The retelling of the tale of Rama According to A.K. Ramanujan’s schema, the retelling is a mix of both iconic as well as indexical; however not symbolic. An iconic retelling is one that has the same or similar structure to the main story as well as a similar plot. we can see that in the video that the Rama story is extremely similar in structure and plot to the story of the American couple. Indexical retelling applies as well, seeing that the structure and plot are similar between the two stories but also vary in terms of indigenous customs, folklore, language, traditions, philosophies and so on. The retelling was done in a creative and intriguing manner which captured my attention as there was a retelling within the retelling of the story
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However, the story is retold with a bit of a modern twist. There are three individuals talking to each other, telling the story or at least their own version of what they remember of it. Each individual adds on to the narration of the other. One of the main attractive features of this retelling is the use of visuals and narratives Nina Paley chooses. It is a combination of all modern visuals as well as a bit of old visuals. In my opinion, the old visuals, for example is in parts of the video how some figures or characters are complete objects who do not move and are not flexible. Just images who the narrators talk on their behalf. At the same time, when the princess Sita who is Rama's wife starts to sing, the video becomes more modern and cartoonish. It becomes amusing and provocative, in the sense that the graphics become more defining and geometric, where Sita's body is mainly a couple of connected circles, from her face to her eyes, to her breasts which all move relative to one another. The different way of displaying the tale throughout the video is used to show the transition from the narrators' perspectives to the actual characters'. So for instance if we see that the video contains three windows, the narrators' point of view, the cartoonish display of the actual characters, and finally the couple's window, each giving a different look into the actual …show more content…
When she tries to hold on to him, he tries to accept her back in his life but he fails and does not feel the same way he did when they lived in San Francisco together. Once she goes back to New York on a business trip, he send her a message telling her not to return and this is where the dots are connected between this side narrative and the tale of Rama the prince and his wife. This side story is used to link the religious tale to a more modern retelling which depicts the tale in a more modern, interactive and relatable way. Both men for example let go of their women after a specific event occurring. In the main tale, he lets go of her because she lived within another man's house hold and so her purity is in question. In the side story, he lets go of her because she no longer satisfies him as he has grown accustomed to living without her in India and also their customs and traditions which she does not
However, the story is retold with a bit of a modern twist. There are three individuals talking to each other, telling the story or at least their own version of what they remember of it. Each individual adds on to the narration of the other. One of the main attractive features of this retelling is the use of visuals and narratives Nina Paley chooses. It is a combination of all modern visuals as well as a bit of old visuals. In my opinion, the old visuals, for example is in parts of the video how some figures or characters are complete objects who do not move and are not flexible. Just images who the narrators talk on their behalf. At the same time, when the princess Sita who is Rama's wife starts to sing, the video becomes more modern and cartoonish. It becomes amusing and provocative, in the sense that the graphics become more defining and geometric, where Sita's body is mainly a couple of connected circles, from her face to her eyes, to her breasts which all move relative to one another. The different way of displaying the tale throughout the video is used to show the transition from the narrators' perspectives to the actual characters'. So for instance if we see that the video contains three windows, the narrators' point of view, the cartoonish display of the actual characters, and finally the couple's window, each giving a different look into the actual …show more content…
When she tries to hold on to him, he tries to accept her back in his life but he fails and does not feel the same way he did when they lived in San Francisco together. Once she goes back to New York on a business trip, he send her a message telling her not to return and this is where the dots are connected between this side narrative and the tale of Rama the prince and his wife. This side story is used to link the religious tale to a more modern retelling which depicts the tale in a more modern, interactive and relatable way. Both men for example let go of their women after a specific event occurring. In the main tale, he lets go of her because she lived within another man's house hold and so her purity is in question. In the side story, he lets go of her because she no longer satisfies him as he has grown accustomed to living without her in India and also their customs and traditions which she does not