The first full trailer for Ramayana: Part 1 finally offers a closer look at Nitesh Tiwari's retelling of the epic, bringing Ranbir Kapoor's Ram, Sai Pallavi's Sita and Yash's Ravana into focus. But a four-minute trailer can only cover so much ground. Beyond its three leads, the footage introduces more of the film's ensemble while keeping a few of its most anticipated characters and story beats in reserve.
The central cast includes Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Goddess Sita, Yash as Ravana, the king of Lanka, and Ravie Dubey as Lakshman. Beyond them, the ensemble includes several other characters from across the epic:
Ranbir Kapoor as Ram
Sai Pallavi as Sita
Ravi Dubey as Lakshman
Sunny Deol as Hanuman
Arun Govil as Dashrath
Shobhana as Kaikasi, Ravana’s mother
Vivek Oberoi as Vidyutjihva
Addinath Kothare as Bharat
Nitish Sharma as Shatrughna
Faisal Malik as Kumbhakarna
Harish Uthaman as Vibhishana
Suhail Nayyar as Sugriva
Saurabh Sachdeva as Mareech, the demon who takes the form of the golden deer
Mukesh Tiwari as Sage Agastya
Rakul Preet Singh as Surpanakha, Ravana’s sister
Sheeba Chaddha as Manthara
Lara Dutta as Kaikeyi
Kajal Aggarwal as Mandodari
Indira Krishnan as Kausalaya
For a trailer that builds towards the battle for Lanka, one character is conspicuously missing. Sunny Deol's Hanuman never appears, nor does the Vaanar Sena. Given Hanuman's place in the epic, the omission has become one of the trailer's biggest talking points online, with many viewers wondering if the filmmakers are saving his first appearance for a later campaign.
The trailer opens in Lanka, introducing Ravana before moving to Ayodhya and Ram's story. Several announced characters remain outside the trailer's focus. Lara Dutta's Kaikeyi, Arun Govil's Dasharath, Kajal Aggarwal's Mandodari and Kunal Kapoor's Indra are either absent or only briefly seen, leaving much of the wider world around Ram, Sita and Ravana to be introduced later.
The trailer also appears to cover some of the earlier chapters that lead up to Ram's exile. A glimpse of Ram breaking the Shiva Dhanush refers to the challenge set by King Janaka before Sita's marriage, while another frame points towards his encounter with Parashurama after the bow is broken. These moments suggest that Part 1 will spend time on the events that shape Ram's journey before the conflict in Lanka.