There is no dearth of talk around Nitesh Tiwary. Ramayana: Part I From its Rs 4,000 crore budget and star-studded cast to its music and visual effects, the film has become one of the most closely watched Indian productions in recent years.

The VFX, in particular, has generated significant buzz online. While some viewers have praised the scale of the visuals, others have questioned the quality of the effects based on the teaser and trailer clips. However, the makers of the film insist that what the audience has seen so far is only a glimpse of a much bigger cinematic vision.

The English trailer itself tells us about the film’s global ambitions, with the line: “From the visual artists who brought you Odyssey, Dune, Interstellar.” The context is important because DNEG (Double Negative) served as the main visual effects studio behind Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar as well as Denis Villeneuve’s Dune films.

The construction of the world The Ramayana

Ramayana: Part I Bringing together large-scale storytelling, international talent, and cutting-edge visual effects to recreate the world of the ancient epic, it is shaping up to be one of the most ambitious films ever made in India.

The film’s visual effects efforts are being helmed by DNEG and Redefine, the studio headed by producer Namit Malhotra. The teams have worked hard to create the expansive universe of the Ramayana, including mythical kingdoms, expansive landscapes, large-scale battle sequences, and visually rich settings at the heart of the story.

According to a report in Business Today, the film relies heavily on visual effects to create and enhance key locations, creating elaborate digital environments, and seamlessly blending computer-generated imagery with practical sets and live-action performances. The aim is to present a cinematic world that feels immersive, cohesive, and grounded despite its mythological scale.

The production has also assembled an international creative team. Production designers Ravi Bansal and Ramsay Avery oversaw the film’s visual design, while action experts Terry Notary and Guy Norris led the stunts and action choreography.

The risk that started it all

In a conversation with Komal Nahata on ETC almost 15 years ago, Namit looks back on a decision that shaped his career and the future of his visual effects business. Namit revealed that his family has mortgaged their house to fund the VFX venture.

Recalling the risk his family took in the late 1990s, he said, “In 1997, I knew there was no bigger risk. My company’s turnover was Rs 75 lakh, and the loan we had taken was Rs 2 crore. I knew that if the business failed, our story would be completely over. After all, it was a new technology, we did everything without investing at home. 21. But without hesitation, my father did it, perhaps because I am his only son.”

An 86-camera setup and meticulous planning

Actor Indira Krishnan, who plays Kaushalya in the film, gave a glimpse of the scale of the production while talking to NDTV.

Recalling her experience during the preparation process, she said, “I remember when I went for my body measurements, they told me the machine was used for (Christopher Nolan’s) Interstellar. It was an 86-camera setup. All 86 cameras flashed on me at once – I was zonked out. They told me it was for VFX, not the younger versions would have no idea. Even the skills walking or Sitting was all planned, just calm and control.

He praised production banner Prime Focus and the VFX team led by Jacker for the precision and scale of their work. “It’s not easy to assemble such a large cast in one frame and execute such heavy VFX seamlessly.”

Criticism

Ranbir Kapoor has a message for those judging Ramayan’s visual effects before watching the film in theatres. The actor has defended the extensive VFX work behind the upcoming epic and said that people often don’t realize how much time and effort goes into creating such visuals.

In a recent chat with Collider, Ranbir spoke about the growing number of people online who scrutinize a film’s computer-generated visuals after watching a teaser or trailer.

He said, “A new phenomenon right now is that in the last few years, there’s been such a large number of people online who have become CG critics. They see a trailer and they always criticize that it’s not very good or it looks like it’s not done.”

The actor said the conversation around VFX has changed as audiences are now more interested in how computer-generated images are created. However, he admits that many people may not fully understand the process.

“I think people are becoming more aware, especially with the advent of AI. People are becoming more interested in how good the CG is and how good the CG is going to look once the film is released. And I think that’s sometimes very funny. Because people who don’t know how CG is done, people think that somebody used some AI and released something. There are countless hours of work where Nimite is working for the artists and years of work. VFX calls since the project began, trying to get the color of the sky right now to really impress the audience with authentic CG.

Years of work behind a single sequence

Ramayana director Nitesh Tiwari, who was also part of the conversation, spoke about the amount of work that went into the film.

According to the filmmaker, some of the VFX scenes took almost three years to complete. The scale of the project meant the team spent years revising individual scenes and meeting the film’s visual standards before release.

Why the makers want the audience to watch it on the big screen

Producer Namit Malhotra also addressed the online response to the first teaser of the film.

He said the response was very different when the same footage was shown to audiences in 3D on a large IMAX screen.

“When we launched our previous teaser, we heard a lot of buzz around certain aspects of what we did. And those same people, when we showed them in 3D on a big IMAX screen, all those conversations changed. Because they’re judging the content on their phones, and not in a good way,” Namit said.

He added that Ramayana has been designed keeping in mind the theatrical experience and urged the audience to watch the visuals on the big screen before forming an opinion.

“Here we are spending years and millions of dollars to try and build something for that big screen experience that we’ve been patiently waiting to bring to you. And then you judge it on a phone or a not-so-great Internet connection and say, ‘No, it’s not good enough.’ Just to say, when you see it on the big screen it means it’s really beautiful,” he added.

Namit said the team also invited creators and influencers to experience the footage in the format it was designed for.

Comparing it to watching Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey in 70mm IMAX, he argued that some cinematic experiences cannot be replicated on a mobile phone or personal device.

The producer also reflected on his experience working with Nolan and explained how significantly different a film can be when seen in a cinema.

Namit Malhotra said, “We know for a fact, because we have collaborated with Chris on all his films, that what you see in that theatrical experience, visually and audio-wise, is completely unique to what you see on any digital device. And this proves it. Come judge it and if you don’t like it, that’s right,” said Namit Malhotra.

Ramayana is planned as a two-part film and is one of Indian cinema’s biggest bets on visual storytelling.