Bhasa and his works-Sanskrit drama

Dr Swati Joshi 

Shrimad Rajchandra Vidyapeeth 

Dharampur

 Bhasa and his works- 

Among all Indian dramatists Bhasa is measured as the vicar of drama. Bhasa is known for his absolute and older plays. The name Bhasa has given innovative confinement and route to Sanskrit literature and through his plays one can see the enormity and consequence of Sanskrit drama in the world of literature.  Bhasa shows his prominence in the depiction of emotions and in individualization of characters. In 1912 Mahamahopadhyaya T. Ganpathi Sastri the keeper of the document section of the royal library discovered and introduced great work of Bhasa in form of Thirteen Plays in Sanskrit in Trivandrum Sanskrit Series. It is believed that the written material is more than 300 years old. These plays were in a form of manuscript written on palm leaf (containing 105 leaves) in Malayalam font in the Manalikkara Matham (small village in Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu) near Padmanabha Puram with ten rupaka. These rupakas were Svapna, Pratijna, Panc, Car, Dgh, Avi, Bal, Mv, Karna, Uru,   along with it two more natakas discovered   Abh and Prat.   These plays are –

1The Minister’s vows (Pratijna -Yaugandharayanam)

2 The Vision of Vasavadatta (Svapna-Vasavadattam)

3 Carudatta in Poverty (Daridra-Carudattam)

4 The Five Nights (Pancaratram)

5 The Middle One (Madhyama- Vyayog)

6 Karna’s Task (Karna Bharam)

7 The Broken Thighs (Urubhangam)

8 The Statue Play (Pratima- natakam)

9 The Embassy (Dutavakyam)

10 Potsherd As An Envoy (Duta- Ghatotkacam)

11 Sheep- Killer (Avimaraka)  

12 The Adventure of the Boy Krishna (Bala-Caritam) 

13 The Consecration (Abhishēka- natakam) 

These plays can be classified in five categories-

1Historical/Udayana Plays – 

 1 Svapanavasavdattam 

 2 Pratijna- Yoaugandharayanam 

2 Fictions/ Original/Plays based on Legends -  

1 Avimarakam 

2 Carudattam

3 Plays based on the Mahabharat- 

1 Duta Ghatotkacam 

2 Dutavakyam

3 Karnabharam 

4 Madhyama-Vyayoga  

5 Pancaratram

6 Urubhangam

4 Plays based on the Ramayana-  

1 Abhishēka- Natakam 

2 Pratima-Natakam