Ramayana, a puppet dance show from Bhopal has not changed its script, set design and costume since 1952, when it was first staged. Shrabasti Mallik learns from Ram Prakash Tripathy, manager of the group, that the play is an amalgamation of all versions of the epic
Puppet shows we have seen many and have also seen uncountable interpretations of the Ramayana. But Ranga-Sri little Ballet Troupe’s production of the epic is narrated through a puppet show. The show titled Ramayana, was staged on the first day of the National School of Drama’s Bharat Rang Mahotsav.
The play was conceptualised 63 years ago by Shanti Vardhan, who was greatly influenced by Indian performing arts and an expert in one of the classical dance forms of Odisha. He was also a freedom fighter and was jailed in Calcutta when he was 14 years old. The main aim in his life was to restore and bring back the value of our Indian heritage that was destroyed during the British Rule. That was how he came to devise the play which was first staged in 1952 at Jai Hind College, and except for the years that has passed, nothing has changed.
“Everything is the same — from the sets to the costume and the masks. The production is the same, too. It is a heritage production,” said Ram Prakash Tripathy, the trustee of the group. “However, the cast has changed over the years,” he laughed.
Ramayana, the puppet show, has travelled overseas and has had 600 shows in 56 countries. But even then, no one has ever thought of changing the play to adapt to modern times. Tripathy explained that the reason nobody felt the need to do so was because the script was advanced for its time. “The show incorporates cultural traditions from all across the country which in itself is a unique thing. Many of the devices of the play are being used by people now. In fact, the route that Ram took from Ayodhya to Sri lanka — the musical and dance element of that entire stretch has been incorporated. You will find Karnatic music and also traces of Punjabi music and the kajri chaiti style of Uttar Pradesh has also been used. The idea was so nice that we never had to change it,” he elaborated.
There are several versions of the epic and when we asked Tripathy which Ramayana the play is based upon, he said that it was an amalgamation of all the versions that exist. “This is a combination of Valmiki, Tulsidas, Kamba Ramayana and Kritibas Ramayana. Ram is a mythological character, not a historic one.Ram is basically a is a good soul and whichever area in the country wants to work on a good soul it will always be accepted,” he added.
Tripathy pointed out one change that has come over in the years in the production — the music. Earlier, the music used to be live while now, it has been recorded. We found out that though the play uses puppets, they use beautiful masks as well.
