Most of us have grown up listening to stories from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, which were part of the story-telling repertoire of our grandparents and parents but are increasingly given the go by parents of today. Even the ubiquitous Amar Chitra Katha comics, a must-read for many of us too rarely find space in the “global” children of today who might score 90 per cent in English and if you ask them to write a paragraph on any subject of their choice, they will make 25 mistakes in it — this by the way is a real-time situation that my sister experienced when she was making selections for undergraduates in a respected Delhi University college (the BJP debate on English notwithstanding)!
It is my conviction that the Epics must be viewed against the backdrop of not only the value system and ideals they represent as they form the very core of the collective psyche but also visual arts and theatrical traditions. And it is hardly surprising that they have permeated the very fabric of our folk and traditional performing arts and painting traditions. Even before the term popular culture gained currency, the epics had captured the imagination of the artists and artistes where the sheer power of the myth captivated enough to include the heroes and the anti-heroes within their ambit, with all the regional flavours intact. Virtually all forms of wall paintings and sculpture traditions across the country be they the patachitra, madhubani, kohbar painting, patua paintings or the mandna tradition terracotta sculptures all look towards the epics for their thematic sustenance.
It must be remembered that theatrical traditions in the Asian context are not merely leisure time activity but form an integral part of the reality of life. These forms are bound by a commonality of thematic content, narrative, contextual similarities and a highly stylised repertoire. There is an inbuilt system of unity in their artistic vision and performance traditions. The unbroken continuity with acceptance of change, modification and dynamism is perhaps an indication of the conviction in tradition being akin to a flowing river — ever changing, ever dynamic and ever vibrant.
The performing arts revolving around the Epics can’t be viewed as an isolated art activity but must be viewed within the context of deep concerns of the world-view of the Indian mindset. The forms may vary from esoteric worship and ritual practices including painting to street theatre to circus and acrobatic forms, and go far beyond the momentary artistic and theatrical experience. The spread of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata theatre has shaped the contours of life and art of the people of not only India but also southeast Asia, Central Asia, China and even Japan. The
genesis of the story goes back to 1000 to 800 BC beyond doubt to a period prior to the date of Valmiki’s creation of the Ramayana.
The simplest and the most popular form is that of the kathakara. He may be called the Rama Kathakara or the Hari kathakara and is a singer, musician, mono actor and instrumentalist all rolled into one. The performer has the liberty to interpolate and paraphrase to give the story contemporary validity like a sutradhaar of Sanskrit drama or the vidhushak of kudiyattam and is an important form of social and political satire. In Orissa, it is Dasikathia form of ballad singing, which extols the virtues of Rama that is popular. In Andhra, it is the Burrakatha that holds sway. Here there are three singers with a mono-actor, who performs several roles. In fact it uses the Ranganatha Ramayana for its text and it will be of interest that here Laxman then becomes an important character in this version. For when Rama is exiled, Laxman asks for two boons: One, sleep for his queen Urmila for 14 years and for himself, 14 years of waking. He draws seven protective lines instead of one around Sita. Ravan’s son Indrajit and daughter in law Sulochna are also important characters in this version.
There are singing and mono-acting traditions prevalent in other parts of India with each drawing upon regional versions the Ramayana. The Veergasey singers from Mysore use the Toravai and the Pampa Ramayana. In Kerala it is the kamban Ramayana that is popular. Bengali ballad singers use Krittivasa’s Ramayana. But the most popular continues to be Tulsidas’ Ramacharitmanas, which is sung, recited, and enacted all over north India. The most spectacular of course is the enactment of the Ramayana in Banaras, called the Ramnagar ki Ramayana, where the venue shifts everyday of the performance to include every area of the city during Navratri when the good must conquer evil on Dussehra and the entire population of the city joins to relive the story and feel the pain, the anguish and the pleasure of the dramatis personae. And in that sense, the draw their ideals from them.
It might be of interest to know that India is perhaps the only country that can boast of having all the four forms of puppet theatre, that is shadow, rod, glove and string. And all of them, whether the Ravana chhaya from Orissa or tholubommalattam from Andhra or Karnataka, all look towards the Ramayana and the Mahabharata for their literary content. But for me it is the Mahabharata that holds enthrall in its stories, its world-view, position of women and the value system. For it is said what doesn’t exist in the Mahabharata doesn’t exist in the world. But of that next week!
Alka Raghuvanshi is an art writer, curator and artist and can be
contacted on alkaraghuvanshi@yahoo.com