Poorna Jagannathan stopped by the Los Angeles premiere of Ramayana: Part 1, dragging a bit of 2013 nostalgia into a 2026 blockbuster. She posted a photo with Ranbir Kapoor, captioning it, "Go see Ramayana in 3D with this king."
The reference is no accident. Fans instantly remembered the France boat sequence in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, where Riana gave Bunny that life-changing nudge toward his travel show. The internet is already tying the two moments together, framing Poorna's appearance as a full-circle moment for the YJHD alumni. It’s a clever bit of PR that feels more like a warm throwback than a calculated stunt.
But the real story here isn't the reunion; it's the sheer scale of what they're unveiling. Producer Namit Malhotra told Prakhar Gupta that the budget for both parts of Ramayana will hit around $500 million, or over ₹4,000 crore. "People thought I was a lunatic because no Indian film comes close to this scale," Malhotra admitted. He argued that the team is balancing ambition with efficiency, aiming to make the largest film in the world for an epic that demands a global audience.
The cast lineup is heavy, with Yash and Sai Pallavi also attending the LA event. The first part is slated for a worldwide release before Diwali in 2026, while the second installment is penciled in for Diwali 2027. Whether the screen can actually handle the ₹4,000 crore spectacle remains to be seen, but the ambition is unmistakably there.