Christopher Nolan‘s ‘The Odyssey’ is hours away from its global release, but it has already sparked online discussions among Indian fans. As per the latest chatter, the film starring Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway and Tom Holland in lead roles, has some desi fans drawing comparisons between a pivotal scene in the film and one of the most iconic moments from the Ramayana, which was also teased in director Nitesh Tiwari’s upcoming big-screen retelling.
SPOILERS AHEAD
Social media has been abuzz with netizens pointing out what they believe is a similarity tying the ancient Greek epic to the Indian epic. One of the most talked-about parallels centres on the climactic bow contest in ‘The Odyssey’. In the Greek epic, Odysseus, who returns to Ithaca disguised after years away, strings his legendary bow and shoots an arrow through 12 axe heads to prove his identity and reclaim his wife, Penelope, from the suitors vying for her hand.
‘The Odyssey’ scene inspired from ‘Ramayana’
Indian audiences were quick to point out the closeness of the bow contest to that of the Ramayana, where Lord Rama succeeds in lifting and stringing Lord Shiva’s divine bow, ultimately winning the hand of Sita. A similar scene was teased in the trailer of the upcoming Ranbir Kapoor starrer that sees him playing the role of Lord Rama and Sai Pallavi playing the role of Sita.
Fans react
One user wrote, “Does The Odyssey actually have a Ramayana reference in the climax?” while another explained the similarities, noting, “In Valmiki’s Ramayana, Rama lifts and snaps Lord Shiva’s bow to marry Sita. In Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus returns home in disguise, strings his own bow to win back Penelope. Ancient Greek mythology and Indian mythology sharing the same trope is fascinating.”
Was Ramayana the ‘inspiration’ behind the scene
This prompted fans to speculate whether the sequence in ‘The Odyssey’ was inspired by the Ramayana. However, others were quick to point out that both the Ramayana and Homer’s Odyssey share the similar texts, and it was not one of Nolan’s creative liberties.‘The Odyssey’ will have a wide release in India on July 17.
