New Delhi: A 50-year-old man who was playing the role of Hanuman in a Ramlila, died on stage while performing in Salempur village in Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district on Saturday, as reported by the news agency IANS.
The man who died was identified as Ram Swaroop. He suffered a heart attack during his performance. The video of the incident went viral on social media.
“During Ramlila’s presentation, soon after the tail of Hanuman was set afire, Ram Swaroop, who was playing the character, slumped to the ground and died within a minute. He was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead," IANS quoted an official as saying. Swaroop’s wife Anusuiya was present along with other family members when the incident took place.
Village head Gulab said Ram Swaroop used to ferry a cart to make his living, IANS reported. “He is survived by his wife and two-year-old daughter, Roopa," he said.
Ram Swaroop’s family performed the last rites of the body on Sunday evening without informing the police. Station house officer, Dhata, Praveen Kumar said the incident had come to his notice and a police team would visit the village to investigate the matter, IANS reported.
Earlier in September, a similar incident happened when a man fell unconscious while dancing in a Ganpati pandal dressed as Lord Hanuman in Uttar Pradesh’s Mainpuri. He was rushed to the hospital where he died of a heart attack. The deceased was identified as Ravi Sharma.
In another such incident that happened last month, a 20-year-old artist named Yogesh Gupta died while performing a dance in a Ganesh Puja event in Jammu and Kashmir’s Bishnah. He suffered a heart attack and fell on the stage.
(With IANS Inputs)