Ramayana: Part 1 has opened in cinemas worldwide to rapturous first reactions, a day after its star-studded Mumbai premiere — and a post-credit scene introducing Sunny Deol as Hanuman has already gone viral.
Key Points
- Nitesh Tiwari’s epic opened in cinemas worldwide on Thursday 5 November, after Wednesday’s Mumbai premiere.
- Early moviegoers in Mumbai praised its grand visuals, VFX, performances and musical score, calling it a landmark film.
- Rapper Badshah called the film “breathtaking” and said it made him cry, singling out the Jatayu sequence and background score.
- Sunny Deol’s first appearance as Hanuman, in a post-credit scene, has gone viral on social media.
The film, starring Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana, is one of Indian cinema’s most ambitious undertakings, with music by AR Rahman and Hans Zimmer and a U certificate from India’s Central Board of Film Certification. The first instalment is currently running in theatres, while the second part is planned for release during Diwali 2028.
The early reactions have been effusive. Badshah, who watched the film in Mumbai, wrote: “INCREDIBLE BGM. Ranbir, Sai Pallavi, Ravi Dubey, Yash, Lara Dutta, Arun Govil, Rakul. Everyone nailed it. Jatayu scene is insane. And wait for the moment when the dharti amber theme comes. CLAPSSSS. PLEASE GO WATCH IT.” He described the film as breathtaking and said it made him cry.
A viral post-credit scene
The biggest talking point of opening day may be a scene most viewers only discover after the credits begin. Sunny Deol’s first appearance as Hanuman has gone viral after clips from the film surfaced online following its theatrical release. According to News18, the post-credit scene introduces Sunny as Hanuman, although his face is not revealed in the footage. The clip shows Hanuman entering the frame accompanied by dramatic background music before switching to a wider shot of him flying through the air.
The advance numbers suggest the film is headed for a historic opening. Its final advance booking surpassed Jawan to enter Bollywood’s all-time top two with ₹42.96 crore gross, excluding block seats, and BookMyShow ticket sales crossed 50,000 in an hour after final pre-sales, entering Bollywood’s all-time top four. Its United States premiere advance bookings closed remarkably close to Dhurandhar 2, with trade watchers asking whether it can meet a $65 million overseas target.
What happens next
Not everything has drawn universal praise: the music, a collaboration between two Oscar-winning composers, has drawn divided reactions, with some listeners questioning whether it lived up to expectations. But the opening-day verdict from audiences has been overwhelmingly positive, and the film’s first-day box office will show whether the advance records translate into a historic opening weekend.
Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, the film also features Sunny Deol as Hanuman, Ravi Dubey as Lakshman, Lara Dutta, Arun Govil and Rakul Preet Singh. If the first reactions hold, Ramayana: Part 1 will not just be the biggest opening of the year — it will set the benchmark for the epic’s second part in 2028.
Sources
- ABP Live — https://news.abplive.com/entertainment/movies/ramayana-first-review-badshah-calls-ranbir-kapoor-starrer-breathtaking-says-it-made-him-cry-1874796
- Khaleej Times — https://www.khaleejtimes.com/entertainment/sunny-deol-lord-hanuman-ramayana-post-credit-scene
- Sacnilk — https://www.sacnilk.com/entertainmenttopbar/Recent_News