INTRODUCTION (Click for Play)
Sudhindra Sircar (15 July 1925 –
13 May 2011), also known as Badal Sarkar, was an influential Indian
dramatist and theatre director, most known for his anti-establishment plays
during the Naxalite movement in the 1970s and taking theatre out of
the proscenium and into public arena, when he transformed his own
theatre company, Shatabdi (established in 1967 for proscenium theatre
) as a third theatre group . He wrote more than fifty plays of which Ebong
Indrajit, Basi Khabar, and Saari Raat are well known literary
pieces. A pioneering figure in street theatre as well as
in experimental and contemporary Bengali theatre with
his egalitarian "Third Theatre", he prolifically wrote
scripts for his Aanganmanch (courtyard stage) performances, and
remains one of the most translated Indian playwrights. Though his early
comedies were popular, it was his angst-ridden Evam Indrajit (And
Indrajit) that became a landmark play in Indian theatre. Today, his
rise as a prominent playwright in 1960s is seen as the coming of age of Modern
Indian playwriting in Bengali, just as Vijay Tendulkar did it in
Marathi, Mohan Rakesh in Hindi, and Girish Karnad in
Kannada.
He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1972, Sangeet
Natak Akademi Award in 1968 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship,
the highest honour in the performing arts by Govt. of India, in 1997.
THEAM
"Evam Indrajit," a
three-act play by Badal Sircar, centers on a writer struggling to create a
meaningful play, particularly one that reflects the realities of his
world. The protagonist, Indrajit, embodies a search for identity and
purpose in a seemingly meaningless existence, a theme explored through his
interactions with other characters and his own internal conflicts. The
play is considered absurdist, highlighting the frustrations and
disillusionment of the educated middle class in post-independence India.
SUMMARY
Evam Indrajit is a 1963
three-act play by Indian dramatist and theater director Badal Sircar, first
translated in 1975. Known for his anti-establishment plays written during the
Naxalite movement in 1970s, his plays were often performed in the public arena
(area) and challenged conventions of Indian theater. His plays were heavily
inspired by traditions of folk theater, while developing an identity of its own
rooted in contemporary politics. Many of his plays lack a plot or concrete
characterization, and the actors often chose their roles from performance to
performance and even exchange them in the middle of the play. Audience
participation is usually encouraged. Evam Indrajit is an abstract,
absurdist play with a central theme of the monotony of a mechanical existence.
It explores the writing process and the search for inspiration and something
exciting to motivate creation. It was Sircar’s first drama after a string of
comedies, and remains one of his most enduring works, especially outside of his
native India.
The story of Evam Indrajit focuses on a writer, who narrates the
story without ever being given a firm identity of his own. He struggles with
writer’s block, striving to write his play but falling short and unaware of the
root causes.
He has never experienced life in its
most primal way, instead being focused on his own experience as a writer. As
such, he doesn’t have the material to write about, and instead focuses on the
audience of the play. He attempts to write about them, but is frustrated there
as well. He frequently becomes enraged and tears up his manuscripts. He finally
finds inspiration in a woman named Manasi.
Like the writer, Manasi is not a character with her own characterization, but a
representation. She represents the Indian counterpart of Carl Jung’s concept of
Anima. This refers to an entity that serves as a pointer to the collective consciousness.
Both the main characters and their concept of identity is frequently
questioned, especially the writer Indrajit. He changes his preferred name
multiple times in the play, and frequently expresses discontent with his
identity. His persona splits between three names, Amal, Kamal, and Vimal.
He feels compelled to write, even at
the cost of neglecting important bodily functions that he needs to live. He is
obsessed with seeking a purpose in life. The play focuses on his life, his love
and obsession with Manasi, and his growing revolutionary leanings against
society. However, soon the ruling class and their attempt to impose order on
his life begin to crush his spirit. His three personalities, Amal, Kamal, and
Vimal each play different roles in society and are played for laughter as they
struggle against society. Indrajit, in his persona as the writer, continues to
resist, but eventually he becomes convinced that there is no escape from
society’s clutches.
As the play reaches its final act, Indrajit attempts to seek meaning in
exploring the world. He travels to London, but finds tht world just as
unsatisfying as the life he left behind. He soon finds himself contemplating
suicide but decides he is incapable of this as well. The play ends without bringing
his story to any sort of conclusion, as Indrajit comes to the realization that
the past and present are two ends of a single rope.
The play is ultimately about the
futility of life and the roles we all play in
society.
Badal Sircar is considered one of the most prominent and influential modern
Indian playwrights, having written more than fifty plays in a career that
spanned fifty years. Born Sudhindra Sarkar in Calcutta, he received a degree in
comparative literature from the Jadavpur University. However, it was while he
was working as a town planner around the world that he entered theater. He is
considered the founder of what is known as Third Theater, an experimental form
of theater that involves direct communication with the audience and emphasizes
expressionist acting along with realism.
His first play, Bara Trishna,
was performed in 1951 with him in the initial cast. He wrote Evam
Indrajit a little over a decade later, and it was performed by the
Shatabdi theater group, which he founded. As the years passed, he became one of
the leading figures in street theater in Bengal, and his angry,
anti-establishment plays became the voice of a generation. He criticized the
government, the caste system, and overall problems in societies. His later
plays, including an adaptation of the Howard Fast novel Spartacus, moved into
traditional arena theater. He is one of India’s most decorated playwrights,
willing the 1971 Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship in 1971, the Indian government’s
Padma Shri award in 1972, and a 1997 lifetime achievement award by India’s
National Academy for Music, Dance, and Drama.
In 2009, two years before his death,
Bada; Sircar’s life was celebrated in a five-day festival by India’s most
prominent theater directors. Several of India’s most prominent film directors
today have cited Sircar as their most significant inspiration.
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