"Ramayana Part 1" Opens Worldwide on 5 November

"Ramayana Part 1" opens in cinemas worldwide on 5 November. It is the first of two films planned to retell the Ramayana, one of the oldest and most widely known epics of Hindu tradition, according to Variety.

Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama, the epic's hero. Sai Pallavi plays Sita, and Yash plays Ravana, the king of Lanka. The film is directed by Nitesh Tiwari, whose earlier work includes the sports drama "Dangal" and the comedy "Chhichhore."

The music is a meeting of two composers who rarely share a project. A.R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer wrote the score together, which Variety describes as their first collaboration on an Indian film. Rahman is a Chennai-born composer, and Zimmer is known for scores in Hollywood. T-Series, one of India's largest music labels, releases the soundtrack, and Amazon Music is the streaming partner.

Much of the spectacle comes from the effects team. Prime Focus Studios produces the film together with Yash's company, Monster Mind Creations. DNEG and ReDefine handle the visual effects, the computer-made images that build the film's worlds and creatures. Namit Malhotra, the founder and chief executive of DNEG, is also one of the film's producers. DNEG has won eight Academy Awards, the Oscars, most recently for "Dune: Part Two."

Sony Pictures will handle international distribution, meaning it will sell and release the film in markets outside India, according to a separate Variety report. Terry Notary, a performer and movement specialist, worked as the action choreographer, designing the fight and movement sequences, as Variety reported in September.

Films on this scale pass through many hands before they reach a screen. A director, a score, a visual effects house, a music label and a distributor each make their own set of decisions, and the credits list all of them. For audiences in India and around the world, the first part arrives on 5 November, and the second film is still to come.