The major source of the ‘wayang kulit’ (shadow play) is the tales of Rama, based on the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. It recounts the story of the abduction of Rama's wife, Sita, by the ogre, Ravana, and Rama's quest to rescue her. ‘Wayang Siam’ or Siamese drama is the folk form of the shadow play in Kelantan. It is so-called because of its alleged Siamese origins. The repertoire of the ‘Wayang Siam’ is based on the Malay folk interpretation of the Ramayana — the Cerita Mahraja Wana (Mahraja Wana’s story). Mahraja Wana is the Malay equivalent to Ravana, the demon-king of Lanka. The literary version is the Hikayat Seri Rama or Seri Rama’s Tale. Seri Rama is the Malay Rama. Stories performed for Wayang Siam are minor tales, later adventures from the main tale featuring the main characters in different settings. The stories are composed and adapted by the ‘dalang’ or puppeteer. Names of the main characters are Islamised, localised and change from story to story.Shadow play stories with non-Rama characters are adapted from the other great Indian epic, the Mahabharata, recounting the adventures of the Pandava brothers, as well as from literary romances and films.
