Ramayana Under Fire: Hrithik Comes to Ranbir's Defense as YouTuber PR Storm Erupts

The Telugu cinema industry's most ambitious project just hit another roadblock. Nitesh Tiwari's magnum opus Ramayana, starring Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana, is facing fresh controversies that go far beyond the usual pre-release criticism.

The latest storm centers around what industry insiders are calling a coordinated PR damage control operation. Multiple YouTubers and influencers have suddenly started uploading positive videos about the film, praising everything from its concept to its visuals: a stark shift from the initial trolling the project received after its teaser dropped on Hanuman Jayanti.

What's raising eyebrows is the suspicious timing and identical talking points across these videos. Sources suggest that producer Namit Malhotra's team may have provided a prepared narrative to content creators, specifically asking them to compare Ramayana favorably against Prabhas's disaster Adipurush and dismiss VFX criticism outright. The coordinated nature of this response has backfired spectacularly, with audiences now questioning the authenticity of every positive review.

The film is produced by Namit Malhotra's Prime Focus Studios in association with eight-time Oscar-winning VFX house DNEG, which makes the VFX criticism particularly stinging. Despite having access to world-class technology and director Nitesh Tiwari, who previously helmed the blockbuster wrestling drama "Dangal," which remains the highest-grossing Indian film of all time, the project seems unable to shake off the perception of subpar visual quality.

Enter Hrithik Roshan, who has now stepped forward to defend the embattled production. The Bollywood superstar's intervention suggests that industry bigwigs are rallying behind what could be Telugu cinema's most expensive venture ever. With music by Hans Zimmer & A.R. Rahman and a star-studded cast that includes Sunny Deol as Hanuman, the stakes couldn't be higher.

This PR controversy reflects a larger trend in Indian cinema where controlling the narrative has become as important as the actual filmmaking. For a project carrying the cultural weight of the Ramayana epic and the commercial expectations of a pan-India blockbuster, authenticity in audience response might be more crucial than any manufactured hype.

Part 1 is set for a Diwali 2026 release, giving the makers time to address both technical concerns and public perception issues. But in an era where audiences can spot inauthentic promotion from miles away, this YouTuber controversy might end up being more damaging than the original VFX criticism ever was.