I am pretty sure that the above headline will make certain eyes roll, but hear me out. We are Indians and we make everything around us about our religions and our gods. So don't blame us for bringing a religious angle to even a superhero film like Avengers: EndGame. It is not that Marvel Cinematic Universe itself has been bereft of Hindu mythology. In a scene from Black Panther, M'Baku (Winston Duke), the leader of Jabari tribe, hails Lord Hanuman. For some strange reason, this dialogue was muted by the Indian censors. Black Panther: CBFC Mutes 'Hanuman' Reference As It Might Hurt Religious Sentiments.

So what about Avengers: EndGame? There was no direct reference to any Indian gods in the film, but there is a sly inference to the deity, Lord Ganesha or Ganapathi. Before I explain why I feel so, let me warn you that the below post is filled with SPOILERS, big ones at that. So please read ahead with caution.

So in the first act, the surviving Avengers from Infinity War team up with Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) and find Thanos to get the stones from him and bring back the fallen heroes. They find the purple alien living alone on a planet, but learns that he has destroyed the stones. Even Thor murdering Thanos does precious little to change the situation and the heroes have to live with their failure for five years. Avengers EndGame Movie Review: Marvel’s Superhero Film Is an Emotionally Wrenching, Enriching FanBoy Experience That Goes for Your Heart!

And then comes Ant-Man.

If you remember the mid-credit sequence of Ant-Man & The Wasp, Scott Lang aka Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) was stuck in the Quantum Realm, after Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) and Hope aka the Wasp (Evangeline Lilly) got obliterated by the Snap.

Watch the scene below:

It is his return to the real world from the Realm that gives hope to the Avengers that they could save the fallen comrades. But how does he escape from the Quantum Realm? Did his friends, Luis and co, save him? Or was it his own ingenuity?

The answer is, neither. It was a stroke of luck that saved Ant-Man, and in turn, saved the world too. Ant-Man's van that had the Quantum machine was impounded in a storage facility. There, one day, a rat runs over the controls which brings Ant-Man back to the real world. For him, it was like he had only spent five hours in the Realm, but in the real world, it was five years. Which makes Ant-Man realise that they could use the time dynamics of the Quantum Realm to reverse the snap, and thus achieve their victory.

So what makes me bring Lord Ganesha to the picture here? Without Ant-Man coming out of the Quantum Realm, there was no way the Avengers would have won this one. Him being trapped in the Realm was the biggest obstacle for their mission (something they never realised then), and it was removed by the unassuming actions of a common rat.

Now, those who are well-versed in Hindu mythology know that the rat (in some stories, mouse...frankly, I am still confused about the difference) is the vehicle of Lord Ganesha. Lord Ganesha is also known as Vignahartha, the remover of obstacles for many Hindus. So did his divine intervention save the day for the Avengers? Was that rat a miracle sent by our dear Lord Ganesh

It is entirely your take on how you want to see this plot element, but there is no doubt that the rat has become the new star of MCU, after Captain Marvel's Goose the Cat. Captain Marvel: Goose the Cat Will Defeat Thanos in Avengers: EndGame, Say Fans After Watching Brie Larson’s Superhero Film.

Despite having a screen appearance of only a couple of seconds, Twitterati is already hailing the rat as the real hero of Avengers: EndGame. Check out the Twitter reactions below:

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Avengers: EndGame is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and is the sequel to Avengers: Infinity War. More than that, it is the culmination of 21 movies that came before in Marvel Cinematic Universe, and marks the end of the journey for some of the popular superhero characters.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 26, 2019 04:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).