Kunal Kapoor plays Lord Indra opposite Yash's Ravana in Ramayana.
Terry Notary previously coached actors for the Planet of the Apes franchise.
Kunal describes his first green-screen experience while filming Ramayana's action sequences.
Kunal Kapoor plays Lord Indra in Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana, where his character is seen taking on Ravana, played by Yash. The actor features in several large-scale action sequences, many of which were filmed against green screens. Speaking about the experience in an interview with SCREEN, Kunal discussed the challenge of creating a world that was not physically present on set. He also credited Hollywood movement coach Terry Notary, who worked with the cast to develop the body language required for the film's action scenes.
Kunal Kapoor on shooting Ramayana's green-screen sequences
For Kunal, working with a green screen was a first. He explained that the absence of physical sets and real locations meant actors had to rely heavily on their imagination to bring the scenes to life.
“The thing with the green screen is there’s nothing available to you. There’s no real palace or sunrise. Everything is out of your imagination. You’ve to create pretty much everything in your head. But that can be a lot of fun as well. Because it takes you back to the most important thing as an actor — your imagination. It also takes you back to your childhood, where you’d play with imagination. That was a lot of fun."
Kunal Kapoor praises Avengers: Doomsday coach Terry Notary
Kunal also spoke about working with Terry Notary, who is known for his movement coaching in the Planet of the Apes franchise. Notary has worked on several Hollywood films, including X2, Superman Returns and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. He is also associated with the upcoming Marvel film Avengers: Doomsday.
Praising Notary's approach, Kunal said, “We got very lucky because we had somebody like Terry. He trained all the actors in the Planet of the Apes to imbibe that body language. What I found really fascinating about working with him was he was not just an action director, but a body language expert directing action. That’s very different from working with an action director. Just having that kind of a talent on the film makes it incredibly easy for everybody else. Because you’re shooting not only an action sequence, but also an important part of a story that’s close to all our hearts. So, when you find talent that looks at it and approaches it like that, it really elevates the work,” he said.
About Ramayana and its sequel
The two-part epic adaptation stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Sunny Deol as Hanuman and Ravie Dubey as Lakshman. Produced by Namit Malhotra, the first instalment is set to release in theatres worldwide on November 5, 2026.
The sequel, which was initially planned for a Diwali 2027 release, has been postponed to 2028, Namit Malhotra recently revealed in an interview.
