'Ramayana' Holds World Premiere at LA's Academy Museum; Nitesh Tiwari Says AI Used Only for Lip-Sync

"Ramayana: Rise of a Legend," director Nitesh Tiwari's two-part adaptation of the Indian epic, held its world premiere on Tuesday, Oct. 27, with an invite-only 3D screening at the David Geffen Theatre at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, India Today reported. Stars Ranbir Kapoor, Yash and Sai Pallavi attended with Tiwari and producer Namit Malhotra, according to India Today and The Times of India.

The first part of the film is scheduled for a worldwide theatrical release on Thursday, Nov. 5. Ahead of the event, Hindustan Times reported that the screening was planned for a full-capacity audience of 945 guests and that invitees had been asked to wear traditional Indian festive attire because the premiere fell in the run-up to Diwali.

Tiwari addresses questions about AI

Speaking at the premiere, Tiwari responded to speculation that artificial intelligence had been used to dub the film into other languages. "As far as AI is concerned, it's only being used to lip sync, so that we can present the film to the world in their language. All the voices are dubbed by the artists," he said, according to Hindustan Times and The Times of India. He added that "no AI has been used in dubbing" and that the voices were recorded by real artists.

The Indian Express reported that the English-dubbed version of the film was screened at the premiere and that the tool involved is Brahma AI, developed by Malhotra's Prime Focus, with a component called VAANI used to match the actors' lip movements to dubbed English dialogue instead of shooting the film twice. Malhotra had earlier told ET Now that the dubbed performances came from voice actors, the Indian Express reported. "We've brought in voice actors who've actually performed it," he said.

Yash opens in Kannada; Sai Pallavi on Part 2

Yash, who plays Ravana and co-produces the film through his company Monster Mind Creations, opened his remarks from the stage with "Ellarigu Namaskara," Kannada for "greetings to all," according to India Today and the Deccan Herald. "Where you start can never define how far you can go," he said, according to India Today and Hindustan Times.

He also spoke about the story's place in Indian culture. "This story has travelled for thousands of years, and I think we are proud to present this story to the world," Yash said, Hindustan Times reported. Introducing him, Malhotra described Yash as both the film's star and his producing partner and credited "his conviction and my vision" for bringing the project together, according to India Today and Hindustan Times.

Sai Pallavi, who plays Sita, told international media at the premiere that she has not yet begun work on the second installment. "I haven't started filming yet," she said, according to India Today. She also said, "If you are curious about Indian culture and epics, this could be the start where you could see the best version of Ramayana that exists."

Yash attended with his wife, Radhika Pandit, and other guests included Jada Pinkett Smith, India Today reported. Moneycontrol reported that cast member Rakul Preet Singh and "The Boys" actor Karen Fukuhara were also present, and that Kapoor and Yash embraced on the red carpet.

First reactions and advance bookings

The Times of India reported that early reactions after the screening included both praise and reservations. One viewer quoted by the newspaper compared the experience to watching "The Lord of the Rings" for the first time, while another said that "Yash as Ravana is the biggest highlight" and described the film overall as "a mixed bag with so much more potential."

The Times of India, citing early box office reports, said the film had recorded $2.58 million in overseas advance bookings across five countries as of Oct. 28, including $1.91 million in North America, and Rs 14.06 crore in gross advance bookings in India for its opening day. Those figures are pre-sales, not box office collections.

Cast and release plans

The film stars Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Sunny Deol as Hanuman and Ravie Dubey as Lakshman, with a supporting cast that includes Anupam Kher, Kajal Aggarwal, Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, Kunal Kapoor, Adinath Kothare, Arun Govil, Indira Krishnan and Lara Dutta, according to India Today. It is produced by Malhotra's Prime Focus Studios in collaboration with DNEG and Monster Mind Creations, and its music is by Hans Zimmer and A.R. Rahman, Hindustan Times reported.

Part 1 will be released in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam and in IMAX, with Sony Pictures handling distribution outside India and Dharma Productions distributing in the Hindi-speaking market, according to Hindustan Times. The second part is scheduled for Diwali 2027.