Adipurush director responds to controversy over Saif Ali Khan’s ‘Islamised’ look as Ravana: ‘It’s got nothing to do with any Khiljis, Nadir Shahs, Genghis Khans, and Babars of the world’

In an exclusive conversation with an Indian news channel, director Om Raut and dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir responded to the ongoing controversy around their forthcoming film Adipurush, which is based on the epic Ramayana.

The film has been facing unprecedented criticism ever since the makers dropped its official teaser on October 2. Right after the teaser dropped on YouTube, a number of people took umbrage of the portrayal of the lead characters, especially Ravana, and the poor CGI.

Reacting to the same, director Om Raut said, “We expected a very positive response, to be honest. It is kind of mixed. There are a lot of people who are saying good things about it. There are some people who are not, and there are some differences in their minds. This has been a journey, I must say.

He continued and said that he approached Manoj Muntashir to write the dialogue for Adipurush because of the love they share for Lord Ram. “Your research and study and knowledge of the literature, of the greatest Indian literature Ramayana, is extremely high, we all know that,” said Raut.

Speaking about the controversy over Saif Ali Khan’s so-called Islamised look as Ravana, Raut said, “He is demonic. He is a person who is the greatest villain of all time. He’s a ten-headed demon and you will have to see the film to actually understand that particular point. The demonic image of today’s generation of today’s time is the one I have tried to translate onto the screen correctly. We are making this film for the next generation. The idea behind this film is to take our great holy script, our Ramayana to the next generation. And not only for the next generation but for the world to see. And in order to make him intimidating, there is a certain visual, a certain image that comes to mind, which we tried to capture through our imagination. But definitely, that has got nothing to do with any Khiljis of the world, Nadir Shahs of the world, Genghis Khans of the world, Babars of the world. Not at all remotely is there a connection between them.”

Starring Prabhas, Kriti Sanon, Saif Ali Khan, and Sunny Singh, Adipurush is set to release on February 12, 2023.