Hans Zimmer agreed to be a part of Ramayana even before the pitch ended, recalls producer

Ramayana producer Namit Malhotra's was still in the middle of his pitch to Hans Zimmer when the music composer agreed to become a part of the film.

Nitesh Tiwari's upcoming film adaptation of the Indian epic, Ramayana, is bringing together two Oscar-winning legends to compose the music and score of the two-part film. Indian musical legend AR Rahman and Hollywood's Hans Zimmer have combined forces to lend aural gravitas to the film, starring Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi, and Yash as Rama, Sita, and Ravana, respectively.

How Hans Zimmer came on board

The makers of Ramayana released a new video on Monday, which offered insight into how "the most epic collaboration of the year" came about. "Music has always had the power to bring people together," remarked Rahman in the video. "Together, we're setting off on a journey that's never been done together -- to make music that's thousands of years old about the gods, the traditions, and the stories that make India so important to us in the West," added Zimmer, sitting by his side at AIR Studios, London.

Producer Namit Malhotra recalled approaching Hans Zimmer in New York a few years ago. "When I met Hans, I'd made my whole pitch deck and worldbuilding. I showed him six or seven slides, and he said, 'I don't need to see it," said Malhotra. Zimmer then spelled out why he came on board the ambitious project almost instantly, "The two cultures that are so different can be so the same."

"These guys are not legends without any reason. They just know what needs to be done and excel at it. It's so effortless," pointed out director Nitesh Tiwari. He also detailed his experience of Rahman and Zimmer making music together through a live musical ensemble in the studio. "Suddenly, the emotions are overflowing. You're just mesmerised. It sounds so out of the world when so many people are in sync," added the filmmaker.

Inside AR Rahman and Hans Zimmer's process

Rahman revealed that he and Zimmer would work on different music pieces of Ramayana separately, before exchanging it with each other. "The process is constant exchange and seeing what works best," he said. "Our friendship is just speaking to each other without exchanging words; just take an instrument and start playing," added Zimmer.

Although Zimmer and Rahman had been planning to collaborate for years, it only gained fruition through Ramayana. "The fact that it was Ramayana that got him to score besides AR Rahman and his team -- and their respect for each other being so wonderful -- is a sight beyond imagination," said Malhotra.

Rahman, whose choice for composing Ramayana was initially questioned by many, has lately been receiving praise for the film's songs, from "Jai Jai Ram" and to "Mangal Rang". "Even for this generation to understand what Ramayana is, the grandest production and the details of it will make every kid understand our own culture," he said.

Ramayana also stars Ravi Dubey as Lakshman, Sunny Deol as Hanuman, Arun Govil as Dasharatha, Lara Dutta as Kaikeyi, Sheeba Chaddha as Manthara, Rakul Preet Singh as Shurpanakaha, Shobana as Kaikesi, Kunal Kapoor as Indra, Vivek Oberoi as Vidyuthjiva, and Anupam Kher as Jatayu among others.

Co-written by Tiwari and Shridhar Raghavan, the first part of Ramayana is slated to release in cinemas worldwide on November 5, three days before Diwali. It's being distributed overseas by Sony Pictures International and in the Hindi market by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions. As per Malhotra, the two-part film is being made on a budget of Rs 4,000 crore.