Indian Spider-Man, Pavitr Prabhakar From Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse, Explained
Olivia Owen The question finds a delightful answer in Across the Spider-Verse. But if you're still here looking to dig into his backstory, here's a quick and simple guide:
Who is Pavitr Prabhakar?
Spider-Man India was created by writers Jeevan J. Kang, Suresh Seetharaman and artist Sharad Devarajan. The first known comic book was released after a collaboration between Marvel Comics and Gotham Entertainment Group to bring superheroes from the West to the Indian market. The collaboration resulted in a four-part mini-series titled Spider-Man India. The Indianised version adapted the web-slinger with a mix of mythological and cultural references. In the comic books, Pavitr is the defender of Earth-50101 who lives in Mumbai.
He was born in a village and raised by his Uncle Bhim and Aunt Maya. Sound familiar? This is also where a powerful amulet coveted by supervillains is hidden. Pavitra moves to Mumbai for further studies and while he's bullied by some of his fellow students, he finds an empathetic friend in Meera Jain, the MJ counterpart. To guide him through his hardships, his uncle Bhim tells him that his intellect is his power and it comes with great responsibility.
A short while after his move to the city, Nalin Oberoi - the big bad of his story, kills everyone in his village while seeking the amulet. Oberoi is none other than a Green Goblin-like Rakshasa or demon. After the tragedy, a clueless Pavitr is approached by a man who goes by Master Weaver and he helps him unlock his Spidey powers. He then begins web-slinging across Mumbai city. It isn’t long before he starts using his powers for good in his neighborhood.
See Also: Karan Soni on voicing Indian Spider-Man Pavitr Prabhakar in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Pavitr's Spidey suit is a bodysuit like most Spider-People. His suit has a white spider symbol on the chest. It also has a desi touch with a dhoti. There have been multiple versions of the character’s look over the years. Coming down to abilities - like most Spideys, Pavitr has superhuman strength, speed and the spider-sense that warns him of danger coming. And of course, he can produce webs from his forearms that help him scale walls and swing across distances. He also has a penchant for robotics with his impressive intelligence.
Pavitr's allies include Peter Parker - Spider-Man from Earth 616 and Billy Braddock - Spider-UK from Earth 833. He also joins the Multiversal Superior Spider-Army and goes up against the Inheritors with a larger Spider-Army. His enemies include Nalin Oberoi and a demon, Dr Octopus.
Pavitr Prabhakar in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
In Across the Spider-Verse, Pavitr’s arc is set on Earth - 50101 just like the comics. Quite a few liberties have been taken with not only Pavitr's look but also his origin story including the setting. Pavitr lives in the city of Mumbattan - a futuristic mash-up of Mumbai and Manhattan. In a recent interview, the film’s producer Christopher Miller explained, “That’s based on an Indian comic-book look – and Nueva York from Spider-Man 2099’s world, that’s based on Syd Mead-style illustrations of what the future might look like.”
See Also: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse director Kemp Powers talks about Pavitr Prabhakar
Pavitr is a remarkable Spider-Man who thinks being a superhero is easy. He is also as relatable as it gets. From highlighting the traffic in his city to explaining how chai tea is just "tea tea". His costume has gone through a major transformation for the movie. For starters, it’s more colourful. The blue and red suit has a white spider symbol that covers his entire torso. He wears two gold bracelets on each wrist. His mask doesn't conceal his dark brown wavy hair that he's quite proud of. Like most versions, he wears a dhoti. This one is blue and gold.
The Indian Spider-Man is voiced by Karan Soni who luckily lends a realistic voice without the forced accent. Fans will recognise him as the voice of Dopinder in Deadpool. Opening up about the stint, Soni revealed, "It's just very exciting because I grew up in India, and we absolutely love Spider-Man. When it was announced that I was playing him, I cannot tell you how many messages I got from people. Firstly, they were just excited, and then there were a few more serious messages, saying mainly, ‘Don't mess this up.’ I don’t think we did!”
While Karan Soni is the voice of Pavitr Prabhakar in the original dub, the popular cricketer Shubman Gill has lent his voice to the character in the Hindi and Punjabi versions. Read all about it here:
See Also: Cricketer Shubman Gill on voicing Pavitr Prabhakar in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
What is Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse about?
Set over a year after the events of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the film sees Miles Morales continuing his work as the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man after a time skip. His routine, which includes skipping school while leading a dual life, is disrupted when he's visited by Spider-Gwen. Gwen is on a mission to save people in general and Spider-People across universes, a mission Miles isn't a part of. However, he eventually gets tangled into the dangerous web that takes him, well, across the expansive and chaotic Spider-Verse. This is where Pavitr Prabhakar comes in as a major superhero who joins the likes of Jessica Drew - Spider-Woman, Hobie - Spider-Punk, Miguel O-Hara - Spider-Man 2099 and Ben Reilly - Scarlet Spider, among others.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is currently in cinemas.
Check out the trailer here:
