Page - 47 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 07/02

Validating Demons | 47www.jrfm.eu 2021, 7/2, 31–53 Contrasting Ratnam’s Version with Renderings of Rāmāyaṇa in Literature Within the Rāmāyaṇa tradition, there are numerous representations of Rāvaṇa in the North and South. In this section, various retellings will be contrasted to illuminate points of confluence and divergence between these literary narratives and Ratnam’s adaptation. In Vālmīki’s Rāmāyaṇa, Rāvaṇa is described as “the one who causes the world to roar” and “one who looks like a dark cloud”, and one of his common epithets is “the ten necked-one”.49 In Ratnam’s movie, Bīrā hears many voices in his head, suggesting some sort of mental illness – here is an actualization of the demon with ten heads. The voices represent the coexistence of good and evil in his mind. In Vālmīki, Rāvaṇa’s palace is depicted as a place where everything exists in excess. There were all kinds of meat: venison, buffalo, boar, deer, peacock, fish, and goat. Men and women got drunk without any shame.50 His palace is luxurious, with many buildings and extremely attractive vast mansions, and many beautiful women.51 Here, Rāvaṇa is not in the forest like many demons but inhabits a world comparable to Rāma’s kingdom.52 Rāvaṇa lives a life that is parallel to that of other kings in different locations. By contrast, as already noted, in Raavan (2010), Bīrā’s world is in no way glorious nor is his world analogous to that of Dev (Rāma). Rāvaṇa falls in love with Sītā in Vālmīki’s text; he desires her above all, but later is extremely aggressive as he wants to possess her. When Sītā virtu- ously rejects him, Rāvaṇa tries to pressure her, threatening that if she does not sleep with him, he will eat her. In his harsh and licentious speech, he is depicted as “hissing like a serpent”,53 with frightening animal-like conduct. Again, by contrast, and although Bīrā describes himself as an animal, he never insists on engaging sexually with Rāginī; he just laments that she loves Dev. According to Vālmīki, Rāvaṇa is warned that the war against the king of Ayodhya will destroy him, but he does not listen to the advice of others: he is arrogant and has a bad temper. He is not a righteous king and is only concerned with his personal interest in Sītā. Since he loves her and wants 49 Vālmīki III.33.1. 50 Vālmīki V.11.13–18. 51 Vālmīki V.7.1–7. 52 Pollock 2006, 32. 53 Vālmīki III.22.30.