The Ramayana epic has over 300 versions across India and Southeast Asia, each incorporating unique cultural and regional elements. Some of these versions have different interpretations of the central characters compared to Valmiki's Ramayana, the oldest and most definitive version known to most people. From the complexity of characters to the philosophical questions it deals with, making it an ever-relevant reference material for works of art, culture, and cinema.
In Sri Lankan filmmaker Prasanna Vithanage’s Kim Jiseok award-winning film Paradise one can see inspiration from the central theme—the “journey”--of the timeless epic. In the film we see an Indian couple—Kesav (Roshan Mathew) and Amritha (Darshana Rajendran)—who choose to embark on a 'Ramayana Trail' in Sri Lanka amid the financial crisis in Sri Lanka in 2022. As the island neighbour grappled with a crisis and millions of its citizens found themselves plunged into dire poverty and suffered shortages of even essential goods, many Indians made it an opportune moment to tour Lanka at a cheap cost. Vithanage portrays how the couple remains aloof from the crisis faced by the Lankan citizens until and unless a crisis comes to their lives.
While talking to THE WEEK last year, Vithanage said, "I believe human relationships are most revealing during times of crisis." In Paradise, one can see how he conducts an in-depth exploration of his characters and the nuances in their relationship dynamics while keeping the sociopolitical tumult in his homeland as its backdrop.
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The screenplay by Vithanage and Anushka Senanayake is so powerful that one can sense the characters grappling with both internal conflicts and external circumstances simultaneously. Vithanage maintains a straightforward linear narrative, but the dialogues are rich with subtext, offering multiple layers of reflection on the film.
While Paradise primarily presents the challenges faced by the Indian couple, the film effectively serves as a compelling critique of how the state machinery treats the rich and poor unequally. It also highlights the continued scapegoating of ethnic minorities in Sri Lanka.
Roshan and Darshana poignantly portray the roles of Keshav and Amritha, with strong support from Sri Lankan actors Shyam Fernando (playing the tour guide Andrew) and Mahendra Perera (playing the police official Sergeant Bandara).
Produced by Newton Cinema—known for powerful films like Don Palathara’s Family, Varun Grover’s Kiss, and Megha Ramaswamy’s Lalanna’s Song—Paradise is technically well crafted. Acclaimed cinematographer-filmmaker Rajeev Ravi handled the cinematography, while veteran editor A. Sreekar Prasad managed the editing.
Born in Panadura, a stronghold of the Trotskyism-inspired Lanka Sama Samaja Party, into a Sinhalese family in 1962, Vithanage grew up acutely aware of the socioeconomic disparities in his country. He has consistently used filmmaking, his best tool, to address issues considered heretical by those in power. In Paradise also, one can sense that revolutionary spirit of the filmmaker who calls a spade a spade.
Movie: Paradise
Cast: Roshan Mathew, Darshana Rajendran, Shyam Fernando, Mahendra Perera
Direction: Prasanna Vithanage
Rating: 4 out of 5
