Three Plays: Naga-Mandala; Hayavadana; Tughlaq [Hardcover]

Girish Karnad (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0195633318 | ISBN-13: 978-0195633313 | Publication Date: May 12, 1994

These plays represent three phases in the career of the dramatist Girish Karnad--probably India's best-known living playwright--whose very first play rejected the naturalism then prevalent in Indian drama. All three are classics of the Indian stage.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)

About the Author

Girish Karnad is a well-known playwright, actor, film personality, and Chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 228 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (May 12, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195633318
• ISBN-13: 978-0195633313
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,660,486 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars P. MENCKE, September 1, 2010

By 

Pat A Mencke - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Three Plays: Naga-Mandala; Hayavadana; Tughlaq (Paperback)

This is an amazing look at the history of playwriting in India after British rule ended. The author explains how playwrights are attempting to incorporate Indian local theater, which is mostly based on myths apparenty, into other modes of playwriting and play presentations with the use of lighting, the proscenium, and new forms of stories and ideas. Very interesting.

He also introduces each of his three plays with a bit of explanation to help western theater enthusiasts understand the form of his plays. While I would usually not want to hear from any artist a prologue to the presentation of a piece of art, since the work of art, in my opinion, must stand alone on it's own merits without the intentions of the artist or any background information presented ahead of time; I found this somewhat helpful in this case, where foreign myths are involved. This book is written to help Westerners understand the current state of East Indian theater art while presenting this playwrights work. It might, otherwise, have let us pass it up as trivial without the historical background. After reading the entirety of this Book, it is easier to separate Bollywood from more creative works in India.

At a time when teaching any information through parable or myth is in question, since young minds tend to believe such mythical characters actually exist no matter how fantastic, I applaud this author for his work of attempting to update the content and presentation of Indian plays. In he case of India, where there are hundreds of gods who are more of less dealt with as though they truly exist, this is a refreshing idea that America could learn from. This author also seems to want to retain theater's ability to present large ideas effectively, and that too is laudable.