The Stage Is the Town Itself
Ramnagar does not build a stage for the Ramlila. It uses itself. The Lanka episode happens at a ground called Lanka. The ocean-crossing happens at a tank called the Sumudra Sagar. Ayodhya, Janakpur, Chitrakoot, each location in the Ramayana has a corresponding site in the town, and the audience follows the story on foot, sometimes covering three or four kilometres between scenes in a single evening. The Maharaja of Banaras, whose family has patronised this Ramlila since the early nineteenth century, watches from an elephant-back howdah, moving with the crowd. His presence is not ceremonial decoration. The Ramlila does not begin until he arrives.
