TV ‘Lord Rama’ Costumiers Say Ranbir Kapoor’s ‘Ramayana’ Look Is A ‘Missed Opportunity’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Nitesh Tiwari’s “Ramayana” is being hailed as one of the global event films of 2026. With headlines highlighting the reportedly ₹4,000-crore movie, every aspect of the movie is being keenly awaited, dissected and scrutinized.

Over the years, ‘Ramayan’, the epic, has been retold multiple times for Indian Television. The last notable one was “Shrimad Ramayan,” on Sony TV. Shibapriya Sen, who has worked on characters' costumes in superhit TV shows like “Shrimad Ramayan” and "RadhaKrishn,” feels that the “Ramayana” teaser lacks the element of awe that everyone expected from the first look. 

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Sen shares that while working on “Shrimad Ramayan,” the brief from producer Siddharth Kumar Tewary was to create a look that was appealing but did not diminish the reverential aura of Lord Rama. She elaborates, “When it comes to this epic, the original one made by Ramanand Sagar is irreplaceable in many aspects. My producer’s aim behind ‘Shrimad Ramayan’ was to make it appealing to the younger generation. Indian mythology is full of superheroes; it is just that they are not presented to the audience like, say, a Spider-Man or He-Man.” Sen,  who won awards for her costume design for the show, says that the core of Lord Rama cannot be altered. “He is the heart of India. So, while you experiment with clothes, you have to remember that He is a divine entity for whom Indians have utmost reverence,” she adds. 

Costume Designer Shibapriya Sen 

Further on, she explains how Indian sculptures, heritage and culture played a huge role in creating the looks of Lord Rama, Maa Sita and Hanuman for the TV series. “His mukut (crown) had the chakra of the Surya Rath (chariot of the Sun God), which we see at the Konark Temple. Yellow is the color associated with Lord Rama. I had used a lot of traditional embroidery with zardozi for the regal costumes. For Sita’s look, we explored Madhubani prints since she is from Mithila. The sculptures of Ajanta, Ellora and Hampi were my inspirations for the design around Lord Hanuman,” she reminisces.  

Talking about “Ramayana,” Sen shares that while the scale is massive, the makers could have done  a lot more. “In TV, we operate under tight budgets and telecast constraints. I feel for “Ramayana,” they could have been more authentic in terms of the looks, especially the jewelry. It just does not seem in sync with the budgets being talked about. I would say that our looks were a lot richer,” she concludes. 

Costume designer Neerusha Nikhat

Neerusha Nikhat, who has done costumes for big-scale mythological and fantasy shows like “Hatim,” “Chakravartin Ashok Samrat,” “Siya Ke Ram” and “Devon Ke Dev…Mahadev,” opines, “The costumes could have been better in terms of aesthetics. The pressure for creating for TV is a lot different, whether it is budgets, time, or simply the medium you’re creating for. I have designed looks for Lord Rama in many shows and I tried to bring in different elements. He is Bhagwan (God), and you cannot fail the audience here. I feel Namit (Malhotra) could have been more experimental. He could have done something real and outstanding. The imagery we have of Lord Rama is from the pictures of Raja Ravi Verma. I would say it is a creative loss. This is what happens when technicians get siloed into TV and film categories, and no one who worked on a Ramayan TV show was even considered. People want to bring in big names, but this kind of project needs people with years of experience. The makers had the budget and freedom to create a different aesthetic while retaining its core. We are yet to see the film, but I feel this is a bit of a miss in terms of creativity.”