Namit Malhotra’s Ramayana: The Rise of a Legend will face its first audience test after November 5, but the producer is already looking ahead. While the second instalment is being filmed, work is also underway on a spin-off centred on Lord Hanuman. Sources say the makers are in talks with Sunny Deol to expand his role into a standalone film. “Hanuman is one of the most important characters in the Ramayana, and there is a lot more to his story than what can be explored within the central narrative,” says a source, adding that the film will go on floors once Ramayana: Part 2 wraps up. 

Namit Malhotra and Nitesh Tiwari