Ramayana Targets China, Russia, Japan and South Korea Releases in Early 2027

Four new markets after a November opening

Ramayana: Part 1 is targeting theatrical releases in China, Russia, Japan and South Korea between January and March 2027, extending a campaign that began with its November 5, 2026 opening in India and several overseas territories. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh said on November 15 that the film had already been submitted for censorship clearance in China.

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, the adaptation stars Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana. Its next expansion follows estimated overseas gross receipts of ₹408.50 crore during its first ten days, contributing to a preliminary worldwide total of approximately ₹1,230 crore.

China is a particularly consequential destination for Tiwari. His earlier film Dangal earned approximately ₹1,305 crore there after its May 2017 release. Japan offers another substantial example of an Indian film finding an audience abroad: S. S. Rajamouli's RRR collected approximately ¥2.42 billion in the country.

The four releases are being planned as another stage of Ramayana's theatrical run rather than a simultaneous opening with India. Hong Kong began screening the film on November 12, while further openings across Europe and Latin America are listed for later in November.

Exact dates for the four markets have not been announced, and the mainland China release depends on regulatory approval. A more specific late January target has also been reported for China, within the broader first quarter window. For viewers, the practical details still to come include which cinemas will show the film and which language versions they will receive.

China is the biggest previous success for Tiwari

Dangal gives Ramayana's China plans a connection beyond a general ambition to sell more tickets overseas. Tiwari's wrestling drama opened there on May 5, 2017, on approximately 9,000 screens and earned more than twice its Indian box office collection.

Its Chinese title, Shuai Jiao Baba, translates as Let's Wrestle, Dad. The story centred on a father training his daughters to wrestle, combining family conflict, sporting ambition and women overcoming social barriers. Aamir Khan also entered that market with an audience built through earlier films including 3 Idiots and PK.

Ramayana presents a different attraction: a religious epic told through fantasy, visual effects and characters familiar to generations of Indian viewers. Its Chinese campaign will need to introduce those characters and their relationships to people encountering this adaptation without the same cultural familiarity.

Submission for censorship clearance puts the film into the approval process required before its planned mainland release. Certification procedures for Russia, Japan and South Korea are expected to follow. Sony Pictures is providing international distribution support, continuing the arrangements described during the film's initial global release campaign.

Japan, South Korea and Russia offer different prospects

Japan's approximately ¥2.42 billion collection for RRR provides a substantial reference point for Indian cinema. It gives Ramayana's distributors an example of an Indian spectacle reaching a sizeable Japanese theatrical audience, although the new film will have its own marketing campaign and reception.

Dangal's results show how differently the same Indian title can perform across these destinations. Alongside approximately ₹1,305 crore in China, it earned about ₹8 crore in South Korea and ₹3 crore in Japan. Its Russian theatrical release came much later, in 2024, and was limited.

Russia has a long history of audiences watching Indian cinema, while South Korea represents a less explored theatrical destination for this production. Cinema bookings, promotion and the presentation of the story in local languages will shape how widely people in each country can encounter Ramayana.

How the international rollout is unfolding

Ramayana opened in India in Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. Its November 5 launch also included North America, the United Kingdom, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia, establishing an overseas run before the planned expansion into the four additional markets.

Hong Kong screenings began a week later, exclusively at Broadway Cinemas, with the Hindi version carrying Chinese and English subtitles. That arrangement gives viewers a concrete example of how the film is being presented outside its original language markets.

The announced and reported release schedule stretches from November 2026 into early 2027:

• November 5, 2026: India and several overseas territories, including North America, the United Kingdom, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia.
• November 12: Hong Kong, with Chinese and English subtitles at Broadway Cinemas.
• November 19: Brazil, Italy, Ukraine and Hungary.
• November 20: Poland.
• November 26: Argentina, Central America, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Czechia.
• January to March 2027: Target window for China, Russia, Japan and South Korea.

The schedule spreads the film's international business across several months. Tickets sold in the planned 2027 markets would extend its worldwide theatrical earnings beyond the territories contributing to the current totals.

What the box office figures mean

Ramayana's Indian net collection has been put at ₹719.86 crore, according to figures attributed to box office tracker Sacnilk. The Hindi version alone was reported to be approaching ₹600 crore net. The two figures cover different language groupings: the larger total represents the film across its Indian releases.

A crore means 10 million. Net box office in India is ticket revenue after applicable ticket taxes have been removed, while gross includes those taxes. Worldwide totals generally combine Indian gross receipts with overseas gross receipts.

The preliminary overseas estimate of ₹408.50 crore and worldwide estimate of ₹1,230 crore use gross revenue. On those figures, overseas cinemas supplied approximately 33.2% of the worldwide total during the first ten days, or roughly one rupee in every three collected at ticket counters. Both estimates remain subject to revision.

Ramayana began with ₹64.85 crore in India on its opening day, measured as net revenue. Its reported cumulative Indian net of ₹719.86 crore is about 11.1 times that opening figure, showing how much business accumulated after the launch.

North America adds another part of the picture

North American ticket sales had passed $20 million, according to box office analyst Gitesh Pandya of Box Office Guru. He also projected that the film could reach $30 million in the United States and Canada.

The $20 million figure is a reported milestone; $30 million is a forecast for the continuing run. North American receipts form part of the film's overseas business, alongside other territories already screening it.

An English version has been released under the title Ramayana: Rise of a Legend. It is described as shorter than the Indian version, giving the production another format for reaching audiences unfamiliar with the original languages.

Hong Kong's subtitled Hindi screenings and the shorter English version show two distinct approaches already in use. One preserves the Hindi dialogue and adds translated text; the other presents the story in English. The versions selected for the four planned markets will be part of the next release announcements.

A familiar epic presented across two films

Ramayana: Part 1 adapts the Indian epic about Rama, revered in Hindu tradition as an incarnation of Vishnu. Kapoor's Rama, Pallavi's Sita and Yash's Ravana anchor a story whose first instalment ends with Sita's abduction and the death of Jatayu, voiced by Anupam Kher.

That ending places the central conflict across two theatrical releases. New audiences will enter a continuing story rather than see the entire epic resolved in the first film.

Ravie Dubey plays Lakshman, Rama's younger brother. The ensemble also includes Kajal Aggarwal, Rakul Preet Singh, Vivek Oberoi, Kunal Kapoor, Arun Govil, Indira Krishnan, Lara Dutta, Surabhi Das and Chetan Hansraj. A. R. Rahman and Hans Zimmer share the music credits.

Dubey has argued that the production's international ambition rests on the appeal of Indian storytelling. Describing why he believes these stories can reach audiences abroad, the actor said:

The Indian story is global now. We possess thousands of years of extraordinary heritage, mythology, philosophy and characters whose ideas are universal. The world deserves to experience them and learn from them at the scale and with the cinematic ambition they deserve.

The sequel schedule has shifted in current reporting

The second Ramayana film is now reported as scheduled for Diwali 2028. Earlier release plans placed it at Diwali 2027, so the current timetable puts the continuation a year later than previously described.

For audiences entering through the planned early 2027 releases, that means the story would continue in a separate film the following year. The first instalment's ending makes the sequel date a practical part of the viewing experience, especially for people discovering the adaptation through its international campaign.

Malhotra's production now has two connected tasks: completing the first film's wider theatrical rollout and maintaining interest in the continuation. The November openings in Europe and Latin America come first, followed by the targeted releases in China, Russia, Japan and South Korea.

The commercial importance is concrete. Overseas cinemas already account for about a third of the preliminary worldwide gross. Expanding the number of territories can bring the film to additional audiences, with the eventual contribution depending on approval, cinema access and ticket sales in each country.

Key Points

• Ramayana: Part 1 is targeting China, Russia, Japan and South Korea between January and March 2027.
• Trade analyst Taran Adarsh said the film had been submitted for censorship clearance in China.
• Preliminary figures put overseas gross at ₹408.50 crore and worldwide gross at approximately ₹1,230 crore during the first ten days.
• Hong Kong screenings began on November 12, with further European and Latin American openings listed for November.
• Tiwari's Dangal earned approximately ₹1,305 crore in China; RRR collected approximately ¥2.42 billion in Japan.
• The second Ramayana film is now reported as scheduled for Diwali 2028, compared with the earlier Diwali 2027 plan.