that kind of reach without “blindly trying to cater to a global audience.”
That distinction carries weight for readers who follow Hindi cinema. Bollywood has long been global shorthand, yet it sits awkwardly with an industry that operates in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam, often at the same time. Kapoor is also making this argument two days before a project built on a pan-Indian premise opens worldwide.
Ramayana as the test case
Ramayana, described as the most expensive Indian film ever made, is planned as a two-part release. The first instalment arrives on November 5, 2026; the second is set for Diwali 2027. Kapoor stars as Lord Rama, with Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Lord Hanuman.
- Release languages: Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam.
- Global distribution: Sony Pictures, excluding India.
- Hindi-market distribution: Dharma Productions.
- Format: a worldwide IMAX release is planned.
The release architecture mirrors Kapoor’s argument. This is not being sent out as a Bollywood export; it is being positioned as Indian cinema in the widest possible sense. Sony Pictures will handle the rest of the world while Dharma Productions manages the Hindi-speaking market, and the five-language rollout gives the label real commercial scale.
The timing matters. Kapoor made the remarks during the film’s final international push, when interviews are not simply conversations but framing exercises. Asking Western media to drop “Bollywood” is also asking them to treat Ramayana the way its producers have built it: as a multilingual, pan-Indian event rather than a Mumbai-centric release.
Whether international media and audiences adopt that language remains an open question. But Kapoor has given them a clear instruction—one that matters beyond branding, because the word “Bollywood” has always been a distribution convenience rather than a full description of the industry.
Source: Hindustan Times
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