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EXCLUSIVE: Madhu Mantena on Ramayana with Nitesh Tiwari: Expect the biggest cast in history of Indian cinema
Is Madhu Mantena planning to make Ramayana with Hrithik Roshan, Mahesh Babu and Deepika Padukone? The producers spills some beans on making the biggest Indian film till date.
In 2017, Madhu Mantena along with Allu Aravind and Namit Malhotra announced that he is creating the epic, Ramayana, as a live action trilogy in 3D. A couple of years later, it was revealed that Nitesh Tiwari of Dangal fame along with Mom director, Ravi Udyawar will be helming this ambitious project and the screenplay will be written by Sridhar Raghavan. Madhu is finally ready to speak about the much-awaited trilogy and his plans to take it to the global audience.
“The ambition that we have for Ramayana is larger than what our country has seen. The responsibility to tell this story is so larger that it requires a lot of work. We have taken it on ourselves to make it as well as anything else in the world. We are trying to follow the process that James Cameron did for Avatar,” Madhu informs, adding further that the idea is to push the envelope. “The ambition is so larger that we are going into the minute details of everything. We need to show the world what Ramayana is and it needs to portray all the magic that Valmiki wrote. This isn’t a project, it’s a purpose, a purpose to tell Ramayana in all it’s glory to the world.”
You can expect an announcement of the star-cast around Diwali this year. The characters of Ravana, Ram, Sita, Laxman are larger than life. You will see actors who are the best in class in terms of performances, coming on board the film. When I say the biggest cast ever, I mean it
Madhu Mantena
The producer informs that over 200 artists from across the globe are working on various aspect of the film for the last 2 years. The pre-production team includes some Oscar Winning Artists too. Over the last one year, there have been reports of the makers getting Mahesh Babu, Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone on board to play the characters of Lord Ram, Ravana and Sita. When asked Madhu to comment on the same, he neither denies nor confirms the news, but rather gives us a response with a pleasant smile. “Please expect the biggest cast ever in the history of Indian cinema. You can expect an announcement of the star-cast around Diwali this year. The characters of Ravana, Ram, Sita, Laxman are larger than life. You will see actors who are the best in class in terms of performances, coming on board the film. When I say the biggest cast ever, I mean it. It’s going to be really exciting,” he promises.
The ambition is so larger that we are going into the minute details of everything. We need to show the world what Ramayana is and it needs to portray all the magic that Valmiki wrote. This isn’t a project, it’s a purpose
Madhu Mantena
He assures that the casting of Ramayana will extend much beyond the Northern and Southern industry. “We will be getting the best artists from across the country. It’s not about North and South, it’s about unifying the country. We are doing this as India,” he exults. Ramayana is touted to be mounted on a budget of Rs 600 crore. It’s Madhu and co.’s dream venture and the producer is himself involved in all aspects of pre-production ranging from the writing to sketches and everything else. He concludes saying “We don’t know the budget yet, but it’s going to be bigger than anything that India has seen till date. We are making Ramayana for posterity. It’s not a story, which will come and go, but something that will live on forever.”
Stay tuned to Pinkvilla as we bring an update on Madhu’s Draupadi with Deepika Padukone soon.
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