Shaktimaan fame Mukesh Khanna has strongly criticised Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana: Part 1, questioning Ranbir Kapoor’s casting as Lord Rama and arguing that the film’s visual grandeur has overshadowed the emotions of the epic. In an interview with ANI, Khanna said he could see only Ranbir Kapoor on screen and not Lord Rama, adding that the actor appeared to be fighting in a regular Hindi film rather than portraying the Maryada Purushottam.Mukesh Khanna told ANI, “The audience couldn’t identify Ranbir as Rama, at least, I couldn’t see him as Rama. I could see him as Ranbir Kapoor ji only. He has done great work but it felt like Ranbir was fighting in a Hindi film. Why is he jumping and falling back like a regular hero, it doesn’t look like a Ramayana’s fight.”The actor also recalled a video that he uploaded where he emphasised that this is Ramayana, and not Raavanayana, where Raavana is being glorified.Mukesh Khanna also questioned the Sita swayamvar sequence, saying that the makers seemed more interested in creating a grand spectacle than establishing the emotions of the characters. He pointed out that the audience reactions during the sequence were not adequately shown. Talking about the swayamvar scene, Mukesh said that people aren’t wrong to say that it looks like “animated cartoon” where the crowd’s reactions weren’t shown completely. He is of the opinion that at least six people’s reactions should be shown, and asked what was the need for such a grand space for this scene, it looked more like a battleground. “The emotion didn’t touch me. Grandeur has taken over the emotions. Couldn’t find any emotion in the swayamvar scene, neither did I understand Sita’s reaction,” said Mukesh.He also expressed his displeasure over the Parshuram sequence, suggesting that the makers “avoided” the character and didn’t give him the importance that he deserved.Also Read: After questioning Sai Pallavi as Sita, OG Dipika Chikhlia says she predicted Ramayana’s successMukesh Khanna takes an indirect dig at Anupam Kher’s praise for RamayanaStory continues below this adIn the same interview with ANI, Mukesh Khanna indirectly said that a prominent actor from the film industry said that there hasn’t been a film as great as Ramayana in the past 100 years. It was Anupam Kher, who praised the film after attending a special screening in Stockholm, Sweden. Kher, who has also lent his voice to Jatayu and narrates the beginning of the film. He shared an emotional video on social media after watching it alongside nearly 500 people. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Anupam Kher (@anupampkher)Calling it one of the finest films in the history of Indian cinema, Kher said he had never seen anything as visually magnificent. He also spoke about how the audience exploded into applause and chanted Jai Shri Ram after the screening. The legendary actor praised Ranbir’s portrayal of Rama, Yash as Raavana and Sai Pallavi as Sita.Mukesh Khanna, however, has been vocal about his reservations regarding the film even before watching it. In his earlier YouTube video, the actor, best known for playing Bhishma Pitamah in BR Chopra’s Mahabharat, questioned the makers’ decision to give Yash’s Ravana a larger-than-life portrayal and argued that the character was being glorified over Rama.He had also objected to the way Sita was portrayed as a warrior and questioned certain creative liberties taken with the epic. Khanna had specifically argued that no filmmaker should alter the Ramayana or Mahabharata to accommodate their own interpretation of the stories.Ramayana: Part 1 box office collectionDespite the criticism and the ongoing debate around its creative choices, Ramayana: Part 1 has achieved a major box-office milestone. The Ranbir Kapoor-starrer crossed the Rs 1,000 crore mark worldwide within eight days of its theatrical release.Story continues below this adAccording to Sacnilk, the film collected Rs 53.50 crore net in India on Thursday, November 12, its eighth day in theatres. This was a 24.3 per cent drop from its Wednesday collection of Rs 70.65 crore. Its total India net collection now stands at Rs 564.60 crore, while its India gross collection has reached Rs 675.05 crore.The film also earned an estimated Rs 25 crore from overseas markets on Thursday, taking its total overseas gross collection to Rs 358.50 crore. Its worldwide gross collection now stands at Rs 1,033.55 crore.Ramayana: Part 1 hit the theatres on November 5, with Ranbir Kapoor playing Lord Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Raavana and Ravi Dubey as Lakshman. Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, the film is the first installment of a two-part cinematic adaptation of the epic. The second installment is scheduled for a 2028 release.