The box office verdict came fast, but the family verdict hit harder. Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt bypassed VIP premieres to sit among paying crowds in a multiplex, watching son-in-law Ranbir Kapoor pick up the bow in director Nitesh Tiwari's 3D spectacle, Ramayana. Days after the wide theatrical debut, Bhatt delivered his review over Diwali celebrations at home, borrowing directly from Yash Chopra's 1975 classic Deewaar. Soni Razdan shared the moment across social channels, capturing Bhatt seated beside Kapoor with a proud verdict: "Mere Paas Ram Hai."
The compliment lands as Tiwari's ambitious retelling battles polarized critical word-of-mouth. The production vaulted past its first single-day century mark on Monday, driving its domestic haul to ₹346 crore. Yet the financial mountain ahead remains steep. With a colossal ₹4,000 crore budget, the project stands as Indian cinema's costliest bet to date, requiring sustained momentum across global territories following an initial screening showcase in Los Angeles on October 27.
Bhatt skipped industry screenings entirely. He wanted the raw pulse of an ordinary screening room. "I have seen the new 'Ramayana', but stayed away from the premiere," Bhatt noted in candid post-release reflections. "I wanted to sit in a cinema hall among strangers and have that private, shared experience of watching a film. The mall I went to watch the film at looked nothing like the India I grew up in. Then the lights went down, and there was the 'Ramayana' again, unfolding before us in 3-D."
Critics have traded blows over visual fidelity and pacing across Tiwari's sprawling canvas, but Kapoor's turn as Lord Rama drew an emotional defense from the veteran filmmaker. Bhatt argued the role demanded a total spiritual reset from an actor whose recent credits skewed toward raw aggression. "I saw him touch something in himself that his other films had never asked him to," Bhatt stated. "I felt he had touched the God in him."
Bhatt reserved matching warmth for Sai Pallavi, whose casting as Sita anchored the central dynamic opposite Kapoor. Her turn offered immediate emotional footing amidst towering digital set pieces. "Sai Pallavi's Sita brought me such relief," Bhatt observed, praising the visual and narrative conviction anchoring the divine couple's devotion on screen.
The multi-part canvas stacks an ensemble featuring Yash, Sunny Deol, Ravi Dubey, and Lara Dutta alongside Kapoor and Pallavi. For Tiwari and his producers, holding screens through the post-holiday weekdays will decide whether this ₹4,000 crore gamble pays off or stalls out short of recovery.