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Ramayana Part 1 reviews: Yash steals show, verdict split
Ramayana: Part 1 opened on 5 November 2026 to 4/5 critic ratings, praise for Yash as Ravana and the visuals, and a split audience verdict on Ranbir Kapoor and the pacing.
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Ramayana: Part 1 opened on 5 November 2026 to 4/5 critic ratings, praise for Yash as Ravana and the visuals, and a split audience verdict on Ranbir Kapoor and the pacing.
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Key analysis, background details, and full reporting below.
Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana: Part 1 opened in cinemas worldwide on 5 November 2026, and the first reviews agree on two things: Yash's Ravana and the film's visual scale are its biggest strengths, while opinion is split on Ranbir Kapoor's Rama and the film's pacing.
By StoryTimesNow News Desk — 05 November 2026, 11:01 AM IST
Symbolic illustration of a bow and quiver before a palace at sunrise. The film's visuals and Yash's Ravana drew the most praise in first reviews.
Key Takeaways
What happened: Ramayana: Part 1, directed by Nitesh Tiwari and starring Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana, released in cinemas worldwide on Thursday, 5 November 2026.
Who is affected: Cinema-goers weighing a first-weekend ticket: critics surveyed so far rate the film 4 out of 5, while audience reactions on social media range from enthusiastic to sharply divided.
What is next: The story continues in Part 2, scheduled for Diwali 2028, which will take the narrative towards the battle to bring Sita back.
Introduction
Ramayana: Part 1 is the most talked-about Indian release of Diwali 2026, and its opening day has produced a split verdict: critics praise its ambition, visual world and one towering performance, while early audience reactions are far less unanimous, particularly about its central romance and length.
Here is what the first reviews say, where they agree, where they disagree, and what to know before booking.
What Happened?
The film released worldwide on 5 November 2026, as reported by ETV Bharat on the morning of release, with first-day-first-show screenings drawing immediate reactions on social media. Indulge Express, which says it watched the first day first show, rates the film 4 out of 5; Filmfare's critic rating is also 4 out of 5, and India TV News gives it 4 out of 5 as well.
Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, the film follows Rama, played by Ranbir Kapoor, from his life in Ayodhya and his marriage to Sita, played by Sai Pallavi, through his 14-year exile, which leads to Sita's abduction by Ravana, played by Yash. The film runs 195 minutes, or 3 hours 15 minutes, according to Filmfare, and was filmed for IMAX.
On social media, the early verdicts collected by ETV Bharat and NDTV ranged from enthusiastic praise to sharply divided reactions within hours of release.
Why Does This Matter?
Few Indian films arrive with this level of expectation. Adapting the Ramayana for a two-part, large-format release means the first instalment is judged on two different questions: does it work as a film in its own right, and does it earn the second part? The first reviews suggest it largely succeeds on spectacle and on Ravana, but leaves the emotional core, the Rama-Sita story, as the open question for Part 2.
The split also matters for audiences deciding how to watch it. Reviewers who liked the film most consistently recommend the big screen, where the visual scale, action sequences and score carry the experience.
Important Details
Film: Ramayana: Part 1, directed by Nitesh Tiwari; released worldwide in cinemas on 5 November 2026.
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Sunny Deol as Hanuman, with Ravi Dubey, Rakul Preet Singh, Lara Dutta, Arun Govil and Kunal Kapoor in supporting roles.
Music: Score by A. R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer.
Runtime: 195 minutes (3 hours 15 minutes), according to Filmfare.
Critic ratings so far: 4 out of 5 from Indulge Express, Filmfare and India TV News.
What critics and audiences praise most: Yash's screen presence and intensity as Ravana, the Ravana-Jatayu face-off, the visual effects and cinematography, and the interval and climax sequences.
What draws criticism: Pacing that slows in places, a central romance some reviewers found underdeveloped, and a score that divided opinion.
Background and Context
The film is based on Valmiki's epic, one of India's most familiar stories, which is precisely why reviewers keep returning to the same challenge: how to make a story everyone knows feel fresh without losing its emotional weight. Indulge Express frames this as the film's central gamble, and concludes that the visual ambition and Yash's performance carry it through, even where the romance falters.
Note what the first reviews are not: a box-office verdict. No opening-day collections are confirmed in the sources surveyed here, and early social-media reactions are self-selected, not a representative audience sample.
What Happens Next?
Part 2 is scheduled for Diwali 2028 and will take the story towards the battle to bring Sita back, according to both Indulge Express and Filmfare. Before that, the film's commercial fate will be decided by its opening weekend and its hold in the second week, when word of mouth, rather than opening-day excitement, does the talking.
For viewers still deciding, the consensus so far is clear: go for the spectacle, Yash's Ravana and the big-screen experience, and be prepared for a long, sometimes slow, first instalment that sets up a bigger second half.
FAQs
When was Ramayana: Part 1 released?
It released in cinemas worldwide on Thursday, 5 November 2026.
Who plays Rama, Sita and Ravana?
Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama, Sai Pallavi plays Sita and Yash plays Ravana. Sunny Deol plays Hanuman.
What rating have critics given it?
Indulge Express, Filmfare and India TV News each rate it 4 out of 5. Audience reactions on social media are more divided.
How long is the film?
It runs 195 minutes, or 3 hours 15 minutes, according to Filmfare.
When is Part 2 coming?
Part 2 is scheduled for Diwali 2028.
Sources and Verification
ETV Bharat, 5 November 2026: release date, cast, director, music, and early social-media reactions, including praise for visuals and performances and criticism of pacing.
NDTV, 5 November 2026: divided social-media reactions, praise for Yash's Ravana and the visual effects, criticism of Ranbir Kapoor's performance from some viewers.
Indulge Express, 5 November 2026: first-day-first-show review, 4 out of 5, story arc, Yash's performance, music, and Part 2 scheduled for Diwali 2028.
Filmfare, 5 November 2026: critic rating 4 out of 5, runtime 195 minutes, cast list, and big-screen recommendation.
India TV News, 5 November 2026: critic rating 4 out of 5, release date, director, genre, and verdict on performances and visual scale.
Verified 5 November 2026 from the sources above. Ratings quoted are the critics' ratings published on release day; social-media reactions are reported as reactions, not as a representative audience score, and no box-office figures are claimed in this article.
