Ranbir Kapoor says he initially rejected Ramayana ‘out of fear’: 'I’m not fit enough to play Lord Ram'

When the first glimpse of Ramayana dropped on Hanuman Jayanti, it instantly grabbed attention, with Ranbir Kapoor’s look as Lord Ram becoming one of the most talked-about reveals. But the actor has now admitted that his first instinct was to turn down the role, recalling, “Out of fear, I said no... I’m not fit enough.”

'My instinct reaction was no'

In a recent conversation with Collider, Ranbir revealed that when producer Namit Malhotra first approached him, there wasn’t even a script narration—just a direct question.


“When Namit offered me this part, he didn’t narrate the script to me. He just said, ‘Listen, I’m making this film. What do you feel about playing Lord Ram?’ And out of fear, my instinct reaction was, ‘No, I can’t do it. I’m not fit enough for it,’” he said.

'I still have to pinch myself'

Ranbir shared that his perspective changed once he understood the vision behind the film and heard the narration from director Nitesh Tiwari.

“Over a period of time, Namit took me through his vision... Then, when I met Nitesh sir and he narrated the story to me, I could not thank my stars that I was in the right place at the right time,” he said.

“I still have to pinch myself to understand that I am playing Lord Ram, and that’s something which is probably a big turning point in my life and career.”

'A year before filming, I felt the jitters'

Opening up about the emotional journey, the actor admitted that fear and nervousness stayed with him for a long time before filming began.

“If I can go back a year before filming is when I felt the jitters, when there was a lot of fear,” he shared.

However, that fear eventually turned into gratitude. “By the time it was a month before filming, I felt so much gratitude to get this opportunity. It was a blessing of Lord Ram that I got to play this—nobody can represent him, but to actually surrender myself to the character.”

'I was chasing the director to learn more'

Ranbir also revealed how deeply he immersed himself in preparation closer to the shoot.

“A month before, I was chasing the director, Nitesh Tiwari, to try to take as much as I could about the story, about the journey of Ram. Because it’s limitless, right? There is not just a definite ‘this is it,’” he said.

“I think to truly surrender to the part, to make certain sacrifices about your life, make certain changes... a month before shoot, I was all there.”

The ambitious two-part film features Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Hanuman.

With anticipation already sky-high, Ramayana: Part I is slated for a grand Diwali release this year.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”