yet again ... getting lost ... then enjoying self-discovery ...

A young friend at school gave a wonderful parting gift,  As a project he had to talk with an adult, ask her / him to tell a story from her / his life, and write it down, like a book, with illustrations and all,  When he approached me I wondered for a bit on what to talk about - a story that would be a interesting for him as well, I needed to stay away from complicating and ensure that it enthused him enough to write about it,    Initially my mind wandered to my days in Agraa and Baghmara, but then I settled for time in Banaras, the Ramleela,  We talked a few times, it was fun to engage with him on the event, (locally referred to as the mela, the Ramleela at  Ramnagar  takes place over a month and at different spots across Ramnagar, there is no use  of electricity despite the large numbers it attracts),  It is special for me for multiple reasons, but it is a also kind of event he has never been a part of, this made our interactions all th...

Title: Ramnagar Kit Ramleela - How Ramcharitmanas is brought to life at one of the oldest ‘melas’in Varanasi Published : First Post on 13th November, 2018, here .  Thanks: Team at FirstPost and of course friends and colleagues for joining on the trips. Ram, Lakshman and Shatrughan are not well. They have suffered from diarrhoea and are admitted to a hospital – the newspaper reported. The lines referred to the actors playing the trio in Ramleela and were part of a daily column being run for the entire duration of the event. Yes, we are talking about the Ramleela at Ramnagar, Varanasi which goes on for about a month and one which till today takes help of neither the tube lights and bulbs nor audio systems. This was only the 4 th occasion in its 183 year history that the Ramleela took a break. Ram falling sick on account of polluted water might as well be a statement on our times and place, but for now, let us have a look at the past.   Legend has it that the ...