Hours before East Delhi MP and state BJP chief Manoj Tiwari got on stage, he sat with Bollywood actor Shahbaz Khan, who played Ravana, rehearsing his lines in a vanity van. (Express photo: Abhinav Saha)
This is the fourth time Tiwari has acted in the Ramlila — previously, he has twice played Angad and once played Kewat. (Express photo: Abhinav Saha)
Tiwari’s vanity van is rarely ever empty — from children of organisers itching for a selfie to people trying to break into politics to fellow Ramlila actors, someone’s always knocking on the door. (Express photo: Abhinav Saha)
Asked how he made time when Assembly polls are drawing close, he said: “This is far more important than any election in the country." (Express photo: Abhinav Saha)
The actor-turned-politician Manoj Tiwari, playing Parashurama, arrived dressed in a leopard skin vest, clutching an axe. (Express photo: Abhinav Saha)