In his upcoming trilogy on Ramayana, filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari is poised to re-establish one of the most iconic figures in the Indian mythology. The director, in a recent interview, stated that his version of Ravana, played by Kannada superstar Yash will not conform to the classic trope of a black character. Not a typical villain, Tiwari wants to demonstrate the tragic nuances of the personality of a person who was a successful artist, a brilliant scientist, a devout believer in Shiva, and a kind king.

According to Tiwari, it is a disservice to the intrinsic lessons of the story to take away Ravana his multidimensional character. The film aims to convey a strong message of the risks of ego and revenge by emphasizing the heights of intellectualism and spirituality that can be reached and the downfall of Ravana. The director pointed out that the tragedy is that a man with such great qualities can be ruined by his own egocentrism, which he thinks is an important lesson to be learned by contemporary viewers.

Directed by the ambitious project, Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama and Sai Pallavi plays Sita, the project is being envisioned to be more than a mere visual spectacle. Although Tiwari is promising to introduce to the audience a version of Ayodhya and Lanka never seen before, he underlines that the emotional core of the epic is his first priority. It is a joint venture film by Prime Focus Studios of Namit Malhotra and monster mind creations of Yash with a haunting score anticipated to be contributed by the legends namely, Hans Zimmer and A.R. Rahman.

With the first volume of the epic on its way to a Diwali 2026 release, Tiwari is optimistic that his grounded style, not taking too many creative liberties but at the same time making sure to honour the source-material, will touch a chord. Humanizing Ravana, Tiwari would like to provide more subtle and provocative look at the eternal confrontation between good and the shadows of the self.

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