Lara Dutta defends Kaikeyi's look in Ramayana amid costume debate, says people should not 'nitpick'

Responding to debate over Ramayana’s costumes, Lara Dutta said she understood the reasoning behind the designs and trusted director Nitesh Tiwari’s vision.

Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana: Part One is enjoying a strong run at the box office, with the film nearing the ₹1,000 crore mark in worldwide collections. While the film has found acceptance among audiences, a section of viewers had debated the costumes worn by some of its characters. Sai Pallavi's look as Sita and Lara Dutta's portrayal of Kaikeyi were among the most discussed, with some viewers calling their outfits too modern for the Treta Yuga. Lara, for instance, was seen wearing a saree with a long sleeves blouse in the trailer.

Lara Dutta's Kaikeyi look divided internet and sparked 'modern saree' debate.

Now, in an interaction, Lara has spoken about the costume debate for the first time and explained the thought behind the choices. She also said that audiences should not nitpick over minor details when a project is mounted on such a large scale.

'One nitpicked on such tiny things'

Lara admitted that she understood the reasons behind the costume choices and the way the characters were presented. She told News18, “I know what the reason was for us to pick certain kinds of garments and the way that we wanted those to be depicted. It’s such a vast project that you’re undertaking and one nitpicked on such tiny things."

'There was a standardisation that was decided to be adopted'

Lara also spoke about her conversations with director Nitesh Tiwari regarding her costumes and explained why Kaikeyi's sartorial sensibilities were suppose to be different from those of the other queens, Kaushalya and Sumitra.

She said, “One of my first conversations with Nitesh sir was that if Kaikeyi came from the kingdom of Kekaya, wouldn’t her jewellery be very different from the other two queens? Wouldn’t she bring her own stree-dhan? But if you want to get into such minute details, then you’re opening up a Pandora’s box and then you would’ve historians and other experts coming up and saying, ‘Oh, how can this be shown and depicted?’ So, there was a standardisation that was decided to be adopted across all three kingdoms – Mithila, Ayodhya and Lanka – to differentiate between those cultures."

The actor admitted that she completely submitted to the makers' vision and believed in looking at the larger picture rather than questioning every creative decision.

About Ramayana

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, Ramayana is the first instalment of a planned two-part cinematic adaptation of the Hindu epic. The film features Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana.

The film brings together a large international team of technicians, with music composed by AR Rahman and Hans Zimmer and visual effects handled by DNEG. Ramayana released in theatres on November 5, 2026. Its second instalment is planned for a Diwali release in 2028.