Who Is Maricha (Mareecha)?
The demon who later becomes the golden deer
Maricha is a rakshasa (demon) in the Ramayana and the son of Tataka. He has a long-running feud with Rama and later plays a key role in one of the story's biggest events.
In Episode 1, Maricha, along with his ally Subahu and their demon followers, attacks Vishvamitra's ritual from the sky. When Rama fires the Manava, a weapon named after humankind, Maricha is not killed but is blasted far away across the ocean. Subahu, who attacked alongside him, is slain by the Agneya, the fire weapon.
Having survived, Maricha is later ordered by Ravana, king of the rakshasas, to disguise himself as a golden deer and appear before Sita. This trick leads to Sita's kidnapping.
