Director Nitesh Tiwari will be helming the live-action version of Ramayana along with Mom filmmaker Ravi Udyawar (Photo: Express Archive).The ancient Hindu text of Ramayana is going to be adapted for the big screen in a live-action format, according to Pune Mirror. The movie will, reportedly, be adapted in multiple languages including Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. Producers Madhu Mantena, Allu Aravind and Namit Malhotra are working together to bring the ambitious project to life on the big screen.
Dangal director Nitesh Tiwari and Mom director Ravi Udyawar will be helming the movie with a screenplay by Sreedhar Raghavan. The live-action feature will be shot in 3D and will be a three-part series with a cast that will boast of actors from various industries such as Bollywood, the Punjabi film industry, Kollywood as well as Tollywood.
Admitting that he is on board for the project, Nitesh told Pune Mirror, “Madhu and Ravi have been friends for years, Allu sir and Namit are legends and Sreedhar has fabulous credentials as a creator. All we have to do now is zap the world.”
Ravi Udyawar, on the other hand, is excited to bring the familiar story of Ram and Sita alive on the big screen.
“I heard these stories from my grandmother and mother and passed them onto my children. Everybody knows the story of Ram, Sita and Raavan; it’s the storytelling that will make our trilogy memorable and I am putting everything I have learnt into it to make it fun and engaging while staying true to the original,” the director said.
The series will be made on an estimated budget of Rs 500 crore. The team is yet to take a call on the release date, casting and other important details, however, they are aiming for a 2021 release, as far as the first part of the franchise is concerned.
“For me the Ramayana offers magic in its shape-shifting monsters. It’s something that even a toddler will enjoy. I am doing this for my children,” concluded Ravi Udyawar.
