How Ranbir Kapoor’s Rama moved Vibhishana actor to tears

Harish Uthaman has spent years building a career in South Indian cinema. His Hindi film debut arrives in one of the biggest productions Bollywood has attempted, and one scene with Ranbir Kapoor already has him emotional.

Uthaman plays Vibhishana in Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana. In a conversation with Variety India, he spoke about the sequence where Vibhishana leaves Ravana and joins Lord Rama’s side. Rama’s camp is watching: Lord Hanuman, Lord Lakshman and their troops are all present as the words fly between the two characters.

The moment that stayed with him

The scene turns on acceptance. When Rama welcomes Vibhishana into the camp, Uthaman says Kapoor’s line delivery hit him directly. “The way he emotes and says those words, automatically gets to you,” the actor said. Uthaman was not just playing the moment; he was living it. He became teary-eyed as the dialogue unfolded and told Kapoor after the shot.

Uthaman called it a “beautiful and magical moment” and said that feeling from a co-actor helps one perform better.

Why the welcome scene matters

Vibhishana’s decision is one of the ethical hinges of the Ramayana. He walks away from Ravana’s Lanka and places his faith in Rama. Tiwari seems to be treating that acceptance as a full dramatic exchange, not a quick narrative transition. That is good news for viewers who want the epic to breathe.

The exchange between Rama and Vibhishana is more than a plot beat. It shows the emotional register Tiwari is chasing: big-canvas storytelling that still lands in small, human exchanges. For Uthaman, the praise from a co-star is quiet, but the takeaway is public: Kapoor’s Rama is being shaped by actors who are moved in the moment, not just by the scale around them.

Here is what we know about the project so far:

• Project: Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana Rise of a Legend
• Uthaman’s role: Vibhishana, with his Hindi film debut
• Key cast: Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Yash as Ravana, Sai Pallavi, Sunny Deol, Vivek Oberoi, Ravie Dubey, Rakul Preet Singh, Lara Dutta, Kajal Aggarwal
• Music: A. R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer together on score and background music
• Release: Expected over the Diwali weekend

The pan-India stakes

The casting itself is a statement. Uthaman comes from South Indian cinema, and the ensemble brings in Yash as Ravana and Sai Pallavi alongside Bollywood regulars. That blend matches the film’s pan-India ambitions. Pairing A. R. Rahman’s command of Indian devotional and epic music with Hans Zimmer’s orchestral scale is an unusual choice, and it suggests the team wants both authenticity and event-movie size.

The wait has a pulse now

Every behind-the-scenes detail from this film is being read closely by Hindi film fans. A co-actor tearing up on set may sound like small news, but it is exactly the kind of detail that tells you what the film is prioritising. When Rahman and Zimmer’s score meets those intimate performances, the Diwali weekend release has more than spectacle to offer.

Source: The Times of India