| Written & Directed by Mahmood Farooqui Produced by Anusha Rizvi Dastango: All |
|
| A narrative about multiple Ramayanas that circulate in the world in place of a singular one. Largely based on AK Ramanujan’s essay, ‘300 Ramayanas’, this Dastangoi presentation showcases the importance of the scholar's works for the understanding of India’s histories and cultures. The adaptation starts with tracing the journey of AK Ramanujan and merges into various folk tales that display how multiple narratives circulate in the world in place of a singular one. Dastan Jai Ram Jee Ki was devised in light of the decision of the Academic Council of Delhi University to exile AK Ramanujan’s scholarly essay, ‘300 Ramayanas’ from the Undergraduate syllabus of the University, and in appreciation of the vast range and depth of AK Ramanujan’s intellectual contributions. Going with the spirit of the story, this adaptation is an ever-expanding presentation. |
The performance is a patchwork quilt woven from diverse literary and scholarly works written over several centuries. In addition to Valmiki’s Ramayana and Tulsidas’ Ramcharitmanas, it draws on Allama Iqbal’s poem Ram, AK Ramanujan’s essay ‘Three Hundred Ramayanas: Five Examples and Three Thoughts on Translation’, and Paula Richman’s book Many Ramayanas: The Diversity of a Narrative Tradition in South Asia. Other sources include Kamban’s Tamil epic Ramavataram, Vimalasuri’s Jain text Paumchariya, as well as the work of Chandraman Bedil and Abdul Maseeh Panipati. “ Dastan Jai Ramji Ki introduces you to a Ram who is closer to the folk than these rituals, idols, and texts." |
