Raavanan

“Raavanan” (2010) by Mani Ratnam is a Kollywood action-adventure film. Stars Vikram, Aishwarya Rai and Prithviraj. Inspired by the epic “Ramayana”, the story follows a cop’s hunt for a tribal rebel who has kidnapped his wife, exploring emotional complexity and political ambiguity.

Veeraiya, a Naxalite, kidnaps Raagini, the wife of police officer Dev Prakash, to avenge his sister’s death at the hands of the police. Veera takes Raagini deep into the forest and intends to kill her but stops when she shows no fear of death. Dev begins a search operation in the forest with the help of a local guard but can’t find Veera. Meanwhile Raagini learns that Veera’s sister Vennila was tortured and abused by the police during a raid led by Dev. The trauma leads Vennila to take her own life, and Veera seeks revenge. Dev agrees to a peace deal offered by Veera’s brother Sakkarai and shoots him dead. Enraged Veera and his brother Singarasu attack Dev’s base, kill his men and have a face-off on a bridge where Veera defeats Dev but spares his life.

Dev finds Raagini, rescues her, and returns home. However, he accuses her of betraying him with Veera, claiming Veera told him so. Shocked and heartbroken, Raagini leaves Dev and meets Veera to learn the truth. Veera denies the claim, and they realise Dev has used her to track down Veera. When Dev arrives with a police tactical team that’s weirdly very well-versed at opening fire on movie-friendly shootouts, things don’t go well. When Sri’s men chase them down, Veera pushes Raagini out of harm’s way and is shot. As he dies, he smiles, seeing Raagini’s finger stretching toward him, assured that she did care.

“Raavanan” is lush with textures, landscapes, colours, emotions and characters. Mani Ratnam reimagines the “Ramayana” in a modern setup and presents a gripping tale of love, loyalty and justice. Vikram is fierce as a brother seeking justice for his sister like Raavana and Prithviraj is a determined husband whose love and pain drive his mission. Aishwarya Rai not only brings grace and strength to her performance that would be expected of her. The film explores blurred lines between good and evil with emotional intensity and poetic visuals.