Manoj Muntashir responded on Wednesday to comparisons between the songs of Ramayana Part 1 and his film Adipurush. He said, "I didn't write nursery rhymes for Ram, nor qawwalis." While Adipurush faced criticism for its dialogues, he defended the music, noting that many people still enjoy those songs today.
Amid mixed reviews of Ramayana Part 1 song Mangal Rang, Adipurush lyricist-dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir has responded to comparisons to the Prabash-starrer.
Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Ramayana Part 1, helmed by Nitesh Tiwari, has been mounted on a grand scale. The songs for the film are composed by AR Rahman and Hans Zimmer. While the songs from the film have been getting mixed reviews from the audience, they are also drawing comparisons to songs from Prabhas' starrer Adipurush.
Manoj Muntashir on Ramayana songs being compared to Adipurush songs
On Wednesday, Manoj Muntashir took to Twitter, slamming a news report that said, "Is Ramayana repeating Manoj Muntashir's stunt?" The report claimed Ramayana's latest song, Mangal Rang, has the feel of a qawwali.
Strongly reacting to this report, Manoj Muntashir wrote on X, "Manoj Muntashir-style stunt? The country's self-proclaimed best news channel has said something that is completely ignorant. My brother, I wish my stunt had been repeated in the songs of the Ramayana. Adipurush was a very bad film; the dialogues were even worse, but the songs - every child in the country sings them. Go to Shri Ayodhya sometime, and you'll hear nothing but Adipurush songs playing in every alley."
He further added, "The mistake I made, I've apologized to the Ram devotees for it countless times, and forgiveness was granted, but don't challenge the songs. There was no lack of devotion, dedication, or poetry in them. I didn't write nursery rhymes for Ram, nor qawwalis. People ahead are wise; they know who's worth what. Jai Shri Ram."
About Adipurush and Ramayana Part-1
Produced by T-Series and directed by Om Raut, Adipurush starred Prabhas as Lord Ram, Kriti Sanon as Sita, and Saif Ali Khan as Ravana. The film was reportedly mounted on a budget of Rs 550 crores, as per a report in Sacnilk; the film earned Rs 393 crores worldwide. While the film failed to break even, its visual effects and dialogues between Lord Ram, Ravana, and Hanuman were also criticized.
Ramayana Part-1, produced by Namit Malhotra and directed by Nitesh Tiwari, stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi as Sita, and Yash as Ravana. The film also stars Lara Dutta, Anupam Kher, Arun Govil, Vivek Oberoi, Ravi Dubey, Addinath Kothare, Sunny Deol, Rakulpreet Singh, and others. The film is slated to release worldwide around Diwali on 5th November.