The Motion Picture Association cleared Namit Malhotra's Diwali tentpole for American audiences, and IMAX now lists a runtime that makes it only the second Ranbir Kapoor film after Animal to cross three hours.
Three weeks out from its Diwali release, Ramayana has cleared one more hurdle, this time in America. The Motion Picture Association has handed Namit Malhotra's film a PG-13 rating, the US equivalent of India's U/A certificate, which means kids under 13 might need a parent around for some of it.
According to the MPA's own listing, the rating comes down to "sequences of strong violence and action, and some bloody images." Not exactly a shocker for a film built around the Ramayana's war portions, but it does confirm the makers haven't softened the battle sequences for international release.
The runtime is the other number everyone's going to be talking about. Bollywood Hungama reported that IMAX's website lists the film's international cut at 3 hours and 15 minutes. That's a serious sit, even by the standards of recent Hindi cinema. Trade sources cited by the outlet, though, say the English-language version playing in the US could come in shorter, around 2 hours 45 minutes. Nothing's locked yet. A clearer picture is expected to emerge in the coming days as more territories finalise their cuts.
For Ranbir Kapoor, this is familiar ground. Ramayana is his first film since Animal, which ran well past the three-hour mark and became one of 2023's defining hits and arguments. Now he's got back-to-back films that test how long an audience will stay in a dark hall for him. Two different genres, two different directors, same willingness to go long.
What's notable is how quickly the international machinery is moving on this one. Bollywood Hungama's report calls Ramayana the biggest global release an Indian film has ever attempted, and the fact that it's already through US censorship three weeks ahead of its Diwali date backs that up. Most Hindi films don't bother with an MPA rating at all. This one clearly wants a real theatrical run in North America, IMAX screens included, not just a token release for the diaspora crowd.
There's still the small matter of which cut Indian audiences actually see. The 3-hour-15-minute version appears to be the one heading to IMAX globally, but whether that's identical to the Hindi theatrical release or whether India gets its own trim hasn't been spelled out yet. Given how much time and money Malhotra's team has put into visual effects on this project, a shorter version feels unlikely for the home market.
Expect more of these drip-fed updates as the Diwali date closes in, certification here, a poster there, and eventually the number everyone actually wants: the first trailer's reaction once it's out in the open.
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