As per a report by Pinkvilla, the Gadar actor will play Hanuman in Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana. The three-part epic saga stars Ranbir Kapoor as Ram and South actress Sai Pallavi as Sita. According to the report, a source has revealed “Hanuman stands for strength and there’s no one better than Sunny Deol in the Indian film industry to justify what Bajrangbali stands for. The actor has shown interest in being a part of Nitesh Tiwari’s rendition of Ramayana and is also excited to play the part of Lord Hanuman. However, it’s still early stages of discussion.”
The trilogy is being co-produced by Nitesh, Madhu Mantena, Namit Malhotra, and Allu Aravind. Reportedly, all four co-producers are of the opinion to not only cast Sunny Deol as Hanuman in the trilogy but also bring a spin-off on his character. According to the source, this is what has made the actor interested in the role.
“The Ramayana is just a small part of Lord Hanuman’s life, and there are many other facets to the story. Nitesh wants to explore that with a standalone film on Lord Hanuman. Everything needs to fall in place – from the date of the shoot to the commitment for the franchise spin-offs and the financial structure,” the source added.
The film will go on the floors around February 2024 although the world of Ramayana has been completely created by VFX. Reportedly, the Oscar-winning company, DNEG has prepared the VFX plates for the world of Ramayana.
Earlier it was speculated that Alia Bhatt would play the role of Sita but a Pinkvilla report informed that the actress has walked out of the film because of date issues. So, South heroine Sai Pallavi has been approached to play the part alongside Ranbir Kapoor. With this movie, it would be the actress’s Bollywood debut.
The three-part epic film was slated to go on floors in December 2023. However, the film is still in the pre-production stage and will not start before February of next year.
In a recent interview, filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari was asked if he is cautious about his project after the kind of reaction Om Raut’s Adipurush received. Tiwari said he is confident that his Ramayana would not hurt the sentiments of people.
Incidentally, Adipurush featured Prabhas, Kriti Sanon, and Saif Ali Khan as Ram, Sita, and Ravan. The film received a backlash from the Indian audience immediately after its release. It is to be seen what fate lies for Nitesh Tiwari’s upcoming Ramayana.
By Ishita Ganguly
