Raavan --- on the flip side

Raavan – a much awaited movie with great start cast and high budject, directed by the great director Mani Ratnam and music composed by the Oscar winner AR Rahaman.

Why Mani Ratnam titled the movie as RAAVAN ?

Being a villain what he wants to project about Raavan, I was so curious about this..

I’ve done some research on Raavana’s character.

Ravana – is popularly known as a famous character as a villain in Hindu historical epic, the Ramayana. He is mostly depicted negatively, who infamously kidnapped Rama's wife Sita.

Yet, I found some interesting points about his gentleman character.

Here it is: Raavan --- on the flip side

Ravana is a Brahmin, a great scholar, a capable ruler, a player of the veena and a devoted follower of Shiva, He possessed a very thorough knowledge in the 4 vedas, and 6 upanishadas, which made him as powerful as 10 scholars. He is said to have possessed the nectar of immortality, which was stored under his navel, thanks to a celestial boon by Brahma.

While often thought of mainly as the infamous 10-headed demon, Ravana was also a notable scholar of the Vedas.

Ravana was aggressive and arrogant, he was also an exemplary scholar. Under Vishrava's tutelage, Ravana mastered the Vedas, the holy books, and also the arts and ways of Kshatriyas (warriors). Ravana was also an excellent veena player and the sign of his flag had a picture of veena on it.

Ravana's having ten heads is that the heads are a symbolic way to show the world about his knowledge. He was fully aware of the contents of the six Shastras. His knowledge of the six Shastras as well as his knowledge of the four Vedas, ten Holy Scriptures in all, is by this interpretation considered the inner meaning of the belief that Ravana had ten heads. He even knew that Ram was Narayana (Lord Vishnu) himself, who had come in human form.

However, since there was no other way for him to reach to Narayana, he had to cultivate wanton wickedness, violence and hatred, and invite Ram to kill him.

Nevertheless Ravana never even touched Sita while she was being held as his hostage. He visited her regularly and asked her consent to marry him. Every time Sita declined, but there is not a single instance when Ravana misbehaved with Sita.

He plays the role of a gentleman to the hilt, only because he was cursed by Kubera's son that he would lose all his 10 heads if he forced himself on any woman.

Reference by Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravana