The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is a repository of films worldwide. It is considered as a credible place for people to get their info about a film’s cast and crew, and its ratings (user generated) allow users to see which movie is good and which is not. The higher a movie’s rating out of 10, the better it is considered. By this parameter, the best ever Indian film is a 1992 animated release, based on an epic from Indian history. Coincidentally, the biggest flop in Bollywood history, also regarded as one of the worst Indian films ever made, is also based on the same epic.
The best Indian film ever made is...
Released in 1992, the Indo-Japanese anime film Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama has the highest IMDb rating of all Indian films. With a rating of 9.2, it is ahead of even classics like Pather Panchali and Pyaasa and blockbusters such as Sholay and 3 Idiots, as well as critically acclaimed titles like Black Friday and Naayakan. Directed by Koichi Sasaki and Ram Mohan, with music composed by Vanraj Bhatia, the film’s Hindi dubbed version gained a cult following in the 90s after it was broadcast on Doordarshan. Along with Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan, it is considered the most faithful and best adaptation of Ramayana.
How Ramayana inspired Bollywood’s biggest flop
While the Telugu film industry has made several films on Ramayana, Bollywood has tend to stay away from the epic, barring a few films over the years. That changed this decade as Om Raut directed Adipurush, an adaptation of the epic, mounted on a Rs 550-crore budget. The film, which starred Prabhas, Saif Ali Khan, and Kriti Sanon, was a massive box office bomb, losing over Rs 220 crore at the box office. It was critically panned as well, and criticised for its loose interpretation of the source material and subpar CGI.
The upcoming film on Ramayana
But Bollywood is not done with Ramayana. Filmmake Nitesh Tiwari – of Dangal-fame – is directing a two-part film based on the epic. The film stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. Reports also claim that Kannada superstar Yash is appearing as Ravana in the film. Filming is currently underway and the film will reportedly target a 2025 release.
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