Ravanolbhavam (The Origin of Ravana) is a Kathakali play( Aattakatha) authored by Kallekulangara Raghava Pisharodi in

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

. Based on the

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

, it narrates the story surrounding the origin of

Ravana Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. ...

and his rise to power following his penance to

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

. A major part of the play involves the arrogant Ravana enacting the tale of how, by means of a severe penance, he came in possession of boons from Brahma.{{Cite news, last=K, first=Achuthan T., date=2021-02-09, title=Pristine and powerful recital of ‘Ravanolbhavam’, language=en-IN, work=The Hindu, url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/art/pristine-and-powerful-recital-of-ravanolbhavam/article33791000.ece, access-date=2021-08-30, issn=0971-751X

References

Kathakali Indian plays Malayalam-language literature