A group of 12 Russian artists will perform Ramlila, the dramatic re-enactment of the life of Lord Ram, in the temple town of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh on the occasion of Deepotsav this year.
The participation of Russian artists is in line with chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s efforts to invite artists from across the globe, an initiative that has received accolades from foreign artists.
Foreign artists performed Ramlila in Ayodhya during the first edition of Deepotsav in 2017.
The troupe of Russian artists will perform in Padma Shri Gennady Mikhailovich Pechnikov Memorial Ramlila to be held on the Deepotsav stage in Ayodhya in collaboration with ‘Disha: India-Russia Friendship Society of Moscow’.
As per director and producer Dr Rameshwar Singh, Ramlila has been performed in Russia on a very significant scale since 1960.
In the Russian Ramlila, Ildar Khusnullin will play Maryada Purushottam Shriram. Sita will be portrayed by Milana Bychonek, Kaushalya by Nadezda Singh, Sumitra by Rati Kosinova, Kaikeyi by Gulnara Isakova, Lakshmana by Alexei Fleyjanikav, and Ravana by Vaychislav Chernyash. Danish Shevtsov will play Dashrath while Artem Zubkov will play Sugreev, with Kushnerova portraying Lord Hanuman.
The Russian artists said that Lord Ram’s persona is the only source of inspiration for their ongoing growth.
The artists will stage the scene of Sita returning to Ayodhya from Swayamvar or the royal wedding.
Aleksandra Koneva, the co-director, said that the performers would portray the Ram-Ravana war, the reunion of Ram and Sita, and the return to Ayodhya in addition to Sita’s Swayamvar, Kaikeyi asking for her three ‘vardaans’, Rama-Lakshman and Sita’s exile, Sita’s abduction, Sita in Lanka, and Lord Hanuman going to Lanka in Russian Ramlila.
Dr Rameshwar Singh, who is also the president of the Indo-Russian Friendship Association, said that the Yogi government provided him with a platform in India.
Apart from Russia, artists from seven other countries, including Trinidad and Tobago, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Malaysia, will once again perform Ramlila in Ayodhya.