A lot of hype, advertisements, banners, busy ticketing-sites; a lot is expected. Has the Hindi “Raavan” lived upto this? Ramayana is an epic that is sacred by many. So commenting on an epic or giving your take on an epic is not a cake-walk. It needs a lot of courage and wisdom. And hence I guess Mani Ratnam has done a good job.
New standards
Coming to the technical aspects, the cinematography has set a new standard! Camera-angles, focus, were done with brilliance. The music and background score were typical AR Rahman slow, gentle yet powerful. Costume designing was apt. Songs took the movie forward and never were a diversion.
The cast was simply superb. Everyone filled in their roles with excellence and attitude. Abhishek's wit and mood swings were natural and Aishwarya needs a special mention here for the efforts she has put in, that too in a movie which is being shot twice. The scene at the waterfall is one such. Vikram's attitude was very close to a present-day cop; a lot of commonsense, patience, balanced-anger and bit of evil. This means the ace director who calls himself a beginner has not committed a mistake.
Strong elements
The dark shades of the epic were depicted with a lot of care and subtlety. The last scene is one such example where the viewers are made to think of good and evil (Ram and Raavan) and the side you want to support. There are many other scenes where you are made to think if what is being done is right or wrong. I would say, this film is one of its kind and rating this film would be an injustice to the epic and the movie..!
Movie: Raavan
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Vikram
Bottomline: Use your brains and listen to your heart while you watch the movie. If you want a stereotype then this is not your cup of tea.
Vignesh Karthik KR, II Year, B.Com, Loyola College
