A pairing Indian cinema had never heard before

No single part of Ramayana carried higher expectations than the music. A R Rahman and Hans Zimmer worked on the score together, and it is Zimmer first Indian film. That fact alone made the soundtrack an event before anyone had heard a note. It was always going to be judged against an impossible standard, and the verdicts now in show exactly that. Some listeners call the score the soul of the film. Others call it the one thing that did not live up to the hype.

The split runs through critics and audiences alike. The Guardian singled out the score as a strength in its four star review, and IndieWire singled it out too, noting that it is Zimmer first Indian film. Filmfare gave the film 4 out of 5 and said Zimmer background score deserves special mention. But Firstpost, at 3 out of 5, said the music feels underwhelming, and The Week, at 3.5 out of 5, called the music the film only weak point. The same score is being described as both world class and forgettable.

What the admirers heard: power, scale and the Tandav

The admirers hear the score doing exactly what a mythological epic needs it to do. Filmfare writes that Zimmer score lends the film a world class soundscape, adding to both the grandeur of the battle sequences and the intimacy of its emotional moments. It says Zimmer understands exactly when to overwhelm the senses and when to let the emotions breathe. It adds that A R Rahman song compositions provide an old world charm. That is the split the admirers keep coming back to: Zimmer drives the scale, Rahman carries the warmth.

The Times of India agrees, in more measured terms. Its review says A R Rahman music is effective, even if some portions feel a tad generic, and that Mangal Rang emerges as the most memorable track. It says the collaboration with Hans Zimmer gives the background score an especially powerful, cinematic quality. The Telegraph is warmer still, calling the music one of the film strongest elements and saying the score moves between spiritual passages and sweeping orchestral arrangements, adding scale to the action and weight to the pre interval vanvas scene.

The loudest praise comes from the theatres themselves. Mathrubhumi live updates report that the high energy Tandav sequence is getting the biggest reactions in theatres, driven by heavy drums, loud chanting and a booming score from A R Rahman and Hans Zimmer, with audiences cheering out loud. Its first half report says the background score and visual effects are the film biggest strengths so far. Rapper Badshah, after a special screening, praised the background score as incredible and rated the film six on five.

Songs versus background score: two different verdicts

Part of the confusion is that people are judging two different things and calling them both the music. There is the background score, mostly associated with Zimmer, and there are the songs, mostly associated with Rahman. The background score is winning the louder praise. The songs are getting the more mixed response.

Mangal Rang, sung by Arijit Singh and Shreya Ghoshal and featuring Ranbir Kapoor and Sai Pallavi as Ram and Sita, is the song everyone agrees on. The Times of India calls it the most memorable track, and Gulf News reports one viewer giving full marks to the song. But beyond that one song, the response thins out. IndiaForums, which gave the film 4 out of 5, says the music complements the film but is not the musical feast the writer was hoping for, and notes a lack of lingering impact that makes you want to listen again after leaving the theatre.

That is a fair description of the middle ground. The score does its job inside the film. It lifts the battles, it fills the IMAX hall, it carries the Tandav. What it does not clearly do, for the doubters, is live on outside the film as music people hum on the way home. For a Rahman soundtrack, that is an unusual complaint, and it is the one that keeps coming up.

Where the score does its heaviest work: Jatayu and the climax

If the score has a best case, it is the last stretch of the film. Badshah singled out the Jatayu scene as insane and told viewers to wait for the moment when the dharti amber theme comes. That theme arrives at the emotional peak of the film, and the climax is where viewers on X have been warmest, with several saying the final stretch moved them to tears. The Tandav works the same way. Yash as Ravana performs the dance of destruction while the drums and chanting build underneath him, and the scene is now the most talked about musical moment in the film. The Jatayu fight, which took six and a half years to complete according to director Nitesh Tiwari, leans on the score just as heavily. A dying eagle fighting a demon king only works if the music tells you how to feel about it, and the early audience reports say it does.

The honest verdict: a great score for the big scenes

So where does the Rahman and Zimmer score actually stand? The evidence points to a score that is superb at scale and uneven at intimacy. In the battles, the Tandav, the Jatayu fight and the climax, it does everything a score of this size is supposed to do, and the praise from the Guardian, IndieWire, Filmfare and Badshah is consistent. In the quieter stretches, and as songs to remember after the credits, it leaves some listeners wanting more.

That is not a failure. It is a score built for a three hour epic that rarely slows down, and it behaves like one. If you go in expecting a Rahman album you will hum for a week, you may be disappointed. If you go in expecting the sound of a world ending and beginning again, with drums and strings big enough to fill an IMAX hall, the score delivers. Listen for the dharti amber theme in the climax, and judge it there.

What fans are saying on X

Badshah (@Its_Badshah) on X, as quoted by News18: "You have to watch it. Namit has delivered. Every frame is breathtaking. The characters feel so real. It made me cry, even when we've known the story since our childhood. INCREDIBLE BGM. Ranbir, Sai Pallavi, Ravi Dubey, Yash, Lara Dutta, Arun Govil, Rakul. Everyone nailed it. Jatayu scene is insane. And wait for the moment when the dharti amber theme comes. CLAPSSSS. PLEASE GO WATCH IT." Link (roundup article quoting the post; exact post URL could not be verified because X is blocked in this workspace): https://www.news18.com/movies/bollywood/ramayana-badshah-reviews-ranbir-kapoors-film-says-every-frame-is-breathtaking-it-made-me-cry-ws-kl-10412915.html

Viewer on X, as quoted by Gulf News: one viewer wrote that Sai Pallavi seemed born to play Sita and that five minutes of her introduction would settle any doubts, while also giving full marks to the A R Rahman song Mangal Rang. Link (roundup article quoting the post; exact post URL could not be verified because X is blocked in this workspace): https://gulfnews.com/entertainment/ramayana-box-office-ranbir-kapoors-epic-targets-rs-2-billion-opening-trails-dhurandhar-2-in-pre-sales-1.500736564

Sources and reporting

  1. Filmfare — November 5, 2026 · Verifies the 4/5 rating, the Zimmer background score special mention and the Rahman songs old world charm verdict
  2. News18 — November 4, 2026 · Verifies the Badshah incredible background music praise, the Jatayu scene praise and the dharti amber theme mention
  3. Gulf News — November 5, 2026 · Verifies the Guardian 4/5 rating and its praise for the Zimmer and Rahman score, plus viewer praise for Mangal Rang