India's 'Lord Of The Rings': Filmmakers hail Ramayana epic

Featuring Bollywood stars Ranbir Kapoor and Yash, the multi-million epic brings together Indian storytelling and Hollywood expertise in a bid to captivate audiences worldwide.

Ancient Hindu epic blockbuster Ramayana: Rise of a Legend. (Photo: screen capture)

The makers of an Indian blockbuster based on the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana have hailed the new film as an unprecedented fusion of homegrown and Hollywood talent, calling it India's first truly global release.

Ramayana: Rise Of A Legend – in cinemas worldwide from Thursday (Nov 5) – has been more than a decade in the making, with a reported mega US$420 million (S$ 537 million) combined budget.

It draws on the talents of Oscar winners in visual effects and music, buoyed by a stellar cast featuring some of Indian cinema's biggest names.

"People from all over the world came in to work on this project," Bollywood superstar Ranbir Kapoor told AFP in London before its release.

"So we really had the platform to really express (ourselves) in the best way possible."

The film, inspired by the millennia-old Sanskrit epic that serves as a foundational text for Hindus, chronicles the virtuous Rama's (Kapoor) battle to save his kidnapped wife Sita from the evil demon king Ravana, played by fan-favourite Yash, who goes by one name.

This latest screen adaptation featuring flying elephants and gargantuan-sized demons is bursting with computer-generated visual effects, known in the industry as VFX.

The brainchild of producer Namit Malhotra, his UK-headquartered visual effects arm Dneg has won eight Academy Awards for work on films including Inception and Dune.

The movie, which has Hindi and English versions, has been scored by Oscar-winning composers Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman, while its action directors and production designers boast numerous Hollywood credits.

Planned as a two-part spectacle, the creators believe it heralds a breakout moment globally for India's film industry, which has yet to win an Oscar in the coveted film categories.