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It
is difficult to determine the precise origins of the Sanskrit drama.
Fragments of the earliest known plays have been traced to the 1st
century AD. However, scholars believe that a living theatre tradition
must have existed in India much earlier. Unfortunately, although the
Indus Valley people left behind an enormous wealth of archaeological
evidence, they give no signs of any theatrical activity. Dance and music
seem to have been their mainstay, perhaps as part of their religious
celebrations. A search of the Vedas, dating from approximately 1500-1000
BC, yields no trace either, although a few texts are composed in short,
elementary dialogue.
The
earliest phase of Sanskrit theatre includes the writing and practice of
theatre up to about 1000 AD, based almost entirely on the rules, regulations
and modifications laid down in the Natya Shastra. One of the earliest
plays written was Sariputraprakarana by Asvaghosa, who was part of
Kanishka's court from 78 AD to 144 AD. A courtesan forms the central figure
of this play that is humorous in tone but espouses Buddhist teachings as its
cause. Bhasa came soon after, and thirteen of his works survived, the
best-known being Swapanavasavadatta. Bhasa took his themes from
different sources like the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Puranas and
semi-historical tales. Sudraka was another renowned playwright of the time.
Mrcchakatika was one of his best-remembered plays. What distinguishes
Sudraka's plays from those of his predecessors is the element of conflict
introduced in them. Besides a hero (the Brahmin Charudatta) and a heroine
(the courtesan Vasantsena), there is also a villain, one of the few in the
Sanskrit drama. Kalidasa, one of the "nine jewels" in the court of the
famous Vikramaditya some time in the fifth century, is the most widely known
of all the Sanskrit dramatists. He has left three dramas:
Malavikagnimitra, Vikramorvashi and Shakuntalam. Bhavabhuti falls into
the category of writers who emerged in the latter half of classical period.
His Uttaramcharitra, written in approximately 700 AD, is known as the
best dramatic play of its time.
Shudraka, Harsha, Visakhadatta, Bhasa, Kalidasa and Bhavabhuti were,
undoubtedly, the six outstanding Sanskrit playwrights of all times who have
contributed in a great measure through their dramatic pieces in Sanskrit.
Kalidasa's Shakuntala, King Harsha's Ratnavali, Bhasa's
Swapna-vasavadatta, Bhavabhuti's Uttara-rama-charita and
Mahavira-charita, Visakhadatta's Mudrarakshasa are some of the
outstanding Sanskrit plays.
There
are said to be ten types of Sanskrit plays: Nataka, Prakarna, Anka,
Vyayoga, Bhana, Samvakara, Vithi, Prahasana, Dima and Ithamgra.
The Natyashastra focuses on only two of these types - the Nataka and
Prakarna. Swapanavasavadatta, Uttaramcharitra and
Shakuntala fall into the category of the Nataka. These plays deal with
the exploits of a hero, either a royal sage or king, who is always
successful in the end. The dominant sentiment is love and heroism. The plays
range between five and seven acts. Plays falling into the category of
Prakarna narrate stories that were invented by their authors. The hero
is a Brahmin, minister or merchant while the heroine is a courtesan. Love is
the predominant sentiment. Anka (act) involves a change in the hero's
basic situation as the plot develops. It is made up of a series on incidents
that are related to the major character. Certain events are never depicted
in an anka, like a battle, marriage, death, loss of kingdom and the
pronouncement of a curse.
The
Sanskrit plays were limited by certain conventions. Tragedy was taboo and
the end was always happy. There was no place for plays that raised
controversies (although Bhasa had shown death on the stage in one of his
plays). The basic plot in most Sanskrit plays centre around the hero who
struggles for (and finally obtains) the object of his desire. The
realisation of this goal in closely entwined with the three ends of Hindu
life - duty, pleasure and wealth. Thus there was an opening, progression,
development, pause and conclusion. Unlike French and German neo-classical
plays, both time and place were flexible. Within these parameters however,
it appears that most playwrights found enough space for exerting their
individualistic creative expression.
Sanskrit plays commenced with an elaborate ritual. Some twenty pre-play
ceremonies (purva-ranga) of music and dance were performed, nine of
them behind the curtain. The Sutradhara (he was the director, the
chief actor and the stage manager), clad in immaculate white, entered with
his two assistants and offered worship (Puja) to the presiding deity
of the theatre to ensure success to the producer and good luck to the
actors. After this the Sutradhara summoned the leading actress and opened
the play with a prologue which announced the time and place of the play and
introduced the playwright.
The
theatre halls were carefully constructed and decorated according to
traditional rules of architecture. A theatre of medium size, according to
Bharata, could accommodate 400 spectators. Some of the stages had two
storeys, the upper storey being for the representation of action in the
celestial sphere and the ground storey for that in the terrestrial sphere.
Masks were not used, and the subtlest interplay of emotions was conveyed
through facial expressions, gestures and speech. The adroit employment of
the curtain made for heightened impact. The choice of themes covered a wide
range and the treatment of the theme also varied greatly. Skits, comedies
and intense melodramas were all written and presented. The absence of
scenic effects was made up by a versatile histrionic technique.
Sanskrit theatre was
characterised by its high degree of refinement in performance technique. It
followed well-articulated, aesthetic principles, usually those laid out in
the ancient dramatics texts. It depended on a high degree of audience
knowledge and expertise i.e., only the refined sensibility could appreciate
it. Religion played an important role in drama as certain rituals
accompanied most plays, and even the stage was consecrated before a
performance. Thus the Sanskrit drama could be called an amalgamation of the
religious, educational and entertaining elements
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