Mukesh Chhabra reveals established actors didn’t want to play Lakshman’s role in Ranbir Kapoor starrer Ramayana; here’s why

Filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari’s directorial movie Ramayana is one of the most anticipated movies. Though the makers have not officially released any first-look posters or even announced the movie, fans are quite stoked to see Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram. While there have been several speculations around the casting of Ramayana, Mukesh Chhabra has finally shared why he felt Ranbir is perfect for Lord Ram role. He also shared how. Mukesh also revealed that casting the character of Lakshman proved to be a difficult task because established actors weren’t willing to play second-fiddle to Ranbir.

Mukesh Chhabra on casting Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram in Ramayana

In a podcast with Ranveer Allahbadia, the casting director shares why only Ranbir was casted as Ram. He says, “Uske chehre pe calmness hai, woh toh chahiye thi na…Nitesh (Tiwari) ne bahot pehle hi soch lia tha unko. Ye bahot sahi decision hai. Wo aapko maloom chalega film aane ke baad. (He has a calmness on his face. It was needed for the film. Nitesh Tiwari thought about casting him quite earlier. It is a great decision and the audience will realize after watching the film)”.

Mukesh on casting for Lakshman’s role

Mukesh also revealed that casting the character of Lakshman proved to be a difficult task because established actors weren’t willing to play second fiddle. While not revealing the name of the actor, Mukesh went on to share that the actor who was finalised for the role of Lakshman has done television shows and is loved by fans. He added, “Nitesh bhai had decided to cast Ranbir very early in the process, and once you watch the film, you’ll see why it’s such apt casting. I think the actors I’ve worked with the most in my career are Ranbir and Rajkummar Rao. Nobody can beat Ranbir when it comes to acting.” Explaining what he meant by that, Mukesh continued, “He’s very neutral about it. He doesn’t bother too much about hits and flops. All he’s concerned about is acting.”

Mukesh on other characters casting

Mukesh also opened up about casting some other major roles in the film, and said that a big name has been locked for Hanuman, while they’ve chosen to go with a newcomer for the role of Lakshman. He said, “We’ve found a lovely actor for Lakshman. A lot of people auditioned for the role. But I’m very happy with the actor we’ve gone with, this is going to be his first film in Bollywood.”

He said that Lakshman’s key trait in the film is that he adores his brother, and doesn’t challenge his opinion. He also needs to maintain his dignity, but can’t dominate interactions. But finding someone to play this ‘simple, straightforward’ character proved to be difficult. “It was the last role we cast. We’ve chosen a young actor who has worked a lot in television; he’s a lovely guy. We couldn’t have found a better Lakshman. I’m very happy that the people we’d initially approached all said no. Two or three people said no, because they think that Ram and Lakshman will always have to be together.”

Furthermore, Sai Pallavi is playing the role of Sita while KGF star Yash is said to essay the role of Raavan. Though there has been no confirmation about his role in the movie, Yash has ventured as a producer for Ramayana. He has become 50-50 partner of Ranbir Kapoor starrer.

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