The Kumaoni Ramlila is one of the distinctive features of Navratri celebrations in Uttarakhand. Acclaimed by UNESCO as one of most representative styles of Ramlila, it is a musical rendition on lord Ram's life, a folk art that is preserved by the enthusiasm of locals in the hills of Uttarakhand.
According to Doon library and Research Centre researcher Chandra Shekhar Tewari, "It is believed that Kumaoni Ramlila was first organised in Badreshwar temple in Almora in 1860 by the then Deputy Collector, Devidutt Joshi. From here it spread to other parts of Kumaon like to Nainital in 1880, Bageshwar in 1890 and Pithoragarh in 1902. Around 1940, legendary dancer Uday Shankar attempted to modernise Kumaoni Ramlila and made contribution to the folk form. Captivating locals and visitors, Kumaoni Ramlila became famous in many places in India. It is still enacted in places like Murlinagar in lucknow and for many years the lucknow station of All India Radio aired recordings of Kumaoni Ramlila staged by city artistes, many being Muslims. Pundit Madan Mohan Malaviya was impressed with Kumaoni Ramlila and on his prompting a group of famed Dhrupad singers had staged Kumaoni Ramlila in Allahabad for nine days. Bollywood actors Nirmal Pandey and lalit Mohan Tiwari began their acting careers with Nainital's Ramlila."
In more ways than one, the journey of Kumaoni Ramlila also chronicles the progression of its society. "Earlier, girls were not allowed to participate and female roles were played by boys though this has changed now. An increasing number of girls have been acting in these performances and at some places we have only women staging the entire Ramlila," said Tewari.
Though Kumaoni Ramlila is a Navratri custom, at some places in Uttarakhand it is also staged during Diwali for the entertainment of the women folk who around this time of the year become free after a long spell of hard work in the farms.
Kumaoni Ramlila actor-director and secretary of Almora's Hukka Club, Shiv Charan Pandey says, "Traditionally, in Kumaoni Ramlila lead characters like Ram, Sita, Bharat, Shatrughan are played by teenagers as it is believed that boys and girls of this age manifest god as they are innocent. Another specialty of this Ramlila is that dialogues are delivered in the form of songs based on classical Hindustani ragas and compositions created by natives. Kumaoni Ramlila has been influenced by Parsi theatre, Raaslila and Nautanki. The popular tunes of Kumaoni Ramlila that are almost 150 years old are still intact in their original form."
Kumaoni Ramlila is also a symbol of communal solidarity with many songs in it that use Urdu and Nepali words. It is not uncommon to find Muslims playing lead characters. People still tell with pride an anecdote about 60 years old of a Muslim artiste Khudabaksh in Pithoragarh who was so dedicated to Ramlila that despite being shattered by the death of his young son and son-in-law, he came to enact his role.
In another distinction, Almora is said to be the only place in the region where effigies of the entire family of Ravana are made by locals and burnt on Dussehra. Kumaoni Ramlila continues to be staged in numerous places including Almora, Haldwani, Bhimtal, Nainital, lohaghat, Pithoragarh and Ranikhet.
