The monkeys and bears decided that since Hanuman was the son of the Wind God, Vyu, he was the best at jumping and must leap to Lanka. Hanuman had his father's energy and swiftness, power and strength. (When Hanuman was a child he thought the sun was a ripe fruit and tried to jump up and catch it. He jumped so high that he nearly got burnt, but the Sun was impressed and gave Hanuman the gift of immortality as a reward for his courage and cleverness.)

Rama gave Hanuman his ring, to give to Sita. Hanuman prayed to his father and jumped. Hanuman leapt over the ocean, escaping several devouring demons that he met on the way.

Having shrunk to the size of a mouse, Hanuman ran through Lanka, looking for Sita. He found her held captive in an ashok grove near Ravana's palace. She was guarded by hideous demonesses and harassed by Ravana, who wanted her to forget Rama, and marry him instead. She was sitting under a tree crying. Meanwhile Hanuman climbed the tree, dropped Rama's ring into her lap, and told her Rama will come and save her.

But demons caught Hanuman, squeezing him tight, and carrying him to Ravana. Ravana and the Demons decided to set fire to Hanuman's tail. They wrapped his tail in strips of cotton and soaked the cotton in oil. As the Demons began to to prepare Hanuman's tail, Hanuman cast a magic spell, making his tail grow longer and longer and longer (the subject of many paintings). The demons soon ran out of cotton and oil. They set light to his tail anyway. But Hanuman shrank back to the size of a mouse, and so his tail shrinks too. In this way he managed to escape, setting Ravana's throne alight in the process, and leaving a trail of flames throughout Lanka. Once free Hanuman dipped his tail into the sea, and leapt back to Rama, Lakshman, and the bears.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sitting under the tree in Ashok Vatika, Maa Sita is shedding tears and praying to Lord Rama, remembering him and weeping in the pain of separation. Lord Rama far away from Maa Sita, is baffled at the thought of not finding Sita, worrying for her well being. Each second without Maa Sita is taking a toll on Rama. Rama asked Hanuman to go and find Sita in Lanka. Battling all the odds on his way Hanuman reaches Lanka and meets Vibhishan. 

What unfolds next in the epic, listen to the full episode on Dastan apne ram ji ki only on Red FM Podcast.

The evergreen masterpieces of Rishi Valmiki & Goswami Tulsidas inspired a galaxy of Poets like Pundit Maharaj Bahadur 'Burq', Munawwar Lakhnavi, Mehdi Nazmi, Jageshwar Nath Betab, Saghar Nizami,  Shankar Dayal 'Farhat', Amaranth Sarshar & Braj Narain Chakbast etc who penned down hundreds of outstanding poems of stunning beauty. Playwright Danish Iqbal crafted this text  to create a performance of stunning charm and rare enthusiasm narrated by Fouzia Dastango.

'Dastan Apne Ram Ji Ki' is a lyrical rendition of the eternal epic, adapted  from the classical renditions of the Holy Ramayana.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Who was Jatayu?

In Ramayana, Jatayu was believed to be the son of Aruna and a nephew of Garuda. A demi-god in the form of vulture, Jatayu was an old friend of king Dasharath, father of Lord Rama. Jatayu was the first person who tried to rescue Sita from the clutches of Ravana while he was taking her to Lanka. He fought valiantly with Ravana. However, Ravana clipped his wings and severely injured him. Even as Jatayu was battling with life, he managed to inform Lord Rama about Sita's abduction. Sensing that Jatayu won't survive, Lord Rama, a Vishnu incarnate, decided that Jatayu must attain salvation. In present day Kerala, Chadayamnagalam, a few kilometers from the Kollam district, is believed to be the place where Jatayu fell after his wings were clipped.

After narrating about the Sita's abduction to Sri Rama and Lakshman , the wounded Jatayu dies. Sri Rama then performed the final funeral rites of Jatayu. At this place the Sri Rama is worshipped as the Vijayaraghava Perumal in the Vijayaraghava Perumal temple.The water body where Jatayu fell is called Jatayu Theertham.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The three exiles soon became accustomed to their life in the forest and even began to enjoy it. Their royal life became a thing of the past, silk cushions and splendid bedchambers were forgotten. Ram, Laxman and Sita slept under the stars on beds of leaves and grass and lived on a diet of fruits and berries. Far from the cares of the material world, they began to take pleasure in the simplicity of forest living.

One day, the trio heard a blood-curdling scream and they came face to face with a hideous demon. She had wild bloodshot eyes and tangled hair. Her voice, when she spoke, was like a growl. She introduced herself as Surpanakha, the sister of Ravan, the powerful ruler of Lanka and the king of the demons. She had never seen such handsome young men like Ram and Laxman in her life and she had fallen in love with their beauty at the first glimpse. She invited them to come and spend some time with her so that they could enjoy each other's company. Ram refused her invitation saying that he would not be able to accept as he was with his wife. Enraged, Surpanakha rushed at Sita with bared fangs and outstretched claws saying that she could easily get rid of such a small obstacle. Laxman rushed to intervene and cut off the demon's nose and ears. Screaming in agony, the maimed demon rushed off into the depths of the forest. 

Surpanakha went straight to her brother, Ravan, the mighty demon king. She demanded that he avenge her humiliation and the mutilation of her face. She taunted him saying that were he to let Ram and Laxman's actions go unavenged, the other demons would only accord him the respect due to a toothless tiger.

The evergreen masterpieces of Rishi Valmiki & Goswami Tulsidas inspired a galaxy of Poets like Pundit Maharaj Bahadur 'Burq', Munawwar Lakhnavi, Mehdi Nazmi, Jageshwar Nath Betab, Saghar Nizami,  Shankar Dayal 'Farhat', Amaranth Sarshar & Braj Narain Chakbast etc who penned down hundreds of outstanding poems of stunning beauty. Playwright Danish Iqbal crafted this text  to create a performance of stunning charm and rare enthusiasm narrated by Fouzia Dastango

'Dastan Apne Ram Ji Ki' is a lyrical rendition of the eternal epic, adapted  from the classical renditions of the Holy Ramayana.

What happened next ? Find out in this episode of Dastan Apne Ramji Ki

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

King Dashratha became a shadow of his former self after Ram's departure. His heart was heavy with sorrow and he lost interest in life itself. His body grew feeble and his breathing laboured and faint as his life slowly ebbed away. The whole kingdom of Ayodhya was plunged into a state of mourning when King Dashratha died. 

Now, prince Bharat had been away during this time of turmoil and was unaware of these terrible developments in Ayodhya. He was summoned back to Ayodhya on his father's death. On his return, he was shocked by all that had taken place in his absence. He was furious with his mother and blamed her for King Dashratha's death and for banishing his two beloved brothers. 

He stated that he had no wish to be the ruler of Ayodhya. He believed that this was Ram's birthright that had been wrongfully denied to him. He announced that he would call Ram back from exile to reign in Ayodhya and go into exile for fourteen years himself.

The evergreen masterpieces of Rishi Valmiki & Goswami Tulsidas inspired a galaxy of Poets like Pundit Maharaj Bahadur 'Burq', Munawwar Lakhnavi, Mehdi Nazmi, Jageshwar Nath Betab, Saghar Nizami,  Shankar Dayal 'Farhat', Amaranth Sarshar & Braj Narain Chakbast etc who penned down hundreds of outstanding poems of stunning beauty. Playwright Danish Iqbal crafted this text  to create a performance of stunning charm and rare enthusiasm and Fouzia has narrated Dastango style !

'Dastan Apne Ram Ji Ki' is a lyrical rendition of the eternal epic, adapted  from the classical renditions of the Holy Ramayana.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The city was jubilant with their beloved Lord Ram taking over the reins of this beautiful reverent land. Did this happiness last long ? Alas … no!

As family servant of Kaikeyi, Manthara lived with her from the time of her birth. When she hears that King Dasharatha is planning to make his eldest son, Rama, prince regent (rather than Bharata, his child by Kaikeyi), she flies into a rage and reports the news to Kaikeyi. Kaikeyi is initially pleased and hands Manthara a pearl necklace.

Manthara reminds Kaikeyi of the two boons Dasharatha had given her when she had once saved his life in a celestial battle. Kaikeyi had kept these boons for later and Manthara declares that this is the right time to ask for them. She advises Kaikeyi to lie in her room wearing soiled clothes and no ornaments. She should weep and cry, pretending anger. When Dasharatha would come to console her, she should immediately ask for the boons. The first boon would be that Bharata would be made the king. The second boon would be that Rama should be sent into the forest for exile for fourteen years. Manthara reckons that the fourteen-year banishment would be long enough for Bharata to consolidate his position in the Empire and weave his way into people's hearts.

What did Lord Ram do ? What did Bharata do ? What happened in the palace ?

The evergreen masterpieces of Rishi Valmiki & Goswami Tulsidas inspired a galaxy of Poets like Pundit Maharaj Bahadur 'Burq', Munawwar Lakhnavi, Mehdi Nazmi, Jageshwar Nath Betab, Saghar Nizami,  Shankar Dayal 'Farhat', Amaranth Sarshar & Braj Narain Chakbast etc who penned down hundreds of outstanding poems of stunning beauty. Playwright Danish Iqbal crafted this text  to create a performance of stunning charm and rare enthusiasm and Fouzia has narrated Dastango style !

'Dastan Apne Ram Ji Ki' is a lyrical rendition of the eternal epic, adapted  from the classical renditions of the Holy Ramayana.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Eyes like the lotus and his meditative eyes , a smiling face that spread happiness….that was Lord Rama. Rishi Vishwamitra took Ram and Laxman to his ashram in the jungles where they fought many Rakshas. They grew up into fine young warriors par excellence. How did Lord Ram meet Sitaji ? What happened at this holy Swayamwar ? What was Raja Janak’s concern for Sitaji? How did Lord Ram meet Sitaji ?

Hear the eternal story unfold in a poetic form in Episode 2 of the podcast Dastan Apne Ramji Ki.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

'Dastan Apne Ram Ji Ki' is a  lyrical rendition of the eternal epic in romantic Urdu, based on old classical renditions of Holy Ramayana.

It is obvious that Lord Ram and the performance tradition of Ramayana transcend both language and culture, and so we are proudly showcasing the story of Lord Ram in a new innovative idiom before enthusiastic audiences.

Awarded Playwright Danish Iqbal earlier did a critically acclaimed version of Dastan-e-Ram on stage and here he is collaborating with India's first female Dastango Fauzia to bring this innovative offering before the discerning connoisseurs of art & culture to spread the message of inclusiveness and harmony.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.