Ramayana Part One release date 5 November; Ranbir Kapoor and Yash film to go pay-per-view on JioHotstar

Nitesh Tiwari's "Ramayana: Part One", starring Ranbir Kapoor and Yash, will be sold as a pay-per-view film on JioHotstar in India after its cinema run, Variety reported on Wednesday. JioHotstar and producer Prime Focus Studios called it the first offering of its kind on the streamer: viewers will buy the film separately rather than get it with a normal subscription. No price or streaming date has been announced.

Release date and languages

The film opens worldwide on 5 November 2026, ahead of the Diwali holiday, in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and English, including in Imax 3D. Sony Pictures Entertainment is releasing it globally and Karan Johar's Dharma Productions is distributing it in India, according to Variety.

Cast and crew

• Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama, Sai Pallavi plays Sita and Yash plays Ravana.
• Sunny Deol is Hanuman and Ravie Dubey is Lakshman, with Arun Govil, Lara Dutta, Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, Kunal Kapoor and Kajal Aggarwal.
• The music is by Hans Zimmer and A.R. Rahman. Shridhar Raghavan wrote the screenplay.
• It is produced by Prime Focus Studios with DNEG, the visual effects company that has won eight Oscars, and Yash's Monster Mind Creations. It is the first of two parts.

DNEG chief Namit Malhotra said the film should be seen on the biggest screen possible, but that India's cinema network "cannot reach everyone", which is why the streaming deal was made.

Why the pay-per-view model is news

Big Indian releases usually reach a subscription streamer a few weeks after the cinema run. Selling a single film on demand is a test of whether audiences will pay extra for an event film at home, the model Hollywood studios use for premium rentals. If it works, other big-budget Indian films may follow.

Watching from Pakistan

JioHotstar is an Indian service and the pay-per-view deal announced is for India. Variety's report does not cover Pakistan, and no Pakistani cinema release has been announced. For more from the film world, see our entertainment news; if you pay for streaming services by card in dollars, our currency converter shows the rupee cost.