Ramayana: The Epic
| Ramayana: The Epic | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Chetan Desai[1][2] |
| Screenplay by | Chetan Desai[3] |
| Story by | Rituraj Ramendra Tripathi |
| Produced by | Ketan Mehta[4] Deepa Sahi[3] Niraj Bhukanwala[3] |
| Starring | Manoj Bajpayee[1] Juhi Chawla[1] Ashutosh Rana[1] Mukesh Rishi[5] |
| Cinematography | Chetan Desai[3] |
| Edited by | Sayed Sher Abbas[3] |
| Music by | Shaarang Dev Pandit[3] |
Production company | Maya Digital Media[1] |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. India[1] |
Release date |
|
Running time | 98 minutes[6] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹7 crore[7] |
| Box office | ₹0.98 crore[7] |
Ramayana: The Epic is a 2010 Indian computer-animated film from Maya Digital Media.[1][dead link][2] Directed by Chetan Desai[1][2] and produced by Ketan Mehta,[4] it was released by Warner Bros. India on 15 October 2010.[1]
Synopsis
The film is a retelling of the story of Lord Rama, from his birth until his battle with Ravan at Sri Lanka.[6]
Cast
| Name | Character | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Manoj Bajpayee | Prince Ram | [6] |
| Juhi Chawla | Princess Sita | [6] |
| Ashutosh Rana | King Ravan | [6] |
| Mukesh Rishi | Hanuman | [5] |
| Rishabh Shukla | Prince Lakshman | [6] |
| Dilip Singha | King Dasharath | |
| Neerja Mathur | Trijata | |
| Niti Mathur | Kaykai, Sursa, Tadka | |
| Shailendra Pandey | Sugreev | |
| Abha Parmar | Manthara | |
| Saurav Chakraborty | Shuk, Munadiwala | |
| Dishi Duggal | Sumitra | |
| Nayani Dixit | Shurphakha, Urmila | |
| Anand Singh | Vibhishan | |
| Sanjeev Tiwari | Angod | |
| Yogendra Patwal | Jamvant | |
| Ram Pravesh Kumar | Jatayu | |
| Pawan Shukla | Sampati | |
| Sachal Tyagi | Meghnad | |
| Krishna Gopal | Prahast | |
| Revi Yadav | Baali, Kumbhakarna | |
| Arun Thorat | Vishvamitra | |
| Meghna Dixit | Mandodari |
Production
"The Ramayana holds appeal even today, thousands of years after it is said to have been written. It is impossible to translate the grandeur and the setting of this epic in live action. Hence, animation is the only way to retell it in all its glory."
Ketan Mehta, producer[8]
Ramayana is the directorial debut of Chetan Desai,[2] the chairman and managing director of Maya Digital Media.[1] More than 400 crewmembers worked on the film over a five-year period;[6] the first three years were spent designing the characters, while the other two were devoted to actual production.[5]
Release
In September 2010, Warner Bros. India acquired the rights to Ramayana: The Epic.[1][2][9] This has made it India's second animated feature to be released by the local arm of a Hollywood studio, following Disney and Yash Raj's Roadside Romeo from 2008.[1]
The film was released on 15 October 2010, during the festivity of Dussehra.[2] 250 prints[10] were screened in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu versions;[1][9] English, Gujarati and Bengali versions have also been prepared.[8] A North American release is scheduled for early 2011.[10] Four days after its debut, Joginder Mahajan of Delhi expressed concern over the low box-office take.[11]
Reception
Reporting for the Twitch Film site, Josh Hurtado said, "While the animation of this project may look crude to [Western] eyes based upon the trailer, it is still miles beyond anything we've seen India create in this department so far."[9] Upon release, Indian Express gave it three stars out of five and commented that the animation was above par for the Indian animation industry, but singled out the Sanskrit dialogue.[12] The Times of India also praised the animation, adding that "the special effects ... sizzle and crackle".[13] Anupama Chopra of NDTV Movies gave it a mixed review, calling it a "faithful but dreary retelling". She came to the conclusion that "Ramayana is an ambitious step toward better homegrown cinema for children. I just wish it had more crackle."[14]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Bhushan, Nyay (14 September 2010). "Warner India to release 'Ramayana'". The Hollywood Reporter. e5 Global Media. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f Chakraborty, Swarup (14 September 2010). "Warner Bros to distribute Ramayana". Business Standard. Business Standard Limited. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f "Ramayana movie info". Bharat Movies. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
- ^ a b "Ramayana: The Epic slideshow". MSN Entertainment India. Microsoft. 17 September 2010. Archived from the original on 20 September 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b c "Animated Ramayana to Be Released for Dussehra". CineGoer. 15 September 2010. Archived from the original on 17 September 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g Agencies (15 September 2010). "Warner Bros to distribute Ramayana-The Epic". ExpressIndia.com. The Indian Express Limited. Archived from the original on 10 October 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b "Ramayana: The Epic". Box Office India. Retrieved 12 November 2011.
- ^ a b Nagpaul D'souza, Dipti (17 September 2010). "Epic Effort". IndianExpress.com. The Indian Express Limited. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b c Hurtado, Josh (13 September 2010). "Film News: Indian Animated 'Ramayana: The Epic' Picked Up by Warner Bros". Twitch Film. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
- ^ a b Staff (18 October 2010). "Ramayana The Epic to reach USA & Canada in early 2011". Indian Television Dot Com Pvt Ltd. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
- ^ "Three festival filcks 'Knocked Out' at BO". Hindustan Times. HT Media Limited. Indo-Asian News Service. 19 October 2010. Archived from the original on 4 November 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
- ^ Gupta, Shubhra (15 October 2010). "Ramayana: The Epic". IndianExpress.com. The Indian Express Limited. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
- ^ Kazmi, Nikhat (15 October 2010). "Ramayana: The Epic". The Times of India. Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.
- ^ Chopra, Anupama (15 October 2010). "Review: Ramayana: The Epic". NDTV Movies. NDTV Covergence Limited. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
