Ramayana is very popular in Southeast Asia especially in Bali, the only Hindu island in Indonesia. The puppets and human theatre depict this story in episodic and narrative forms. Painted in earth colours, this scene in the Balinese tradition depicts Indrajit firing the arrow, 'nagapash' which transforms into a serpent and binds Rama (Ramadewa) and Lakshmana (Laksmana) in a noose. This scene appears in the Malay Cherita Maharaja Wana and is performed in the 'wayang kulit siam' or shadow puppet tradition of northeast Malaysia. However, it differs from the Indian tradition in that Indrajit borrows a magical arrow from a sea serpent for fourteen days. He strikes Lakshmana and the arrow turns into poisonous serpents, which wrap themselves around him and make the monkeys including Hanuman unconscious.
