Netas, abhinetas, matas and betis—Ramlilas draw talent

NEW DELHI: Like the characters they portray, the actors in the various

Ramlilas

across the city too are a colourful lot, each with his or her own little tale. Like Chandni, who becomes the demure Sita every evening at the Shri Nav Dharmik Leela Committee’s show on the Red Fort lawns. In her sixth year as Lord Ram’s wife, the English honours student of Swami Shraddhanand College is not alone here. Her mother Sapna is essaying the part of Kaikeyi, while her father daubs greasepaint on the cast members.

While she loves her time on stage, Chandni is wary about telling friends about the alter ego she assumes on these 11 days. “Some people don’t consider the Ramlila to be a high-class affair,” she said with a rueful grin. She said she initially found it tough to balance acting with academics, but after her multiple appearances, she no longer has to memorise her lines anew.

Also at the Ramlila grounds is a troupe from Moradabad, from where actors have faithfully come for Shree Ramlila Committee’s presentation every year for decades. “I was in the first team that arrived in 1966 and I have been coming here ever since,” said Dr Pradeep Sharma, chief director of the mandali. Among his charges are Bharti Singh, 20, a political science student in Delhi University, who transforms into Sita, and Arpit Gupta, 24, an MBA graduate who handles cargo and international freight in a private company, in the role of Ram. Like the pair, the others too are well versed in Moradabad’s distinctive form of acting called ‘Muradabadi shaili’.

For the fare at Indraprastha Ramlila Committee, the characters are mostly art and dance teachers from Delhi schools, all trained at the Bharatiya Kala Kendra. Rajni Shakya, the Sita in the version here, is Pandit Birju Maharaj’s granddaughter and an accomplished Rajasthani folk dancer. “Kala (art) is a shared heritage in the family,” she said. “My sister Madhu is acting as Kaikeyi. There are the 10 days we dedicate every year to Lord Ram.”

While aspirants like Chandni and Bharti Singh hope to build on their Ramlila performances to step into professional acting, the Luv Kush Ramleela Committee has been bringing Bollywood and TV actors to portray the mythological characters. Ashok Agarwal, the committee chairman, said that it was less the need for glamour and rather efficiency and professionalism that made them decide on this route two years ago.

“This is the first time I have taken on the role of Sita in front of a live audience,” said movie actress Gurleen Chopra. “I was initially nervous, but am enjoying it now.” As for experiences on stage and camera, she said, “There are no retakes here. You have to practise hard to perfectly deliver your scene in one take.”

There are 55 movie and TV actors keeping Chopra company this year, including Film and Television Institute of India chairman Gajendra Chauhan, Manoj Tiwari, Ravi Kishan, Asrani, Shakti Kapoor, Raza Murad and Anoop Jalota. Why even former cricketer Manoj Prabhakar is striding the stage in the garb of Indra!


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