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Selected Short Stories from Pakistan: Urdu

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Copies of this book can be found for much less than what other sellers are offering on this website.
This is part of a series of small handbooks issued by OUP to guide readers on Asian culture. Comprising an introductory text supported by numerous illustrations, this is a great primer to the largely unknown and secluded world of the Javanese court (kraton).

It covers some historical background to the founding of these courts during and after the Mataram Dynasty, and the significance of maintaining that secluded integrity in the face of Dutch colonialism followed by upheavals during the Japanese Occupation and Indonesian Independence. That serene and dignified royal facade is carried throughout in mainly the rituals and performance arts, chiefly in dance, drama and music.

The book gives some basic background in the gamelan music, the various dance forms such as Bedhaya and Serimpi, the various performances such as Wayang Wong and Wayang Kulit, and touches on the hidden nuances and subtleties in these activities.