Before Holi kicks off, Bikaner making a colour splash with 300-year-old folk drama 'Rammat'

Rammat is a folk drama that is being organised in Bikaner on the occasion of Holi for the last 300 years. It is held with the onset of 'holashtak' and people rehearse for around a month.

Bikaner:People of Bikaner have already immersed themselves in the fevour of Holi with its 300-year-old folk drama 'Rammat' starting much ahead of the festival.

Holi in Bikaner has its own distinct impression wherein the entire city stays awake the entire night. The Pushkarna Brahmins, who reside in the inner areas of Bikaner have made the festival world famous. What draws maximum attention is the Rammat, which has been carried forward from one generation to the next. Rammat is staged in different areas of Bikaner.

Rehearsals for Rammat start from Basant Panchami. It is staged like a drama but it is actually a folk art. Bhakta Purnamal and Shehzadi Nautanki ~ the two Rammats which are being organised for nearly 400 years, are held in Bisson Chowk of Bikaner.

Rammat's main artist Kishan Kumar Bissa said that the folk art was started with the purpose of bringing together the loved ones at one place on the occasion of festival in the name of entertainment and now this has become a tradition. Bissa said that he is the sixth generation of his family, who is associated with this tradition.

A huge crowd gather to watch Rammats, which start late at night. In Bikaner, the Rammats are organised in different localities, be it Jamnadas Kalla's Rammat or Swang Mehri or Fakkaddata's Rammat, each has its own uniqueness and craze.

Rammats are popular not only among the older generations but also the youth. However, in this era of mobile and technology, drawing the attention of youth is a tough challenge for the artists.

Former Art and Culture Minister Dr. BD Kalla said this is a community driven activity and many people are associated with it. Ahead of Holi, people from all walks of life get united during this occasion, he said. Although the tradition has come down the ages, it has not lost its glamour or popularity, Kalla added.

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