Ramayana box office: Ranbir Kapoor’s epic targets Rs 2 billion opening, trails Dhurandhar 2 in pre-sales

The most expensive film project India has ever attempted is finally on screens, and the first morning of business tells a story of two halves. Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana: Part 1, led by Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana, opened on Thursday, November 5, after paid previews the night before. The question the trade is asking is whether they are coming in the numbers a project of this size demands.

Trade estimates put the film's worldwide opening day at Rs 180–200 crore (Rs 1.8–2 billion). With the Diwali holidays expected to keep crowds coming through the weekend, the real test is whether the costliest Indian film project yet can live up to the enormous expectations around it.

By 8 am on opening day, tracking site Sacnilk had the film at Rs 5.44 crore net in India (Rs 6.42 crore gross) from just over 2,900 shows, up from Rs 3.66 crore an hour earlier. The Hindi version is doing the heavy lifting, accounting for roughly Rs 4.09 crore of that figure. Among the dubbed versions, Kannada is the clear standout at Rs 89 lakh, well ahead of Telugu (Rs 35 lakh), Tamil (Rs 8 lakh) and Malayalam (Rs 3 lakh).

Pre-sales for Day 1 alone have already gone past Rs 50 crore gross (about Rs 43 crore net), with more than 14 lakh tickets sold across some 26,600 shows. Overall occupancy sits at around 23 per cent, though 120 shows are already full.

Demand was strong enough in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad for theatres to open their doors as early as 6:15 am. It is not a cheap night out: premium recliners at an IMAX 3D screen in south Mumbai are going for Rs 2,770 a seat, and a Telugu screening in Bengaluru is priced at Rs 950.

For all that, the film is not rewriting the advance-booking record books. At the national multiplex chains, Ramayana has sold about 3.25 lakh tickets ahead of release, which puts it 12th on the all-time list. Dhurandhar 2 sits at the top with 8.75 lakh, followed by Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan and Jawan at around 5.4 and 5.3 lakh respectively.

Trade analyst Sumit Kadel did not mince words. He expects the Hindi version to open at Rs 55–60 crore net and called the pre-sales underwhelming, arguing that a film with this cast, this source material and a reported Rs 2,000 crore price tag for this instalment should be eyeing a Rs 100 crore opening at minimum. He brushed aside the pre-Diwali timing as an excuse. Still, he left the door open: steep ticket prices could push Day 1 past Rs 60 crore, and if word of mouth turns strongly positive, he believes the film could gather Rs 500 crore net or more within its first week. From the dubbed versions, he expects Rs 12–15 crore, mostly from Kannada.

The early response from viewers and critics has been warm. The Guardian awarded the film, released internationally as Ramayana: Rise of a Legend, four stars out of five. Critic Peter Bradshaw found it rousing and hugely enjoyable, likening some of its sweeping imagery to The Lord of the Rings and The Lion King, and singled out the lead trio as well as the score by Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman. Not every note has been positive, though: several reviewers have flagged weaknesses in the English-dubbed version.

Rapper Badshah, who caught a screening, was effusive in a video posted overnight. He said the actors had become one with their characters, called Yash's Ravana menacing, picked out Ravie Dubey's Lakshman as exceptional, and said Jatayu ends up stealing the show. His verdict: "a six on five."

On social media, Sai Pallavi has emerged as an early favourite. One viewer wrote that she seemed born to play Sita and that five minutes of her introduction would settle any doubts, while also giving full marks to the AR Rahman song Mangal Rang.

The ambition behind the project is hard to overstate. Ramayana is being told in two parts with a combined budget of around Rs 4,000 crore, and the second instalment is slated for next Diwali. Sony Pictures is handling distribution across roughly 50,000 screens in more than 100 countries, plus about 9,000 in India. The supporting cast includes Rakul Preet Singh as Surpanakha, Faisal Malik as Kumbhkaran, and Arun Govil, Lara Dutta and Sunny Deol in key roles.

At three hours and 15 minutes, the film is long, but it carries a U certificate, opening it to family audiences that the adults-only Dhurandhar could not reach.

Overseas, advance sales for the opening weekend are approaching $3 million, with North America contributing about $2.15 million of that. The bigger opportunity may lie in the Middle East, one of Indian cinema's most lucrative markets, where bookings have not yet opened. With Dhurandhar banned in the region, Ramayana has a clear run there and a real chance of overtaking Ranveer Singh's film over its lifetime.