The rights are with me: Amish Tripathi shuts down Ranveer Singh-Meluha reports
Ranveer Singh has reportedly acquired Amish Tripathi's The Immortals of Meluha to develop it with Birla Studios. The project is in the writing stage, with the actor also expected to play Lord Shiva as the makers shape a long-term franchise.
Author Amish Tripathi has denied reports claiming that actor Ranveer Singh and Birla Studios are developing a film adaptation of his bestselling novel The Immortals of Meluha. The clarification comes on the same day reports suggested that Ranveer had acquired the rights to the Shiva Trilogy under his production banner, Maa Kasam Film, and was planning a large-scale cinematic franchise around it.
Speaking to Variety India, Amish said the rights to the trilogy still remain with him and no agreement has been signed so far.
He said, "The rights for the Shiva Trilogy are with me. And nothing has been signed with anyone as yet. Of course, I have huge respect for Ranveer, and am a big fan of his. But this news is not true."
Reports around Ranveer’s alleged adaptation
Earlier reports had claimed that Ranveer Singh was developing The Immortals of Meluha as one of the biggest projects of his career. According to Pinkvilla, the actor was said to be planning a trilogy adaptation in collaboration with Birla Studios, with Ranveer himself expected to play Lord Shiva.
The report had also suggested that the project was in the writing stage and that Ranveer and Ananya Birla were actively working on building the screenplay and larger world of the franchise.
A source quoted in the report had said, "Ranveer has been passionate about bringing Meluha to the big screen for a long time now. The acquisition happened recently, and the project is now officially under development. Makers are approaching the franchise as a long-term cinematic universe and the plan is to tell the story over three films."
However, Amish’s latest clarification has now denied that any such acquisition or formal collaboration has taken place.
About The Immortals of Meluha
The Immortals of Meluha is the first book in Amish Tripathi’s acclaimed Shiva Trilogy, followed by The Secret of the Nagas and The Oath of the Vayuputras.
Set in the land of Meluha, a near-perfect society inspired by the Indus Valley Civilization and built by Lord Ram, the story follows Shiva, a Tibetan tribal chief who gradually becomes the prophesied Neelkanth and protector of the empire. Over the course of the trilogy, Shiva transforms into a warrior, leader and divine figure while battling the Chandravanshis and Nagas alongside the Suryavanshi rulers.
Previous attempts to adapt the trilogy
This is not the first time The Immortals of Meluha has attracted interest from filmmakers.
Back in 2012, filmmaker Karan Johar acquired the rights to the novel with plans to adapt it into a large-scale feature film directed by Karan Malhotra. The project was eventually shelved amid concerns over possible backlash surrounding the depiction of an Indian God on screen.
The rights later moved to Sanjay Leela Bhansali, though that adaptation too failed to materialise.
In 2022, Amish Tripathi announced a web series adaptation alongside Shekhar Kapur and Suparn Varma, with producer Roy Price backing the project under International Arts Machine. However, that version also did not move forward, and the rights eventually reverted back to the author.
Ranveer's upcoming projects
Meanwhile, Ranveer Singh continues to have a packed slate ahead. Following the success of Dhurandhar, the actor is expected to begin work on Aditya Dhar's next directorial venture in March 2027.
He also reportedly has Pralay, directed by Jay Mehta, which is tentatively expected to go on floors in August 2026, though an official announcement is still awaited.
On the personal front, Ranveer and Deepika Padukone are expecting their second child together.