Ranbir Kapoor's Ramayana title sparks row: Industrialist Nikhil Chitale questions 'anglicization' of words, says 'our heritage doesn’t...'

Soon after the makers of Ramayana unveiled the first official glimpse of the film, a debate sparked online about the film's title. Industrialist Nikhil Chitale, one of the owners of the Chitale group, questioned why the makers chose the spelling “Ramayana” instead of “Ramayan.”

According to him, the title should reflect Indian pronunciation without being influenced by Western or English styles.

"It’s Ramayan, Not Ramayana," Says Chitale

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Nikhil Chitale expressed his frustration and said that we must stop anglicizing our heritage. He wrote, “It’s Ramayan, not Ramayana. It’s Ram, not Rama. We need to avoid the anglicization of our words. Our heritage doesn’t need a colonial accent. It’s written by Valmiki, FYI.” His statement received a lot of attention and started a discussion among netizens.

It’s Ramayan, not Ramayana. It’s Ram, not Rama. We need to avoid the anglicization of our words. Our heritage doesn’t need a colonial accent.

It’s written by Valmiki, FYI.

— Nikhil Chitale (@nikhilchitale) July 4, 2025

Internet Divided Over Language and Pronunciation

While many users supported Chitale’s point of view and praised him for trying to preserve Indian culture, others did not agree with his opinion. Some users pointed out that languages like Kannada naturally add an ‘a’ at the end of words and that it has nothing to do with English influence. Another user explained that Sanskrit pronunciations also use terms like "Rama" and "Ramayana", and if the movie is made in Hindi, then yes, the Hindi spellings should be followed. The debate remained divided, with both sides sharing strong opinions.

Fans Love the First Glimpse of Ramayana

Despite the title controversy, the teaser of Ramayana received a big response from movie lovers. Released in multiple cities across India, the glimpse has only increased the excitement for the movie, which is set to hit theatres during Diwali 2026.

A Big-Budget Film With Top Stars and an International Crew

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Ramayana is shaping up to be one of the biggest mythological films in Indian cinema. Ranbir Kapoor plays Lord Ram, Sai Pallavi stars as Mata Sita, Yash takes on the role of Ravana, Sunny Deol will be seen as Hanuman, and Ravi Dubey plays Lakshman. The music is being composed by two Oscar winners, Hans Zimmer and A.R. Rahman. Action sequences are being handled by Guy Norris, known for Mad Max: Fury Road, and Terry Notary, who has worked on films like Avengers and Planet of the Apes.