Official trailer for animated 'Ramayana: Path of Dharma' released against the backdrop of a live-action project with Ranbir Kapoor

The theme of Ramayana frequently appears in cinema, and despite numerous adaptations, new films continue to emerge. For instance, Namit Malhotra is shooting a film about Ramayana with a budget of 4000 crore rupees, featuring stars like Ranbir Kapoor and Yash, which is scheduled for release around Diwali.

However, shortly before this, another Ramayana film is showing in theaters that is not gaining popularity. This refers to the movie 'Mahakavya Shri Ramayana Katha,' in which Anjali Arora plays the lead role of Maa Sita, whose fame originated from the song video 'Kachcha Badam.'

This film is Anjali Arora's debut and was directed by a local producer from Chhattisgarh. The teasers, trailers, and posters of the film have already become subjects of trolling. Following the premiere on Friday, September 25th, reviews of the picture were quite negative, especially regarding the visuals, as artificial intelligence (AI) was heavily used in the film.

Due to the negative public opinion, the film has faced poor collection figures. According to Pinkvilla, the film earned only 10 lakh rupees in net profit on its first day, which is a very weak start at the box office. Although there was some increase in revenue on the second day, it was insignificant.

According to Sakencalk, the film earned only 24 lakh rupees on Saturday, and the total net income over two days reached 34 lakh rupees. There is hope that the film might collect at least 50 lakh rupees today.

Various sources indicate that the budget for Anjali Arora's 'Mahakavya Shri Ramayana Katha' is estimated between 5 and 15–18 crore rupees. Despite the relatively small budget, the film started its theatrical run extremely poorly, and the reviews remain absolutely negative. Furthermore, the probability of any breakthrough similar to 'Hanuman Ansh' is low, given the upcoming release of the Ranbir film in 40 days. Now it remains to be seen what total revenue 'Mahakavya Shri Ramayana Katha' will generate over its entire run.

After posting a critique of the approach to depicting characters from mythological stories in recent films, actress Kangana Ranaut has sparked rumors that she is commenting on the forthcoming film 'Ramayana' starring Ranbir Kapoor and Sai Pallavi.

On Friday, the actress and Member of Parliament from the Bharatiya Janata Party shared a video clip from an old religious film. Along with this, she highly praised the way mythological plots were depicted in old cinema and criticized the use of modern clothing in recent films based on religious figures.

In her Instagram account, Kangana Ranaut wrote under the video: 'The more access people have to technology, the further they move away. We watch recent movies about God where characters who lived thousands of years ago are dressed in clothes resembling modern television series. It gives the impression that designers do not pay attention to the descriptions given in the scriptures. Whereas decades ago, without any visual effects or CGI, the masters of cinematography worked strictly according to the descriptions given in the scriptures. Look at the results, Jai Menaxi Amma.'

In her post, Kangana did not mention 'Ramayana' or any of its actors. However, after the release of the trailer for Nitesh Tiwari's upcoming 'Ramayana', when debates arose over the costumes and stylization of some characters, speculations began online based on her words.

Social media discussions revolve around the looks of Sai Pallavi as Sita and Laura Datta as Kaikeyi. Some users questioned the modern styling of the costumes, while others compared some looks to those shown in mythological TV shows.

Costume designers Rimple and Harpreet Narula commented on this criticism and explained the creative concept behind the film's costumes. They stated that these designs were created considering the cultural context, production needs, and the scale of the project, rather than aiming for an exact reproduction of any historical attire from the Ramayana period.

The designers also mentioned the difficulty of presenting this Indian epic to a global audience and viewers worldwide. These statements came amid ongoing discussions about character stylization, including Sita and Kaikeyi.

This is not the first time Kangana has voiced criticism related to 'Ramayana'. In 2023, she expressed disappointment that Ranbir Kapoor was chosen to play the role of Lord Rama in Nitesh Tiwari's film. At that time, Kangana made several personal accusations and criticized Kapoor's suitability for the role. She also questioned his acting abilities in the role of Lord Shiva in the 'Brahmastra' franchise.