''Lav Kush'' is a 1997 Indian

Hindu mythological film This is a list of genres of literature and entertainment (film, television, music, and video games), excluding genres in the visual arts. ''Genre'' is the term for any category of creative work, which includes literature and other forms of art ...

, produced by Dilip Kanikaria under the Devyank Arts banner and directed by

V. Madhusudhana Rao Veeramachaneni Madhusudhana Rao (14 June 1923 – 11 January 2012) was an Indian film director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He is popularly known as 'Victory' Madhusudhana Rao. He directed nea ...

. It is based on

Valmiki Valmiki (; , ) was a legendary poet who is celebrated as the traditional author of the epic ''Ramayana'', based on the attribution in the text itself. He is revered as ''Ādi Kavi'', the first poet, author of ''Ramayana'', the first epic poe ...

's '' Uttar Ramayan'' from the Indian

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

''. The music of the film was composed by

Raamlaxman Raamlaxman was an Indian musical duo consisting of Vijay Patil (16 September 1942 – 22 May 2021) who performed under the name Laxman, and Surendra who passed in 1976. However, Patil continued to work under the original name. Laxman, was an I ...

. It stars

Jeetendra Jeetendra (born Ravi Kapoor ; 7 April 1942) is an Indian actor who is known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the greatest actors of Hindi cinema. He is noted for his acting, style and dance. He has worked in more than Je ...

Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda' ...

Jaya Prada Jaya Prada Nahata (born Lalitha Rani Rao; 3 April 1962) is an Indian actress and politician known for her works majorly in Telugu cinema and Hindi cinema as well as in Tamil films in late '70s, '80s and early '90s. Jayaprada is the recipient ...

Sita Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is t ...

Arun Govil Arun Govil ( ; ; born 12 January 1952) is an Indian actor and politician from the Bharatiya Janata Party. He is best known for portraying Lord Rama in the '' Ramayan'' TV series and reprising his role as Lord Rama (voice acting) in the 1993 an ...

Lakshmana Lakshmana (, ), also known as Laxmana, Lakhan, Saumitra, and Ramanuja, is the younger brother of Rama in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is considered as an incarnation of Shesha, the lord of serpents. Lakshmana was married to Urmila, and i ...

Dara Singh Dara Singh Randhawa (born Deedar Singh Randhawa; 19 November 1928 – 12 July 2012) was an Indian professional wrestler, actor, director and politician. He started acting in 1952 and was the first sportsman to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha ...

Hanuman Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...

and

Pran PRAN-RFL Group () is a Bangladeshi conglomerate, founded in 1981 by Amjad Khan Chowdhury. It is one of the largest conglomerates in Bangladesh Pran-RFL Group is headquartered in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and employs over 1,00,000 people worldwide ...

. Upon its release, the film was a financial disaster grossing at the box office.

Plot

The film begins with

Lord Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda'' ...

returning to

Ayodhya Ayodhya () is a city situated on the banks of the Sarayu river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ayodhya district as well as the Ayodhya division of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ayodhya became th ...

after defeating Ravana along with

Goddess Sita Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is t ...

and being crowned as the emperor, settling down to a harmonious lifestyle. At that point, his spies inform him that his reputation may be at stake as Sita had spent over a year in Ravana's Lanka. So, he dictates

to ensure that Sita is sent to exile. A devastated, pregnant, and distraught Sita is rescued by Valmiki, who shelters her at his

ashram An ashram (, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery in Indian religions, not including Buddhism. Etymology The Sanskrit noun is a thematic nominal derivative from the root 'toil' (< Lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a Natural satellite, moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a Fissure vent, fractu ...

Kusha Kusha () is a Chandravamsha king in Hindu mythology. He was the father of Kushanabha Kushanabha () is a king featured in Hindu texts. He is described to be the king of the Amavasu dynasty and belongs to the Chandravamsha line. He is stated to ...

. Valmiki trains them as jake of all trades including knowledge, warfare, and religion. Ten years later, the twins decide to visit a drought and famine-ravaged Ayodhya to get the blessings of Srirama & Sita also recite the Ramayan. Whereupon, they get the knowledge that Srirama has ostracized Sita. Later, they back with an aversion and refuses to invoke the Ramayan. Sita fails to endure, and fumes which indicate fright. However, she calms after Lava-Kusa re-chanting the Ramayana. After a while, Vashitha instructs Rama to conduct '' Aswamedha Yagam'' for the welfare of the country which is impracticable without a wife. Then, Vashista proclaims it can be feasible with the golden ideal of Sita. Plus, the gold required for it is bestowed by the civilians as an atonement for their sins. Now all the sages and saints are invited to the ritual and news spreads to Valmiki's ashram. At this, Sita is perturbed, suspects Srirama's spirit, and collapses. Accordingly, Valmiki relieves her soul to Ayodhya where she is startled to see golden Sita and Srirama's adoration on her. Soon after, Valmiki states that the meaning of ''Rama Avtar'' is standing on one word, one arrow and love is for only one wife. Herewith, Sita repents and performs a pooja as contrition as per the advice of Valmiki. Meanwhile, Srirama begins the ritual and leaves the horse which the twins obstruct, confronts Lakshman, and defeats the entire Ayodhya army along with him. Being cognizant of it, Srirama proceeds to recoup the horse and an altercation carry out between father & sons which leads to war. Spotting it, Anjineeya hurriedly rushes to Sita and informs her of the catastrophe. Immediately, she impedes the battle and proclaims Lava-Kusha as the progeny of Srirama. Thus, the two embrace their father when everyone requests Sita to be back as queen which she denies and returns to her mother

Bhudevi Bhumi (Sanskrit: भूमि, romanized: Bhūmi), also known as Bhudevi, Dharani, and Vasundhara, is a significant goddess in Hinduism, personifying the Earth. Her earliest form is reflected in the Vedic goddess Prithvi, though their roles and de ...

. At last, Rama and his brothers renounce the throne by crowning Lava-Kusha. Finally, the movie ends on a happy note with Rama & Sita merging into their original forms of

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

and

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, , ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of wealth, fortune, prosperity, beauty, fertility, sovereignty, and abundance. She along with Parvat ...

Vaikuntha Vaikuntha (), also called Vishnuloka (), and Tirunatu (Tirunāṭu) in Tamil language, Tamil, is the abode of Vishnu, the Parabrahman , supreme deity in the Vaishnavism, Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism,Gavin Flood, An Introduction to Hinduism' ( ...

Cast

Soundtrack

The songs were composed by

and penned by Dev Kohli and Bhring Tupkari.

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar (; born Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. He ...

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; ; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur, actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the media as one of the ...

Suresh Wadkar Suresh Ishwar Wadkar (born 7 August 1955) is an Indian playback singer. He performs in both Hindi and Marathi films. He has sung songs in some Bhojpuri films, Odia albums and bhajans and in Konkani films. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Ak ...

S. P. Balasubrahmanyam Sripathi Panditaradhyula Balasubrahmanyam (4 June 1946 – 25 September 2020), commonly known as SPB or Balu, was an Indian playback singer, television presenter, actor, music composer, dubbing artist, and film producer. He is widely regarde ...

have lent their voices for the soundtrack.

Release

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0290231 1997 films 1990s Hindi-language films Hindu mythological films Films based on the Ramayana Films directed by V. Madhusudhana Rao Films scored by Raamlaxman