Plays based on Epic

 Plays based on Epic

Dr Swati Joshi

Gujarat 

Indian Mythology represents culture, traditions, social norms, ethics, morality and all these came in form of Vedas and great Epics like the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. These are the sources till now that provided the world its significance and gave rationale to life. The Vedas give space to lessen Vedana –sufferings, the longing of the impatient individual spirit. The Mahabharata and the Ramayana is not only just an epic but it is a torch bearer for every person who wants to live his ideal life. The Mahabharata and the Ramayana even in modern time has great relevance to contemporary society. Bhasa has also taken the help of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana to write his plays in Sanskrit Language. Bhasa has written thirteen plays in the Sanskrit language. There are six plays which are based on the Mahabharata and two plays which are based on the Ramayana but Bhasa has done changes regarding the narratives and represented all the characters in different perspective. The six plays which are based on the Mahabharata are- 

1 DutaGhatotkacam (Potsherd As an Envoy)

2 Dutavakyam (The Embassy)

3 Karnabharam (Karna’s Task)

4 Madhyama-Vyayoga  (The Middle One)

5 Pancaratram (The Five Nights)

6 Urubhangam (The Broken Thighs) 

The two plays which are based on the Ramayana are- 

1 Abhisheka Natakam (The Consecration)

2 Pratima Natakam (The Statue Play)

As discussed above that Bhasa has taken the story from the Mahabharata and the Ramayana or can be assumed that re- reading of the legends of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana.  It was a great challenge accepted by Bhasa to write about the different characters of the Mahabharata from different opinion because audience will always tries to relate the main characters of Bhasas’ plays with the character of the Mahabharata, e.g Duryodhana, Karna, and Ghatotkach and characters of the Ramayana as Rama, Sita and Lakshman. Bhasa represented most of the characters not only in different perspective but also tried to fix in the same theme of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. The theme and the name of the characters, their responsibility and even their acts and narratives, events and circumstances are completely based on the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Bhasa has used popular stories as the plot of his dramas and represented in such a way that it works in form of dialogues. Bhasa used exceedingly inventive method that made the audience to go back to the readings of original resources without delay and the reading will give clear and innovative perspective towards the plays of Bhasa. The Plays of Bhasa can be seen as the unconventional or another different tone or attitude may be incorporated into the original or traditional narratives like the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and in folk lore also. Another chief aspect of the plays of Bhasa is the characters, events and narrative component that stretch out at the outside edge of the manuscripts have a tendency to shift in the direction of  main point  or the crucial peak of the story. This mentality ruins the conformist hierarchies that give firmness to the original narrative. In the original plays the characters are represented as the rejected, disgraced and disrespected and struggling way. These characters are represented in the category of villain and they are not counted as the central characters of the narratives. They brought back to the position of the central characters by Bhasa in his Sanskrit Plays with an alternative perception. This different and alternative view point has given birth to new character as the main hero of his plays having good qualities and innocent personality. Bhasa became success to represent his characters with the heroic qualities; with innocent and virtuous personality because Bhasa used only one event or incident as separate event as there is no direct relation of this event to the original one. 

 “Turning to the Mahabharata plays first; we find in general that the poet is much indebted to the epic. In the once- act plays, some short episode is taken from the Mahabharata and freely dramatized.”1

Bhasa is considered as the realistic author who represents and relate his characters (men/women) with the contemporary world scenario. The characters of Bhasa are not wearing the mask of the fairyland. The special quality of the characters of the Bhasa is that they are not represented as superhuman, with imaginative peculiar qualities. As a result of this the audience and the reader of his plays accept his characters on the basis of realities and psychological perspective and accept their conditions, ups and down and also give sympathy to them. Almost every play of Bhasa has these characteristics. It would to fair to discuss his plays separately and individually to find out an alternate view point of Bhasa. I will discuss here three plays of Bhasa which is based on the Indian Epic the Mahabharata. 

1 The Broken Thighs

2 Karna’s Burden

3 The Middle one. 

Dr Swati Joshi

Gujarat