From Narendra Modi to Hrithik Roshan, Ramlilas have an impressive guest list for this year’s showcase. Eco-friendly fireworks imported from Thailand and drone cameras are the other highlights. Divya Kaushik reports
How could Ramlila committees in Delhi have been left out of the frenzy when the entire world was under the spell of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his impressive speech at the Madison Square in New YorkIJ The lav Kush Ramlila Committee, Red Fort, organised the live screening of the speech so that their guests as well as the actors and members of the committee could witness the grand event. This is not it. If everything goes as per the plan, the oldest and most talked about Ramlila in Delhi will have Narendra Modi as their special guest on Dussehra with actor Hrithik Roshan. “Who can be a better person than our Prime Minister to kill the evil this DussehraIJ We have already sent our proposal and we might get a confirmation of his presence soon. Hrithik Roshan has already confirmed his presence on the festival,” informs Arjun Kumar, secretary, lav Kush Ramlila Committee. like every other year, the committee has made many other plans to stand out among the rest. like every other year, the committee has made many other plans to stand out among the rest. “We were the first ones to adopt new technology and do the live streaming of our Ramlila. Innovations like hydraulic stage, flying Hanuman, lED lights, all that was introduced last year, is there this year as well. But we have beefed up our security arrangements this year. We are using drone cameras. Also we have adopted eco-friendly ways this year. We are using cold fireworks which are specially imported from Thailand. We even have special technicians for them. Apart from that we have been having celebrity guests like Govinda and Raveena Tandon. last year Hema Malini essayed the role of Sita for a day in our Ramlila,” adds Kumar. The luv Kush Ramlila committee has increased their budget by 15 to 20 per cent this year and most of it is being spent on celebrity guests and special security arrangements.
The use of technology has been a major draw at the Ramlilas and the craze continues. Apart from the stage setting, technology contributes in a major way to make the fight sequences look more attractive. For example, on being hit by an arrow Ravana bleeds from the mouth and produces flames through his eyes and shout ‘Hey Ram’. When the swords will clash, there would be flashes of lightning. Anil Garg, general secretary, Shri Ram Dharmik leela Committee, Tri Nagar, says they have paid special attention to the stage design. He says, “Our stage is designed like a pristine white palace bathed in yellow, blue and white lights. People have been only coming to click pictures of our stage. We have a seating arrangement of over seven thousand people. We are also among six Ramlilas where the Health Ministry has put up a health awareness camp.” For Dussehra, they have ordered for a customised effigy which will be over 80 feet tall.
While others have been boasting of the huge budget which is being spent to make Ramlilas an extravagant and glamorous affair, there’s a Ramlila committee that collects money the traditional way for its operations. “We do not exceed Rs 5 lakh budget and that too is collected from homes by the members who personally visit people in their locality, like it was done in the earlier days,” says Avtar Singh, one of the founder members of Navyuvak Ramlila Committee, Kashmiri Gate. The actors who are seen on the stage are trained students who have done a month-long workshop. They do not charge a penny. “We put out posters for our acting and training workshops over two months before the Ramlila. We select our actors from that workshop. We have actors ranging from the age of five to 25. They are from all religions,” says Singh, who is a Sikh and has been associated with the Ramlila since he was seven. “I replaced a child artiste who burnt his beard while acting,” he says. It is only thanks to their traditional ways that their Ramlila has a huge fan following. “It is said that some people’s wishes (that were made to Ram in our Ramlila) were granted. People still come to watch our Ramlila with this belief that their wishes will be granted,” says Singh.