Mission Impossible 5 : It all started with Hanuman

Most cineplexes in Bangalore are running multiple shows of the latest  Mission Impossible 5 (released recently but grossed $300+M already!) Tom Cruise leads spectacular action and chases with several nail-biting moments and white-knuckles fight scenes. There's beautiful imagery of London, Vienna, and Morocco. There is an incredible bike chase scene. There is a superwoman Faust (Rebecca Fergusson) statuesque like Maria Sharapova and finessed in everything she does including fights. Opera and Symphony fill our ears through DTS surround sound with loud explosions and noises rending the air at regular intervals. Guns hidden in trumpets and stuff.

The MI formula for success is straight forward. Take off where Bond ends. A goulash of a super agent, American politics, international safety fears, almost invisible "devils", European and Mediterranean locales, chases, bombs, some arty scenes, encrypt/decrypt geeks and incredible sci-fi scenarios. All ends well as the totally self-less Ethan Hunt walks away into the dark until next time.

Do you see what I see? That super-dad of poets and script writers, Valmiki. That original super hero Hanuman. Danger, Vice, and Horror like only a ten-headed monster called Ravana can conjure up. A distant island where a damsel lies captive in distress. A good man lost in the forest, hell-bent on righting the wrongs and retrieving his beloved wife.

Comes Hanuman. First off, he jumps across the ocean. Several "minor" hurdles on the way. Clever and secretive, he discovers Sita. Gives her the good news. Gets a taste of the action and kills a few baddies. Encounters Ravana in his own den. Escapes unscathed. His tail is up, in fire, and sets Lanka on fire, too!

Change to the scene of the great battle. Lakshmana in the throes of death. What does Hanuman do? Leaps across to Himalayas, lifts a whole mountain, and is back before day-break.

Incredible action! Impossible challenges. Herioc Missions. The original Mission Impossible Hero was Hanuman!