An artisan colours the structure of Ravan at the Ravan Dahan Samiti in Sonari. Picture by Srinivas

Jamshedpur, Oct. 6: As the mother goddess and her subjects pretty up for pandal hopping and great food, there’s one man who is getting ready to burn in the hell fire — all in the name of traditional entertainment.

Ravan Dahan, the main draw of Dussehra festivities at Ram Mandir, would be a sight to behold — promises members of the Ravan Dahan Samiti, Sonari, who organise the show every year for thousands of devotees who throng to witness the spectacle.

There may be several other organisations that offer a similar spectacle, but the event at the Ram Mandir grounds remains the oldest and the most spectacular.

The price rise may have made things a bit more difficult, but the samiti is not ready to call it quits as yet.

The tradition of the dahan, held on the Ram Mandir grounds, first began in 1958.

In the past five decades, committees organising the event may have changed, but each group has tried to adhere to the old-world charm and tradition of the bonfire and dahan display.

“We briefly ended the ritual between 1997 and 1998 after the organisation in-charge passed away. But, the samiti felt that they were letting the citizens down. Though inflation has affected the scale of the dahan, we are not ready to compromise on the quality totally,” said P.K. Roy, the samiti secretary.

This year the big and bad Ravan statue promises to be around 50-feet high.

The total expenditure for the large statue has come to Rs 1 lakh. The firecrackers for the 40-minute pyrotechnics show have been procured at a cost of Rs 25,000.

If drama is important for the samiti, safety, too, is high on the priority list.

The firecrackers are always fixed on a certain height in order to avoid accidents.

“Thousands assemble on the Ram Mandir grounds on Dashami to witness the spectacle. Though the story remains the same, the legend of good winning over evil is always reassuring, especially now that or country is going through the most difficult times. And the audience trusts us when it comes to the safety factor,” said Roy.

“Thus it is our job and our duty to make things safer,” he added. Roy also said Sonari residents have a role to play in the success of the show.

“Continuing with the Ravan Dahan event means that the next generation, too, gets to partake in the tradition,” said Satyabrata Srivastava, a resident of Sonari.