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RAMLILA Ramlila, the enactment of the story of Lord Rama is believed to have been started by great Saint Tulsidas. The Ramcharitmanas, written by him till today forms the basis of Ramlila performances. In some places, Ramlila is associated with the Vijayadashmi celebrations in late Sept. & early Oct. and also with Ramnavami, the birthday of Lord Rama. Ramlila, basically an enactment of a myth, is presented as a. cycle-play with the story varying from 7 to 31 days. The Ramlila performance evokes a festive atmosphere & enables observance of religious rites. It is also rich in performance crafts such as costume jewellery, masks, headgear, make-up and decoration. The four main Ramlila styles are the pantomimic style with a predominance of jhankis - tableaux pageants; the dialogue - based style with multi - local staging; the operatic style which draws its musical elements from the folk operas of the region and the stage - Ramlila of the professional troupes called "mandalis" Chitrakoot Ramlila Celebrated for five days every year in the last week of February at Chitrakoot beginning from the Maha Shivratri day. It is believed that during the Bharat-Milap, an important lila, Rama himself manifests in the swaroop playing Rama. Thousands of people watch this enactment with tears of joy. Varanasi Ramlila The Ramlila Festival (October- November), is celebrated with great fervor at Varanasi. Jhankis and pageants depicting scenes from the life of Lord Rama are taken out. Some of the episodes of the Varanasi Ramlila are witnessed with great interest. Bharat- Milap-Leela of Nati-Emli and the Nakkataiya of Chetganj are extremely famous. Ramnagar Ramlila Ramnagar, 15 km. from Varanasi presents the Ramlila started by the erstwhile Maharaja of Kashi in the most traditional style. The performances lasting for31 days are marked by detailed dialogues and impressive enactments. Hundreds of sadhus called Ramayanis come to Ramnagar to watch and recite the epic. Permanent structures are built and spaces designated to represent the main locales of the story i.e. Ashok Vatika, Janakpuri, Panchvati, Lanka etc. transforming the whole township into a vast Ramlila ground. The audience move along with the performers with every episode to Hie next locale. To maintain the austere character of the Ramlila, electric lights, mikes and loudspeakers are not used, though the average audience is rarely less than ten thousand. Allahabad Dussehra Allahabad Dussehra is marked with the unique procession of beautifully decorated "chowkis" accompanied by Ramdals every evening, that are taken out from different Localities, from four days preceding Dussehra. Ayodhya The place is popular for mandali Ramlilas. The performance is dialogue - based and presented on a platform stage. High standard of performance is complemented by songs and kathak dances and eye- catching decor. |
