What if Ravan became Ram?

Ramayana seems to be the flavour of the season. While Amish Tripathi  came up with his version of Ramayana in Scion of Ikshvaku, Rangadhara staged a satirical play, Aur Shakespeare Sharmaya, at Lamakaan on Friday. The play, influenced by the folk style of tamasha, has the Ramayana, Shakespearian humour and contemporary atmosphere, all are combined in one.

The play revolves around Shakespeare’s famous quote, “What is in a name.” Ravan meets Shakespeare in heaven, he tells the bard to write a play where Ravan becomes Ram. Hereafter, begins a series of funny incidents, which continue  until the bard accepts the fact that everything is in the ‘Name’.

Sita and Ravan’s wife, Mandodari are conspicuous by their absence. Monogamy is taken seriously in the play and there was no mention of the Sita haran. On the other hand, Ram’s “dance of anger” had the audience in splits.

Ali Ahmed Faizal, who played the role of Ram said, “We had the freedom to improvise and all of us came up with our own ideas.”

Professor Bhaskar Shewalkar, under whose guidance Rangadhara presented the play, said, “It is a satirical take on today’s society. The fights in the name of religion to HIV— all have been dealt with in the play.”
 
According to Anuradha Murali, a software engineer,  who was in the audience, “It is a refreshing take on mythology. In Sri Lanka, Ravan is considered a hero. It is interesting to see what happens when he becomes Ram.”