Manoj Muntashir’s Adipurush Reckoning: From Defending Its Dialogues to Calling the Film a Failed Attempt

Three years after Adipurush became one of the most fiercely debated Indian films of 2023, dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir Shukla is no longer defending the choices that put him at the centre of its controversy.

Instead, the writer has taken an increasingly critical view of his own involvement.

Muntashir recently described Adipurush as a “failed attempt” while discussing comparisons between Om Raut’s film and Nitesh Tiwari’s upcoming Ramayana. His latest assessment follows an even more personal admission in July, when he called working on Adipurush the biggest mistake of his life and expressed regret over having publicly defended the film after its release.

His comments mark a striking change from June 2023, when Muntashir initially defended the film’s much-criticised dialogue writing and explained the creative thinking behind it.

Manoj Muntashir does not want Adipurush compared with Ramayana

The subject returned to the spotlight as anticipation grew around Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana.

Muntashir has argued against treating the two films as comparable simply because both draw from the same epic. He acknowledged that Adipurush did not achieve what its makers had hoped to accomplish and said there was no shame in accepting that an attempt had failed.

At the same time, he expressed support for the new Ramayana and praised Yash, who plays Ravana in the film.

His response is significant because Adipurush has frequently resurfaced in online conversations around the new adaptation, particularly as audiences compare how the two productions visualise characters and the world of the Ramayana.

Muntashir's position now is that the shortcomings of one adaptation should not become the standard by which another is judged.

His July admission went considerably further

Calling Adipurush a failed attempt is only part of Muntashir's recent reassessment.

During a July 2026 appearance on the Baatein Dil Se podcast, he revisited the controversy surrounding his dialogue writing and acknowledged that he regretted not only aspects of his work but also his response to the criticism.

According to reports on the interview, Muntashir said his wife had advised him at the time not to publicly defend the film. Looking back, he said he believed he should have accepted the criticism rather than attempting to justify the creative decisions.

He also sought forgiveness over the episode and described Adipurush as the biggest mistake of his life.

That admission adds an important dimension to the story because Muntashir's immediate reaction in 2023 was very different.

What happened when Adipurush released?

Directed by Om Raut, Adipurush was released theatrically on June 16, 2023, starring Prabhas as Raghava, Kriti Sanon as Janaki, Saif Ali Khan as Lankesh and Sunny Singh as Lakshmana.

The film quickly faced criticism over several aspects of its interpretation, with its visual effects and dialogue writing becoming particularly prominent points of debate.

Muntashir initially defended his approach.

In an interview shortly after release, he explained that the language used for Bajrangbali had deliberately been kept simple. In another interview, he stressed that Adipurush was inspired by the Ramayana rather than intended as a complete adaptation of the epic.

As criticism intensified, however, the makers announced revisions to some of the contentious dialogues.

The apology came weeks later

By July 8, 2023, Muntashir had changed course.

In a statement posted on his social-media accounts, the writer acknowledged that Adipurush had hurt people's emotions and offered an unconditional apology.

He revisited the issue again later that year.

During an event in Lucknow in December 2023, Muntashir asked audiences for forgiveness and said that although the intentions behind the project had been sincere, the team had made mistakes.

His 2026 comments therefore are not his first expression of regret. What has changed is the extent to which he is now willing to criticise both the work and his own handling of the backlash.

From defence to acceptance: how his position changed

Muntashir's public responses can broadly be traced through four stages:

June 2023: He defended the thinking behind the dialogue writing as criticism intensified.

July 2023: He acknowledged that the film had hurt sentiments and issued an unconditional apology.

December 2023: He again sought forgiveness and acknowledged mistakes during a public event in Lucknow.

2026: His assessment became much more explicit. He described Adipurush as his biggest mistake, regretted defending it and subsequently characterised the film itself as a failed attempt.

That chronology makes his latest remarks more significant than an isolated admission.

The Celebrity Hour Take

The important story here is not simply that Manoj Muntashir has criticised Adipurush. It is how dramatically his relationship with the film has changed.

Immediately after release, he attempted to explain and defend creative choices that audiences were challenging. Within weeks came an apology. Three years later, he is willing to say something considerably harder for a creator to acknowledge publicly: that the work did not succeed and that defending it was itself a mistake.

There is also a useful distinction in his comments about Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana. Accepting that Adipurush failed does not automatically tell audiences anything about the quality of another adaptation. Different filmmakers, writers, performers and production choices are involved. Judging the new film on what it actually delivers is more meaningful than treating the reception of Adipurush as a predetermined verdict on every large-scale screen interpretation of the epic.