Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama Japan's Epic Anime Adaptation Now in India

Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama has already seen several adaptations, but 31 years ago, Japan collaborated with an Indian team to create an animated Ramayana. Titled Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama, the film was made in Japanese anime style and released in Japan in 1997. It received widespread acclaim and several awards at international film festivals. However, due to political reasons, the film was not released in India at that time. Now, after all these years, the Japanese Ramayana movie has been released in India.

The movie was jointly directed by Koichi Sasaki and Yugo Sako from Japan and Ram Mohan from India. After decades, Geek Pictures, Excel Entertainment, and AA Films have released the film in India in Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, and English languages. The movie premiered in India on January 24.

The story follows the well-known Ramayana narrative based on Valmiki’s Ramayana. It begins with a voiceover describing King Dasharatha and the birth of Rama. The plot unfolds with Vishwamitra requesting Dasharatha to send Rama and Lakshmana to protect his yajnas, leading to events such as Rama killing Tataka, breaking Shiva's bow to marry Sita, and going into exile following Kaikeyi’s boons. The tale covers pivotal events like Surpanakha’s attack, Sita’s abduction by Ravana, Hanuman meeting Rama, locating Sita, and setting Lanka ablaze, culminating in the battle between Rama and Ravana. The movie ends with a voiceover narrating Rama’s coronation and the conclusion of his divine avatar.