From NTR to Amrish Puri, actors who played Ravana on screen before Saif Ali Khan in Adipurush
DNA WEB DESK
Om Raut’s upcoming mega-budget Ramayan adaptation Adipurush stars Saif Ali Khan as the antagonist Lankesh, a character based on Ramayan. The actor joins an illustrious list of names to have played the character before
NT Rama Rao holds the distinction of being the only actor to play both Ram and Ravana in various hit films. He played Ravana in Sita Rama Kalyanam (1961).
The 1976 film Bajrangbali features Prem Nath as Ravana in an extended cameo. The film marked Dara Singh’s first appearance as Hanuman.
Ramanand Sagar’s seminal TV show Ramayan, which ran from 1987-88, immortalised Arvind Trivedi as the face of Ravana for a whole generation.
Another Hindi thespian to take on the role of Ravana was Om Puri, who portrayed the demon king in an episode of the Doordarshan show Bharat Ke Khoj in 1989.
Amrish Puri famously voiced the ruler of Lanka in the Hindi version of the Japanese anime Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama, which was released in 1992.
In the 2008 reboot of Ramayan by Ramanand Sagar’s son Anand Sagar, veteran actor Akhilendra Mishra took over the mantle of Ravana.
One of the most recent high profile portrayals of Ravans was by Shalin Bhanot in the 2019-20TV show Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush.