Why Ram Gopal Varma estimates a lower budget for ‘Ramayana: Part 1’

Bollywood filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, known for his penchant for controversies, has created a flutter saying that the budget for Ramayana: Part 1 could be much lower than the figures being widely reported.

The director of cult classics such as Rangeela, Satya, Shiva, Company and Sarkar thinks that first instalment of the two-part film cost around Rs 8 billion (Dh311.69 million approximately). Indian media reports suggest that the budget could be Rs 20 billion for the first part, now running in UAE cinemas, and Rs 40 billion for both, making them the country’s costliest film productions.

“I got to know that the actual cost of part 1 is a little less than 800 (crore rupees) and that includes mutually beneficial deals, global tax benefits, subsidy elements, etc., etc., which all will eventually bring the cost to lesser than that…” the filmmaker wrote on X. “And not only me but any reasonably experienced film maker by seeing the film can see the cost can’t be more than that.”

Varma didn’t cite any source for his information, but added a caveat: the costs of both parts can’t be the same. “…That’s like thinking the cost before interval and post interval will be same in a film… I know of films where 50 per cent of the cost was just (in filming the) climax.”

Varma also said that much of the cost will include the expenses for creating the world of Ramayana, which “becomes future assets for gaming and various other aspects including assets for part 2”.

Varma’s views strike a chord with that of Malhotra, who expects to generate revenue through multiple streams.

“I’m not motivated by the bean-counter logic of, ‘How much money did we make or not make,” he told CNN in a recent interview. “If we don’t make money with the movies, we’ll make it in the merchandise. If we don’t make it in the merchandise, we’ll make it in the theme park. If we don’t make it in the theme park, we’ll make it some other way.”

Ramayana: Part 1, directed by Nitesh Tiwari and bankrolled by Namit Malhotra and Yash, has created many Indian box office records. Following its release on November 6, the film’s gross collections in as on November 14 stand at Rs 12.28 billion, according to figures from the box office tracker Sacnilk.

According to Indian media reports, it set an record for the highest single-day collection with Rs 1 billion on its first Monday. In its first nine days, the film has also scaled the net Indian collections of films such as Pathaan, Animal and Chhava.

The first part features an ensemble cast that includes Ranbir Kapoor, Yash, Sai Pallavi, Ravi Dubey, Kajal Aggarwal, Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, Kunal Kapoor, Arun Govil, Indira Krishnan, and Lara Dutta.

Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman are its music composers and the Oscar-winning studio DNEG is in charge of visual effects.

’10 times bigger’

Varma expects Ramayana: Part 2 to do even better.

“If KGF 2 did around 5 times more than KGF 1, I am convinced that Ramayana 2 will do 10 times more than Ramayana part 1… If you disagree, we will talk in 2028.”