Vadodara: For 14 consecutive years, Abid Shaikh, a 39-year-old Muslim resident of Vadodara’s Akota area, has portrayed Lakshmana in the city’s annual Ram Leela at Polo Ground.On Tuesday, he will enact two contrasting characters — Kevat, the boatman who helps Lord Rama cross the river during his exile, and Meghnad, the warrior son of Ravana — in Chhota Udepur’s first large-scale Ram Leela.For Shaikh, who has been performing in Ram Leela productions since 2007, the event is an opportunity to remain connected with the epic’s values and promote communal harmony. For the tribal district, it marks an attempt to revive a discontinued Dussehra Mela and introduce younger generations to the Ramayana.“There is only one creator for the entire world. What matters most is humanity; religion comes later,” Shaikh said.Shaikh said his admiration for Lord Rama and Lakshmana stemmed from the values embodied by the characters, particularly Rama’s willingness to honour his father’s word and accept exile. His family’s support, he said, had allowed him to pursue his passion without opposition.He believes that cultural interactions can bridge religious divides and that a person’s conduct matters more than their faith.“If you do good, it reflects positively on your religion; if you do wrong, it reflects poorly on it. But if you are a good human being, you will remain a good person irrespective of your religion. Humanity should come first for everyone. That is my core motto,” he said.Organised by the Shree Ram Seva Sangh, the three-hour production will be staged at the S N College grounds on Vijayadashami. More than 70 artists, including performers associated with cinema and television, will bring the epic to life, followed by the burning of a 35-ft effigy of Ravana.The initiative, led by Chhota Udepur collector Gargi Jain, is part of the district administration’s efforts to revive the Dussehra Mela, which had been discontinued for several years.The fair was once an annual feature, like the region’s traditional Ger Mela, and its revival is expected to bring communities together through cultural performances and festivities.“Just like the Ger Mela, the Dussehra Mela was also an annual feature in Chhota Udepur, but it had been discontinued. Our attempt through Ram Leela and Ravan Dahan is to restart the Dussehra Mela and revive the cultural heritage of Chhota Udepur. We have added Ram Leela so that the younger generation comes to know about the different aspects of the Ramayana,” Jain told TOI.The production also marks an extension of Shree Ram Seva Sangh’s cultural outreach beyond Vadodara. Established in 2007 under the leadership of Akhilesh Mishra, the organisation has a pool of more than 125 artists and stages a seven-day Ram Leela every year after Diwali, featuring students and television artists.
