It's
time
for
the
modern-day
version
of
'Ramayana'
to
unfold
this
Friday,
exactly
two
weeks
after
'Mahabharata'.
The
very
thought
of
watching
an
epic
in
the
present-day
milieu
only
enhances
the
curiosity
for
the
film.
And
if
the
present-day
adaptation
of
'Ramayana'
is
helmed
by
a
master
storyteller
[Mani
Ratnam],
the
moviegoer
should,
and
must
expect
the
moon.
Nothing
less
would
suffice.
After
all,
a
Mani
Ratnam
film
is
not
merely
an
experience,
it's
an
event!
Mani
Ratnam,
who
has
penned
the
screenplay
of
RAAVAN,
models
his
characters
on
the
lines
of
'Ramayana':
*
An
upright
cop,
the
punisher,
the
law/Lord
Rama
[Vikram];
*
His
doting
wife/Goddess
Sita
[Aishwarya
Rai
Bachchan];
*
The
lieutenant
he
befriends
in
the
forest/Hanuman
[Govinda];
*
His
confidante/Lakshmana
[Nikhil
Dwivedi];
*
The
antagonist's
sister,
who
triggers
off
the
war/Surpanakha
[Priyamani]
*
And,
of
course,
the
antagonist,
the
Robinhood
turned
Raavan
who
kidnaps
the
top
cop's
wife
and
keeps
her
in
his
custody,
in
his
Lanka/Raavan
[Abhishek
Bachchan].
Mani
Ratnam
has
also
included
the
part
where
Goddess
Sita
was
banished
from
the
kingdom
of
Ayodhya
due
to
the
gossip
of
kingdom
folk.
It
was
agni
pariksha
then,
but
in
the
film,
the
husband
[Vikram]
asks
the
wife
[Aishwarya]
for
a
polygraph
test
to
prove
her
chastity/fidelity.
At
the
same
time,
RAAVAN
brings
back
memories
of
a
movie
that,
coincidentally,
had
a
similar
storyline
--
Jungle
[Ramgopal
Varma].
You've
come
to
expect
scintillating
visuals
in
the
master
film-maker's
films
and
Raavan
is
no
exception.
But
Raavan
falters
in
narrating
the
story
with
dexterity.
In
fact,
this
one's
a
game
of
see-saw,
with
a
dull
and
lifeless
first
hour,
an
absorbing
second
half
and
a
weak,
lacklustre
climax.
Final
word?
Raavan
comes
with
the
baggage
of
humungous
expectations,
mainly
for
the
one
name
attached
to
it:
Mani
Ratnam.
Even
though
comparisons
with
the
genius
film-maker's
earlier
accomplishments
like
Mouna
Raagam,
Nayagan,
Agni
Nakshatram,
Geethanjali,
Anjali,
Roja,
Bombay
and
Guru
are
sacrilegious
since
all
belong
to
diverse
genres,
Raavan
is
nowhere
close
to
those
epics.
The
benchmarks
only
get
higher
and
higher
every
time
Mani
Ratnam
makes
a
film
and
Raavan,
unfortunately,
is
a
step
down.
Sorry,
several
steps
down!
Dev
[Vikram]
falls
in
love
with
Ragini
[Aishwarya
Rai
Bachchan],
a
spunky
classical
dancer
who
is
as
unconventional
as
him.
They
get
married
and
he
takes
up
his
new
post
in
Lal
Maati,
a
small
town
in
northern
India.
A
town
where
the
world
of
law
is
not
the
police,
but
Beera
[Abhishek
Bachchan],
a
tribal
who
has,
over
the
years,
shifted
the
power
equation
of
the
place
from
the
ruling
to
the
have-nots
of
the
area.
Dev
knows
that
the
key
to
bringing
order
to
any
place
is
not
to
vanquish
the
big
fish;
in
this
case
--
Beera.
In
one
stroke
Dev
manages
to
rip
open
Beera's
world
and
set
in
motion
a
change
of
event
which
will
claim
lives.
Beera,
injured
but
enraged,
hits
back,
starting
a
battle
that
draws
Dev,
Beera
and
Ragini
into
the
jungle.
The
forest
becomes
the
battleground.
The
battle
between
good
and
evil,
between
Dev
and
Beera,
between
Ram
and
Raavan.
Mani
Ratnam's
adaptation
of
'Ramayana'
begins
with
the
wife
getting
kidnapped
and
her
husband
launching
a
massive
hunt
to
track
down
his
wife
and
nail
Raavan
aka
Beera.
The
reason
why
Beera
takes
this
extreme
step
is
revealed
much,
much
later,
towards
the
post-interval
portions,
which
means
that
Mani
Ratnam
follows
the
nonlinear
pattern
to
narrate
his
story.
Let's
talk
about
the
factors
that
pull
this
film
down.
First
and
foremost,
when
you've
a
title
like
Raavan,
the
demon
king,
who
couldn't
be
vanquished
by
Gods,
demons
or
spirits,
you
expect
Raavan
aka
Beera
to
be
equally
powerful,
who
could
send
a
chill
down
your
spine,
who
spells
terror
and
fear.
But,
in
Raavan,
Beera
comes
across
as
a
psycho.
The
streak
of
madness
in
his
character
makes
a
mockery
of
the
character
itself.
Also,
his
makeup
and
also
the
shabby
avtaars
of
his
family/henchmen
is
not
something
that
makes
them
looks
menacing.
In
fact,
it
makes
the
entire
gang
look
repulsive.
Even
the
finale
leaves
a
lot
to
be
desired.
Ideally,
the
film
should've
ended
after
the
fight
on
the
bridge,
but
the
entire
track
thereafter
seems
like
an
add-on,
which
is
forced
into
the
screenplay.
Ash
having
a
change
of
heart
for
Abhishek
is
equally
unpalatable
and
makes
you
wonder,
how
and
when
did
she
develop
such
strong
feelings/emotions
for
Beera?
The
writing
is
flawed,
no
two
opinions
on
that!
On
the
plus
side,
the
track,
which
starts
from
Nikhil's
kidnap
to
the
entire
flashback
portion,
is
attention
grabbing.
The
factors
that
prompt
Beera
to
spell
havoc
in
Dev's
life
are
apt,
although
Beera's
sister's
portions,
while
narrating
the
atrocities
committed
on
her,
aren't
easy
to
comprehend
in
entirety.
What
was
she
trying
to
say,
frankly?
Yet,
the
impact
of
the
flashback
portions
is
worth
noting.
The
fight
on
the
bridge
--
between
Abhishek
and
Vikram
--
is
astounding.
One
hasn't
watched
something
like
this
on
the
Hindi
screen
yet,
I'm
sure.
In
fact,
the
execution
of
each
and
every
stunt
[Shyam
Kaushal,
Peter
Hein]
is
exceptional.
Every
Mani
Ratnam
film
is
embellished
with
stunning
visuals
and
Raavan
boasts
of
mind-boggling
visuals
as
well.
Shooting
the
film
at
tough
locales
isn't
easy
and
Santosh
Sivan
and
V.
Manikandan's
vision
creates
magic
on
screen.
Every
frame
is
worth
admiring
and
applauding.
A.R.
Rahman's
music
is
excellent
and
the
visual
appeal
only
enhances
the
impact.
I'd
like
to
single
out
'Behne
De'
and
'Thok
De
Killi',
two
tracks
that
I'd
like
to
hum
even
after
the
show
has
concluded.
In
fact,
the
latter
is
very
energetic
in
terms
of
choreography.
Vijay
Krishna
Acharya's
dialogue
hit
you
like
a
sharp
object
at
times,
which
is
in
sync
with
the
mood
of
the
film.
I've
admired
Abhishek's
work
in
Mani
Ratnam's
earlier
films
Yuva
and
Guru,
but
despite
putting
his
best
foot
forward,
for
some
strange,
inexplicable
reason,
Abhishek
doesn't
look
convincing
for
the
part.
Also,
the
dialogue
delivered
by
him
aren't
coherent
at
times.
Aishwarya
is
wonderful,
looking
ethereal
and
enacting
her
part
with
conviction.
Vikram
is
first-rate,
although
the
role
isn't
substantial
enough.
Govinda
fails
to
create
any
impact
whatsoever.
Amongst
the
plethora
of
actors,
Nikhil
Dwivedi
[a
revelation;
very
good],
Ravi
Kishan
[nice]
and
Priyamani
[perfect]
stand
out.
On
the
whole,
Raavan
is
a
king-sized
disappointment,
in
terms
of
content.
From
the
business
point
of
view,
a
Mani
Ratnam
film
might
ensure
a
healthy
opening
[at
plexes
mainly],
but
the
weak
script
on
one
hand
and
the
heavy
price
tag
on
the
other
will
make
Raavan
see
red.