Ayaan Ali Bangash and Amaan talk about Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman's work together on Ramayana: "If a Western composer..." | Exclusive

The first look at Ramayana is out, and people are talking about more than just its size and cast. The music for the movie has also become a topic of conversation. Veteran Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer worked with AR Rahman. The collaboration has sparked a bigger conversation about how to include talent from around the world in adaptations of Indian mythological stories. In March 2026, musicians Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash, who are the sons of sarod master Amjad Ali Khan, talked to about why global partnerships are important, especially for a story like Ramayana.

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Amaan Ali Bangash says, "Ramayana is about values."

Amaan Ali Bangash said that working together with people from other countries helps Indian stories reach more people. "Agar aap western composer nahi laaoge toh Western world nahi jaanega isko" (The Western world will not know [about an Indian film] if not for Western composers. There's no doubt that Rahman Saab is a big name. But composers from the West will add to it.

He also compared how familiarity affects people's choices. "Today, they are making Beatles." A normal Indian won't watch a Beatles movie until Farhan Akhtar is gone. That's all there is to it. "Range badh jaata hain apka" means "The range widens."

He also stressed that the core of the Ramayana is still based on values. "It's about values," he said. "Ayaan and I have grown up on Ramayana since we were kids." All Indians have grown up with the Ramayana, which is the most common story that parents tell their kids to teach them values. People used to watch Ramanand Sagar ji's Ramayana, and the roads were empty.

For him, collaborations are not new, but necessary. "It's nice; working together is the way to go in life." To go international, you need to work together. He cited Slumdog Millionaire as an example: “Even in Slumdog Millionaire, usmein bhi toh mix tha na (Even Slumdog Millionaire was a mix of Hollywood and Bollywood). That is why it became bigger.”

Ayaan Ali Bangash says, "Ramayana is now involved beyond borders."

Ayaan Ali Bangash said something similar, stressing that the Ramayana is already a subject that goes beyond borders. "Now, a subject like Ramayana is involved across borders. People all over the world believe in the core ideas of the Ramayana. It's more than just India. A lot of people in the West follow Hinduism. It's just positive that we have so many people from different cultures coming together to salute and worship the victory of good over evil.”

He also remembered how global partnerships have worked in the past. Ben Kingsley wasn't Indian when I look back, but he played the best Gandhi. Richard Attenborough, the director of Gandhi, thought about it, but no one else did until then. Nobody made a movie that big. Over there also, Pt. Ravi Shankar ji did the music from the Indian part, and George Fenton did the music from the Western part. These amalgamations always happen and it makes a project more powerful, more beautiful and more worldly.”

On April 2, Hanuman Jayanti, the teaser for Ramayana came out. The work that Hans Zimmer and AR Rahman did together seems to be at the center of that global goal.

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