Mahabharat acor Gajendra Chauhan also spoke about the challenge of casting established Bollywood stars in mythological roles, says ‘It is very difficult for that star image to be accepted’.
Updated: August 12, 2026, 2:45 PM IST
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Gajendra Chauhan on Ramayana trailer (Pic Collage)
Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana trailer has been getting a lot of love from audiences, with fans praising the scale, visuals and performancesHowever, actor Gajendra Chauhan, best known for playing Yudhishthir in BR Chopra’s Mahabharat, has a different takeIn a recent interview with the Hindi Rush Podcast, Chauhan said he was “not impressed” by some parts of the trailer, although he praised Ranbir Kapoor’s look as Lord Ram.
Mahabharat actor Gajendra Chauhan didn’t like Ramayana trailer?
Chauhan particularly pointed out the scene where Kaikeyi (played by Lara Dutta) asks King Dashrath to send Ram into exileHe felt the presentation did not have the emotional impact he expected and also questioned Kaikeyi’s styling“I saw the Ramayana trailerPersonally, I am telling you, I was not impressed,” Chauhan saidHe added, “I was not impressed by Kaikeyi’s scene where she asks for Ram’s exileHer dressing, for one, is very modernThey have given her a modern sari.” Comparing it with his experience of working on BR Chopra’s Ramayan, he recalled that the Kaikeyi-Dashrath sequence was shot with great attention to the emotions of the charactersAccording to him, the scene is important because it shows how a family begins to fall apart after Kaikeyi is influenced by Manthara.
Kaikeyi (played by Lara Dutta)
Chauhan also spoke about the challenge of casting established Bollywood stars in mythological roles“Stars have an imageIt is very difficult for that star image to be accepted in mythologyIf you want to play these characters, you should not have too much of an imageYou should not be too exposed to the public,” he said.
The actor explained that his own image as Yudhishthir was created through Mahabharat“The image that was created for me came from Mahabharat, because before that I didn’t have an image,” he saidTalking about Ranbir, he added, “Here, Ranbir Kapoor has his own imageHe is a very big starNow he is playing Ram.”
However, Chauhan made it clear that he liked Ranbir’s appearance as Ram“He is looking good, no doubtHe looks very good in the get-up,” he saidHe also pointed out that audiences already have their own idea of what Lord Ram should look like“We had an image of Ram in our imagination — that he would have a long nose, that he would look like a king, that kind of look,” he said.
At the same time, he admitted that it is too early to judge the film based only on its trailer“Until the film is released and we see it in its totality, it is a little difficult to comment,” he said.
Gajendra Chauhan praises Arun Govil’s casting as Dashrath
While Chauhan had reservations about certain parts of the trailer, he strongly praised the casting of Arun Govil as King DashrathGovil famously played Lord Ram in Ramanand Sagar’s iconic Ramayan in the late 1980s“I think the best casting is Arun Govil as Dashrath,” Chauhan saidHe explained why he found the casting interesting, saying, “He was Ram 40 years agoAfter 40 years, he has grown into DashrathHe has become a father.” Calling Govil a “fantastic actor”, Chauhan said he believes he will do justice to the role.
Arun Govil as Dashrath
Tiwari’s Ramayana stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Raavan, Sunny Deol as Lord Hanuman and Ravi Dubey as LakshmanArun Govil plays Dashrath, while Lara Dutta will be seen as KaikeyiRakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi and Saurabh Sachdeva are also part of the cast.
Ramayana: Part One is scheduled to release in India on November 8, 2026The first part will follow Ram’s early years, his relationship with Sita, their marriage and the beginning of his 14-year exileThe second part is scheduled to release during Diwali 2027.
