Despite appearing only for a few seconds in the trailer for Ramayana directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Vivek Oberoi was quickly recognised by fans for the transformation he underwent. Wearing heavy armour and thick facial hair along with ornate headgear, he appeared barely recognisable from his usual avatar. He was immediately associated with Vidyutjihva, whose story is linked to the family of Ravana.
As per the epic, Vidyutjihva was married to Shurpanakha, the sister of Ravana. He may not be one of the most well-known characters; however, he holds an important place in Ravana's life. It is believed that he even had a son named Shambhu Kumara from Shurpanakha.
One version of the story suggests that he participated in a number of battles along with Ravana. In addition to that, he aided Ravana in beating the King of the Gods, Indra. Unfortunately, things went terribly wrong. On his way back from heaven, he encountered the Kalakeyas. Ravana succeeded in killing them. There is another belief that he subdued the land of Kalakeyas in the underworld.
The deaths of the Kalakeyas angered Vidutjihva, and he went to fight against Ravana. The battle concluded with the killing of Vidutjihva by Ravana. It was an important event in the history of the Ravana family. In order to console the mourning Shurpanakha, Ravana gave her permission to marry someone else. He even promised to force the marriage if anyone rejected her proposal.
There is also more than one story about his fate in the epic. One version says that Ravana killed him by accident in the war with Indra. There is another story which says that he was a great orator and the meaning of his name is 'lightning tongue.' In this story, he challenged Ravana for ruling Lanka, and Ravana killed him at the very first chance.
Vivek Oberoi's choice for the role is of great interest to his fans since it may imply that Ramayana will finally introduce these forgotten stories from the epic on the big screen.
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