‘Ramayana’ Opens Worldwide With Rahman and Zimmer’s Music Central to Its Global Ambitions

“Ramayana Part 1” opens worldwide on Nov. 5, bringing together an adaptation of the Indian epic and a music campaign designed to reach listeners across international markets. Producer Namit Malhotra told Variety the project became possible when the necessary talent, experience and production capabilities were in place to match its ambitions.

Nitesh Tiwari, whose previous films include “Dangal” and “Chhichhore,” directs the first installment of a two-film production. Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama, an exiled prince whose wife, Sita, portrayed by Sai Pallavi, is abducted by Lanka’s king Ravana, played by Yash. A.R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer collaborate on an Indian film score for the first time, with T-Series serving as music label and Amazon Music as streaming partner.

Prime Focus Studios, Malhotra’s company, is producing alongside Yash’s Monster Mind Creations. Visual effects are being created by DNEG and its sister company ReDefine. Malhotra, DNEG’s founder and CEO, said the ambition to bring the epic to international audiences must remain grounded in respect for its source and its significance to Indian audiences. DNEG has received eight Oscars, most recently for “Dune: Part Two.”

For Tiwari, the familiarity of the story makes its relationships and emotional choices especially important. He said audiences can remain deeply engaged even when they know what happens next, provided individual reactions and decisions feel convincing. His approach draws on lessons from his earlier films, where small exchanges between relatives or friends helped give larger scenes their emotional force.

Malhotra regarded music as essential from the outset and wanted Rahman and Zimmer to develop a sound that combined emotional familiarity with contemporary expression. The score was recorded with an orchestra at London’s AIR Studios, bringing Indian and Western musicians together. Tiwari said the needs of each scene determined whether its music should be expansive, restrained or replaced by silence.

The soundtrack rollout gave individual songs separate release windows, beginning with “Jai Jai Ram” on Sept. 14 to coincide with Ganesh Chaturthi. Tiwari worked with the producers, music teams and marketers on how songs were presented, including which images accompanied them and what audiences would discover in theaters. Malhotra hopes the music will also sustain viewers’ attachment to the characters between the two films.

Amazon Music’s campaign included an Oct. 21 event at the Chennai Trade Centre, where Rahman performed music from the film and Kapoor, Pallavi and Yash joined him onstage. The service is also introducing short-form programming on Instagram and YouTube, including “Decoding Ramayana with A.R. Rahman.” Its platform features a dedicated album destination and four new playlists named after characters from the epic. Songs are released simultaneously in India and abroad across its presence in more than 50 countries.

The partnership reflects Amazon Music’s broader investment in Indian film albums. Indian-language tracks represent around 70% of streams by its customers in India. Rishabh Gupta, the service’s India general manager, said listening data helps identify audience responses, while release decisions remain with the filmmakers and T-Series. Bhushan Kumar of T-Series said the collaborators aim to preserve the soundtrack’s Indian roots while connecting with contemporary and international listeners. For Amazon Music, lasting engagement beyond the theatrical run will be a key measure of success.