Ravana Chhaya, Keonjhar, Orissa India

Ravana Chhaya is the traditional shadow-puppet theatre of Orissa, dealing with the Rama story as told by Viswanath Khuntia, a medieval Oriya poet, in his Vichitra Ramayana. While the lyrics are borrowed from the latter epic, the play itself exists only in the oral tradition. Ravana Chhaya is unique for its striking puppets  made of deerskin  and engrossing in its presentation: traditionally on seven consecutive nights according to the seven kandas of the Ramayana. This monograph has a detailed note on the origin of the form and its nomenclature besides a description of the performance  with stage, lighting, music and manipulation. The presentation is detailed Kanda wise in tabular format with synopsis, song sources, and the puppets employed. 

Ravana Chhaya is a form of shadow puppetry known to be practiced in Odisha. It is considered to be the most ancient form. The puppets and their manipulation, being very basic, are devoid of any complex stylization. Today it is performed in area around Odash village in the Pal lahara subdivision in Angul District, in central Odisha. In Ravana Chhaya performance, a part of the tropue sit hiding from the audience behind a screen made of white cloth and manipulate the shadows cast by the puppets from a lamp lit above their head. The other part of the troupe of artists provides musical support with traditional instruments –Khanjani, Cymbals and Daskathi. The musicians sit in front corner of the screen facing the audience side-wise. The puppets are made locally by the artists themselves using various animal skins for translucence, longevity and ritualistic needs. The skins are usually procured from the Juang tribe living in nearby Malayagiri hills.

Ravana Chhaya, a rock shelter near Sitabinji, Orissa, is around 1,300 - 1,500 years old and contains ancient painting created in the tempera method. Sitabinji is a rural community that has an interesting past and was named after the stream Sita that flows near the region.

There is a crevice in between two rock boulders that consists of exquisite tempera art and painting that can be traced back to the 7th century. The art work is not linked with any religious beliefs and depicts the scene of a royal procession. Ravana Chhaya can be literally translated into Shadow of Ravana, the King of Lanka (as mentioned in Ramayana). 

The cave had adequate significance in the ancient times, even in the period before the artwork was created. Followers of Lord Shiva used the cave around 4th - 6th century AD. They used to worship Mukha Linga, a depiction of lingam with four faces of lord Shiva and are still situated in the Sitabinji region. The inscriptions in the nearby areas also depict the Mukha Linga which provides evidence that worship of Shiva was hugely popular in Orissa during the 5th century AD.

There are also remnants in the vicinity that contain pieces of ancient bricks and inscriptions in Pali language. More over ancient coins of the Kushanas and other sculptures have also been excavated, which suggest that Sitabinji was widely popular in those days. Other rock cut shelters in the area contain paintings and artworks from the Mesolithic period, which are also popular as Paintings of Sitabinji.