These big errors in Adipurush final trailer show makers' lack of research, prove they don't understand Ramayan | Opinion

The final trailer of Adipurush received rather polarising response when it was released on Tuesday night. Prabhas fans could not stop raving about their hero and the film’s grandeur but many others were less than thrilled about the patchy VFX and over-the-top dialogue. With just a week left for the release of the film, the final trailer may have done more harm than good to the film, and I don’t say this on account of subjective things like VFX or depiction of the characters.

My problem with Adipurush (at least the bit shown in trailers so far) is the total lack of research about Hindu mythology and the Ramayan, as well as sequences and dialogue that betray the makers’ absolute lack of understanding of the source material.

‘Bharat ki beti’

Prabhas stars as Raghava (another name for Lord Ram) in Adipurush, and in one scene from the trailer, during an invigorating speech to the vanar sena, he asks them to march on Ravana’s Lanka to help him rescue Janaki (Sita, played by Kriti Sanon). His argument includes a line that they need to send a message so that nobody in future can lay hands on any ‘Bharat ki beti (daughter of India). Enough to elicit whistles and cheers in the theatre, this line is fundamentally wrong. According to Hindu mythology, the name Bharat for Indi comes from King Bharat, a Chandravanshi ruler and ancestor of the Pandavas and Kauravas. The only problem is that Bharat was born centuries after Lord Ram, as per the scriptures. In Ram’s time, the subcontinent may have been referred to as Aryavarta (land of the Aryans), although historians and religious scholars do not agree on when that term was coined. One thing is for certain, the word Bharat (for India) did not exist in the Treta Yuga, the era of Lord Ram.

Ravana breaking rudraksh mala

The opening sequence of Adipurush’s action trailer shows the abduction of Sita at the hands of Ravana. We see Saif Ali Khan’s Lankesh dressed as a sadhu, tricking Sita before transforming back into his real self. In the process, we see a close-up shot of Lankesh’s bulging biceps breaking rudraksh mala, probably signifying his scant regard for the Gods. The only problem with this sequence is that as per the Ramayana (almost all versions of it), Ravana was a devotee of Lord Shiva. According to scriptures, he prayed to Lord Shiva for a thousand years, singing a hymn in his praise. He considered himself the biggest Shiva devotee in the universe. Rudraksh (dried stonefruit) are sacred to Shaivites as they are seen as eyes of Lord Shiva. For a person like Ravana, who revered the God, it would be impossible to so casually desecrate his most sacred symbol like Adiupurush shows.

Lanka was the richest nation ever on earth

Adipurush trailer depicts Lanka as an imposing citadel surrounded by water, a massive city fortified by big walls and housing thousands of inhabitants. So far, so good! But Adipurush also makes the mistake of depicting it as gloomy and dark. The Lanka mentioned in Ramayan (and every variant of the story) was the golden city – Sone ki Lanka as they called it. It was said to be the richest and most beautiful city to have ever existed, with domes of solid gold and all inhabitants extremely well off. Before Ravana, his half-brother Kubera had ruled the kingdom. Considering that Kuber is the God of wealth in Hinduism, it isn’t hard to fathom why the city was so rich. But Adipurush has chosen to take a rather different, puzzling route with the city’s depiction, it seems.

Sita in a white saree?

When we first see Kriti Sanon’s Janaki in Adipurush final trailer, she is draped in a white saree. A little later, when she is being escorted to her prison in Ashok Vatika in Lanka, one can clearly see the saree is indeed white. It is only later when we see her speak with Hanuman that the familiar saffron robe is added to her attire. Hindu scriptures generally prescribe white saree only for widows and all married women are supposed to wear colourful sarees. The white saree in Adipurush was noticed by fans online too, many of whom wondered if it was indeed an error or some colour-grading goof-up in post-production. In either case, it does show the makers’ lack of attention to detail in the film.

Of course, every adaptation has the right to change things thematically, to bring new life into old stories. However, in something like the Ramayan, any changes that must be done need to stay true to the framework of beliefs and consistent to the core thought of the story. That is where Adipurush seems to be going wrong, at least in the first glance. The two trailers and the teaser put together have probably shown 5-6 minutes of footage from the film so far. So one can argue that it is unfair to judge a film of three-hour-duration based on just that. But my counter-point is that if one can find a few errors in just five minutes of footage, does that mean there are more waiting for us in the full film. Only time will tell. But for the sake of the makers of Adipurush, chiefly director Om Raut, I hope this is the extent of errors in the film and not simply the tip of an iceberg of mistakes.