In the epic Ramayana, Sita is a woman character who is at once little understood and widely adored. The epic tale, over 2000 years old, spread from India to Southeast Asia becoming a part of their literary traditions and performing arts.
Sita undergoes the agonies of war and exile, yet is traditionally depicted as a docile princess, obedient daughter, and ideal wife. This monochromatic cultural depiction however, misses the fact that a woman who survived such adversity must be very strong. It also misses interpreting the textual references to Sita’s divine ancestry as daughter of earth.
Correctly perceived, Sita is a powerful, divine woman, who withstood fourteen years of forest exile and sexual harassment by the demon king Ravana. Once billed as a submissive character, Sita is being reclaimed by women scholars, farming villagers, and artists, both in India and here in the United States.
This question and others are explored in our project through classical dance, masks, martial arts, poetry and an original music score. The focus is artistic; to awaken an audience through an unforgettable experience. The final work is staged on November 21st and 22nd at one of Washington D.C.’s fine avante garde theaters — Dance Place.
The dancers and musicians involved in the project, are largely from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Thailand and Indonesia. They leapt into debate over how the script should read; asking tough questions. Teenage students got involved in discussing Sita and are a part of the documentary being made. Dance choreographers are joined by a folklorist, an anthropologist, a film documentarian, and an ethnomusicologist.
The project Sita: Gentle Warrior, identifies a global audience as it emerges and allows Sita, as it were, to take back her voice. Through all the avenues of art, Sita ends up conveying a compassionate humanity that is beyond gender, culture and time.
