By Shivana Lal
Janki Devi, the two hour play, returns to the national stage for a second showing, this time at the Cipriani Labour College in Valsayn on October 19.
The play, presented by Parsan Productions, is based on the Hindu epic, the Ramayana, and will be portrayed from a female perspective.
In June 2024, the production was staged to a sold-out crowd at the Southern Academy for the Performing Arts (SAPA) by a cast and crew of 32.
Co-founder and chairman of Parsan Productions, Darpan Varuna Parsan, told the Kitcharee on Thursday that the portrayal is different, as it tells the story from the perspective of Sita (wife of Lord Rama) through dialogue and song. This, she said, is used to present a “more artistic way of telling the story”.
“This play is a script we’ve had for a while, and we thought it was the best opportunity to depict the story of Lord Rama. It is based on the Hindu text, the Ramayana, which is the story of Lord Rama and his wife, Sita – also known as Janki Devi,” she added. In the Ramayana, she explained, Sita was kidnapped by the demon King Ravan and Lord Rama, together with his brother Lakshman, his devotee Lord Hanuman and others, ventured South of India to Sri Lanka to rescue her.
Janki Devi, she added, explores the emotional turmoil that Sita experiences as she describes her relationship with Lord Rama, the circumstances that led to her kidnapping, and her despair in Lanka.
She said the story of Sita provided a lesson in resilience to all women.
“Sita represents resilience. When she was kidnapped, regardless of how much she was tried and tested, she remained resilient; she kept her faith and remained resilient. The dialogue Sita delivers in the play speaks to that strength it takes to be a woman. So, a lot of women will be able to relate to the dialogue and be able to identify with the emotional struggles she faces and her strength, prowess, and determination,” she explained.
The decision to stage the Ramayana this year was motivated by the installation of the Rama Janmabhoomi temple in India in January, she added. As an Indian cultural non-governmental organisation (NGO), she said the production house was dedicated to propagating East Indian culture. “We are Hindu, and it ties back to the type of work we do.
The same pride that Indians in India felt in the installation of the Shri Rama murti, we resonate and feel connected to it through our lineage and through the diaspora. We are paying respects to our connection to Mother India through our art form which is theatre and this play,” she said.
However, she added that the portrayal will not focus simply on the retelling of the text but would include lessons for the national community.
The script, written by her sister Dr Neera Varsha Parsan (co-founder and artistic director of the production house), features dialogue that will appeal to an audience of varied religions and ethnicities, she said.
“We incorporated lessons into the dialogue. We are telling the story in a way people who come to the play will be able to relate to the characters and be able to identify with the struggles the characters face. The normal person who comes, whether from this religion or not, will be able to relate to it. Once you can understand human emotions, you will be able to understand and relate to the characters,” she stated.
Neera, also functions as the content creator for Parsan Productions. For the play, she has also composed seven original songs, written in Hindi and Avadhi, both languages spoken predominantly in Northern India, from where many of the Indian Indentured labourers would have come.
The play will feature a varied cast, including Varuna Parsan as Janki Devi; Nazeer Ramdath as Lord Rama; James Nancoo as Lakshman; Shankar Gangapersad as Ravan; Ayesha Ajodha as Trijata; Ryan Martinez as Jatayu; Sameer Ramdath as Meghnaad; Vindhar Suraj as Vibheeshan; and Zane Razack as Lord Hanuman.
For more information, contact 399-3161.
