Gajendra Chauhan Not Impressed By Ranbir Kapoor Ramayana Trailer But Praises Arun Govil As King Dashrath Mahabharat

Actor Gajendra Chauhan, who rose to fame playing Yudhishthir in BR Chopra’s Mahabharat series, has expressed his honest opinion about the much-awaited Ramayana film directed by Nitesh Tiwari. Although he found Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama impressive, the actor admitted that the trailer did not do much to convince him entirely. He even pointed some aspects of the film, particularly that of Kaikeyi, which could have been different.

In an episode of Hindi Rush Podcast, Gajendra admitted that one of the issues was that of Lara Dutta’s representation of Kaikeyi especially her part in asking King Dashrath to banish Ram from his kingdom. He claimed that the styling and representation of this character were not in line with what is traditionally expected of it. “I saw the Ramayana trailer. Personally, I am telling you, I was not impressed. I was not impressed by Kaikeyi's scene where she asks for Ram's exile. Her dressing, for one, is very modern. They have given her a modern saree,” Chauhan said.

He himself had an experience of working in Ravi Chopra’s Ramayan of 2002, when he acted as Dashrath. It was treated as a crucial emotional moment, with considerable time spent getting the scene right. This scene was considered the turning point of the family since it starts falling apart after the influence of Manthara on Kaikeyi.

Despite his concerns about the casting, Gajendra did not dismiss Ranbir Kapoor’s appearance as Lord Rama. In fact, he felt the actor looked convincing in the visual glimpses shown in the trailer. “Here, Ranbir Kapoor has his own image. He is a very big star. Now he is playing Ram. He is looking good, no doubt. He looks very good in the get-up,” he noted.

He mentioned the fact that there is an established mental image of Lord Rama that is deeply entrenched within the minds of people due to culture and previous screen versions of this character. Hence, it becomes extremely difficult for any other actor to fully meet the expectations of the audience.

He said that people generally form an image of the god with very particular royal features like a prominent nose and a kingly aura. Even when people have these pre-established notions about this character, here refrained from criticising the casting of Ranbir Kapoor based on teaser clips alone. He believed that one could judge his performance only after watching the entire movie.

Despite the fact that there were sections in the trailer where Gajendra wasn't very sure of, one thing which Gajendra really appreciated was the casting of Arun Govil as King Dashrath. Arun Govil had the credit of playing Lord Ram in the TV series Ramayan, directed by Ramanand Sagar, during the late 1980s. “I think the best casting is Arun Govil as Dashrath. He was Ram 40 years ago. After 40 years, he has grown into Dashrath. He has become a father. I think that is very good casting for Ramayana. He is looking good too,” he added.

He went on to assert that one of the major challenges which arise from the casting of well-known Bollywood actors in mythological roles is the issue of having images which the fans know about. The other thing which he mentioned was the difficulty of disassociating the star from previous performance works which he or she may have done. Moreover, he stated that the image of a star will not be able to translate into the story of mythology.

Using his own career to illustrate the point, he noted that his public identity as Yudhishthir was entirely born out of his work onMahabharat. He explained that he didn't join the cast as an established star, adding that the show gave him his very first distinct persona since he had no prior image in the industry.

He also recalled a project on Mahabharat that was unveiled with a star cast, including Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Ajay Devgn, and Aamir Khan. However, the project was abandoned after two years into its development. He opined that the inclusion of stars who have established identities in the story could pose its own problems.

Ramayana: Part One, directed by Nitesh Tiwari, will have Ranbir Kapoor playing the character of Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi playing Sita, Yash playing Raavan, Sunny Deol as Lord Hanuman, and Ravi Dubey as Lakshman. Arun Govil will be seen as Dashrath, while Lara Dutta will play the character of Kaikeyi. Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, and Saurabh Sachdeva are among the other actors in the film.

The film will hit theatres on November 8, 2026, with Part Two arriving in 2027.

Monica Yadav is a senior entertainment journalist with Hindustan Times Entertainment, based in Mumbai, with nearly 11 years of experience covering Bollywood, Hollywood and Asian entertainment, including Korean, Chinese and Thai cinema, television and music. She is among the few Indian journalists in India with a dedicated focus on Korean entertainment, including K-pop and K-dramas, and has interviewed some of the industry's biggest stars while closely tracking the rise of global pop culture. Her reporting has also taken her beyond India, where she has covered travel, culture and entertainment. Alongside her work at Hindustan Times, her bylines have appeared in several international publications. Known for her in-depth interviews, feature stories and engaging storytelling, Monica enjoys exploring the human side of entertainment. From breaking news and long-form features to music coverage, explainers and on-camera conversations with artists, she is passionate about telling stories that connect with audiences across the world.Read More