Ramlila in Ramnagar

RAMNAGAR is a nondescript town about 14 km from Varanasi, on the opposite bank of the river Ganga. It has a fort palace built by Maharaja Balwant Singh in the 18th century. Inside the palace is a museum that has an astrological clock which not only displays the year, month, week and the day but also astronomical facts about the sun, moon and constellations.

The town comes to life during the Ramlila celebration, when hundreds of pilgrims from far and near visit to watch and participate in the drama festival held against the backdrop of the fort. The dramas are based on stories from the Ramayana. They begin on the day of Anant Chaturdashi and continue for 31 days until Sharad Purnima, which is a few days after Dussehra.

The festival unfolds in multiple venues across the town. Extravagant sets are put up to represent locations like Chitrakoot, Ayodhya, Ashok Van and other places mentioned in the Ramayana. The audience follows the cast as they shift from one location to another, and when Rama and Sita get married, the crowd too joins the wedding procession through the town.

The actors playing Ram, Sita, Lakshman, Bharat and Shatrughan are known as

svarupas and are treated as gods for the entire duration of the Ramlila. Important roles like that of Ravana and Hanuman have been acted out by members of the same family for generations.

The drama festival was first held in 1830 by Maharaja Udit Narayan Singh. It continues to this day with the current maharaja heading the colourful procession on an elephant. 3945 / © 2019 Amrita Bharati, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan