Gujarati theatre

2021-06-10T06:46:37Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=May 2018}}
'''Gujarati theatre''' refers to [[theatre]] performed in the [[Gujarati language]], including its [[Gujarati language#Dialects|dialects]]. Gujarati theatre is produced mainly in [[Gujarat]] and [[Maharashtra]], in cities like [[Mumbai]], [[Ahmedabad]] and [[Baroda]], Surat and else where [[Gujarati people#Gujarati diaspora|Gujarati diaspora]] exists, especially [[North America]]. ''Rustam Sohrab'', performed by ''Parsee Natak Mandali'' on 29 October 1853 in Mumbai, marked the beginning of [[Gujarati theatre]].

==History==
[[File:Kavi Dalpatram Chok.jpg|thumb|200px|Statue of [[Dalpatram]] who wrote first Gujarati play, ''Laxmi'' in 1850. Dalpatram Chok, Ahmedabad.]]The region of Gujarat has a long tradition of folk-theatre, [[Bhavai]], which originated in the 14th-century. Thereafter, in early 16th century, a new element was introduced by Portuguese missionaries, who performed ''Yesu Mashiha Ka Tamasha'', based on the life of Jesus Christ, using the [[Tamasha]] folk tradition of Maharashtra, which they imbibed during their work in Goa or Maharashtra.<ref name=toi13/> [[Sanskrit drama]] was performed in royal courts and temples of Gujarat, it did not influence the local theatre tradition for the masses. During [[British Raj]], British officials invited foreign operas and theatre groups to entertain them, this in turn inspired local Parsis to start their own travelling theatre groups, largely performed in Gujarati.<ref name=hin01>{{cite news |title=Theatre time is here again|author=Bhawana Somaaya|author-link=Bhawana Somaaya |url=http://www.hindu.com/2001/05/11/stories/09110224.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615174316/http://www.hindu.com/2001/05/11/stories/09110224.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2013 |date=11 May 2001 |newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|access-date=15 May 2013}}</ref> The first play published in Gujarati was ''Laxmi Natak'' by [[Dalpatram]] in 1850, it was inspired by [[ancient Greek comedy]] ''[[Plutus (play)|Plutus]]'' by [[Aristophanes]].<ref name=datta1071/>

In the year 1852, a [[Parsi theatre]] group performed a [[Shakespearean]] play in Gujarati language in the city of [[Surat]]. In 1853, ''Parsee Natak Mandali'' the first theatre group of Gujarati theatre was founded by Framjee Gustadjee Dalal, which staged the first Parsi-Gujarati play, ''Rustam Sohrab'' based on the tale of [[Rostam and Sohrab]] part of the 10th-century Persian epic ''[[Shahnameh]]'' by [[Ferdowsi]] on 29 October 1853, at the [[Grant Road]] Theatre in Mumbai, this marked the begin of Gujarati theatre. The group also performed a [[farce]] ''Dhanji Gharak'' at the same venue.<ref name=toi13/><ref>{{cite web |title=Gujarati Theater |url=http://gujaratirocks.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52&Itemid=18 |publisher=gujaratirocks |access-date=15 May 2013}}</ref> In its early days, Gujarati theatre largely adopted the entertainment-led style and themes of Parsi theatre, and the plays which were presented in a mix of Gujarati with [[Urdu]] and English languages.<ref>[[#Ch|Chambers, p.381]]</ref> From being performed without a stage as in the case of Bhavai, raised platforms were added, then backgrounds, which gradually led to the [[proscenium]] theatre.<ref name=hin01/> Dalpatram formed a theatre group to reform the vulgar element in the bhavai performance of the time, and also the faulty Gujarati language used by Parsi theatre across Mumbai theatre circuit.<ref>[[#Mu|Mukherjee, p. 322]]</ref><ref name=nat111/>
[[File:Bapulal Nayak ane Jaishankar Sundari in 1901.jpg|thumb|[[Bapulal Nayak]] and [[Jaishankar Sundari]] in [[Mulshankar Mulani]]'s popular play ''[[Saubhagya Sundari]]'' (1901)]]
Gradually as the numbers of plays being written and performed in Gujarati increased things changed, and finally a theatre group to steer away from the tradition of Parsi theatre and the Bhavai and incorporated elements of [[theatre in India|Indian]] and Western [[dramaturgy]] was ''Arya Subodh Natak Mandali'' was formed in 1878, in [[Morbi]] by Mulji and Vaghji Oza, and their first production, ''Bharthari'' continued to be staged in Gujarat and [[Saurashtra (region)|Saurashtra]] region for many years. In the 1880s, as many as seven theatre groups came up, including ''Deshi Natak Samaj'' started by Dahyabhai Dholashaji, which lasted from 1889 to 1980.<ref name=toi13>{{cite news |title=First Gujarati theatre group came up in 1878 |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-27/ahmedabad/38069685_1_parsi-theatre-first-gujarati-world-theatre-day |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615174329/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-27/ahmedabad/38069685_1_parsi-theatre-first-gujarati-world-theatre-day |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2013 |date=27 Mar 2013 |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |access-date=14 May 2013}}</ref> ''Gujarati Natak Mandali'' (1878–89) and its successor ''[[Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali]]'' (1889-1948) were pioneer Gujarati theatre companies.<ref name="ox2">{{cite book|last=Bhojak|first=Dinkar J.|url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195644463.001.0001/acref-9780195644463-e-0201#|title=The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre|publisher=[[Oxford University]] Press|year=2004|isbn=9780195644463|editor-last=Lal|editor-first=Ananda|doi=10.1093/acref/9780195644463.001.0001|via=Oxford Reference}}</ref>

In late 19th-century, theatre gained strength and travelling theatre companies became popular, performing plays based on a limited repertoire of mythological and religious plays. On the other hand, commercial theatre stuck to entertainment-oriented comedies, which delayed the arrival of experimental amateur theatre movement.<ref name=toiahem13/> That happened only in the 1920s and 1930s, with the rise of playwrights like [[C. C. Mehta]] (1901-1991), who wrote plays with a social context and [[Ranchhodlal Udayaram Dave]] (1837- 1923), playwright and producer. They are regarded as the father of modern Gujarati theatre.<ref name=datta1071>[[#Dat|Datta, p. 1071]]</ref><ref name=nat111>[[#Na|Natarajan, p. 111]]</ref> Mehta's most important play, ''Aag Garhi'' (Fire Engine), about an ailing fireman, marked the rise of amateur theatre movement in Gujarati theatre.<ref name=ho>[[#Ho|Hochman, p. 37]]</ref><ref name=ch382>[[#Ch|Chambers, p.382]]</ref><ref>[[#Te|Tevani, p. 50]]</ref> Mehta went to write over 25 plays, numerous one act plays and radio plays; then in 1970, he himself translated his most known work, ''Aag Garhi'' as ''Iron Road''.<ref>[[#Ge|George, p. 179]]</ref> ''Sarjanhar'' was another important play of the period, inspired by [[Gandhian]] ideologies, it dealt with [[untouchability]] and was staged by popular actors of the time Sukhlal and Harilal.<ref name=toiahem13/>

[[File:Advertisement of Sneh Sarita (1915).jpg|thumb|Advertisement of ''Sneh Sarita'', a 1915 play]]
By the 1920s, theatre had become an integral part of the festive calendar. Elaborate sets and costumes became the high point of the period, and important actors of the era were [[Bapulal Nayak]] and [[Jaishankar Bhojak]] 'Sundari' (1889-1975), who worked both in old-style as well as the emerging experimental theatre, and became a legend like [[Bal Gandharva]] in [[Marathi theatre]]. In 1937, Ranbhoomi Parishad, was formed in Ahmedabad which tried to present major dramatists of the period on common platform for the first time.<ref name=hin01/><ref name=toiahem13>{{cite news |title=Reliving the past of Gujarati Rangbhoomi|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-27/ahmedabad/38069233_1_world-theatre-day-costumes-villages |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615195310/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-27/ahmedabad/38069233_1_world-theatre-day-costumes-villages |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2013 |date= 27 Mar 2013 |work=[[The Times of India]]|access-date=15 May 2013}}</ref><ref name=ch382/>

[[K. M. Munshi]] wrote notable social satires<ref>[[#Da|Das, p. 158]]</ref> and foreign plays were getting translated as well,<ref name=toiahem13/> including [[Ibsen]]'s ''[[A Doll's House]]'' was translated into Gujarati as ''Dhinagli'' by Pranjivan Pathak in 1923, though realism in acting which the production demanded was yet to arrive.<ref>[[#Da|Das, p. 57]]</ref> However, the rise Mehta and Munshi as playwrights unfortunately fell in an era of overall decline of theatre, initiated by the birth of talkies in [[Indian cinema]] in the 1930s,<ref>[[#Da|Das, p. 169]]</ref> by the 1950s, the old school professional theatre has all but disappeared, and the itinerant Parsi theatre vanished completely.<ref name=ch382/>

=== Post-independence ===
In the post-[[independence of India|independence]] era, a new spurt in growth of Gujarati theatre was seen in the 1950s, and theatre groups started rising again in Mumbai, Ahmedabad and [[Baroda]], including ''Nat Mandal'' and ''Rang Mandal'', and most notably, the commercial theatre company, ''Rangbhumi''.<ref name=ho/> Besides Mehta, Pragji Dosa, wrote some award-winning play in the 1950s, though playwriting in Gujarati largely remained limited to adaptations and translations.<ref name=ch382/> In 1952, Nat Mandal, was formed in Ahmedabad, which once again aimed to provide a common platform to various far flung practitioners of Gujarati theatre.<ref name=toiahem13/>

Soon the traditional Bhavai musicals were also revived by theatre directors, like [[Shanta Gandhi]], who wrote and directed ''Jasma Odan'' (1968) based on [[Jasma Odan|Gujarati folk tale]], while [[Dina Pathak]] (then Gandhi) produced and performed the lead role in ''Mena Gujari''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060611/spectrum/main2.htm|title=From Gujarat with grace |date=11 June 2006|work=The Tribune|access-date=5 April 2010}}</ref> In 1957, when she performed the play in front then President, [[Rajendra Prasad]] at the [[Rashtrapati Bhawan]] in Delhi, it became the first and the only Gujarati play to have achieved the feat so far.<ref name=toiahem13/>

Meanwhile, Gujarati diaspora in [[North America]] saw not just quality literature coming out from their midst, but also a vibrant Gujarati theatre.<ref>[[#Ma|Magocsi, p. 637]]</ref> In [[Vadodara]] theatre was patronized by [[Sayajirao Gaekwad III]], and the city dubbed the cultural capital of Gujarat, and known for the ''Gandharva Natak Mandali''. In the 1950, numerous groups were formed in the city including, ''Nutan Sanskar Kendra'', ''Trimurti'', ''Natya Vihar'', ''Bhartiya Kala Kendra'' and ''Universal Art Forum'', and the following decades saw formed for groups like Rangavali (1974), Kashunk, Vishkambhak, Aakar Theatre (1980), Intimate, Jayashree Kala Niketan and Navchetan. The city still had ten theatre groups in the 1990s, but gradually lost much of its theatre groups and audiences by the 2000s, despite theatre groups still existing in Surat and [[Rajkot]]. After mid 2000s, Gujarati theatre experienced a revival and has been growing steadily.<ref>{{cite news |title=Drama magic survives in Vadodara, but vibrancy a far cry|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-03-30/vadodara/31260610_1_theatre-groups-world-theatre-day-dramatics-department |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615174258/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-03-30/vadodara/31260610_1_theatre-groups-world-theatre-day-dramatics-department |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2013 |date=30 Mar 2012 |work=[[The Times of India]]|access-date=15 May 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=At 150, will Gujarati theatre reinvent itself?|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2004-05-07/ahmedabad/28345274_1_gujarati-theatre-theatre-groups-dramatics-department |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615174258/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2004-05-07/ahmedabad/28345274_1_gujarati-theatre-theatre-groups-dramatics-department |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2013 |date= 7 May 2004 |work=[[The Times of India]]|access-date=15 May 2013}}</ref>

However, the struggle for dominance between [[double meaning]] comedies, big stars-led commercial theatre and experimental theatre continues well into the present times, though many have tried to straddle the middle road and bridge the gap.<ref>{{cite news |title=Gujarat theatre dons a new face... of change|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/ahmedabad/1816058/report-gujarat-theatre-dons-a-new-face-of-change |publisher=[[DNA (newspaper)|DNA]]|date=27 Mar 2013 |access-date=14 May 2013}}</ref><ref name=exp11ncpa/> In 2011, [[National Centre for the Performing Arts (India)|National Centre for the Performing Arts]] (NCPA), Mumbai in an effort to promote experimental theatre hosted its first Gujarati theatre festival, ''Vasant - Gujarati Natya Utsav''.<ref name=exp11ncpa>{{cite news |title=Theater versus Theater|author=Onkar Kulkarni|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/theater-versus-theater/762889/0 |publisher=Indian Express |date=17 Mar 2011 |access-date=15 May 2013}}</ref>

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|last=Desai|first=S.D.|title=More Happenings: Gujarati Theatre Today (1990 - 1999)|date=December 2002|publisher=[[Gujarat Sahitya Academy]]|location=Gandhinagar|isbn=81-7227-113-1}}
* {{cite book |title=Gujarati Rangabhoomi: Riddhi ane Ronak |editor1=Mahesha Choksi |editor2=Dhirendra Somani |year=2004 |publisher=[[Gujarati Vishwakosh|Gujarat Vishwakosh Trust]] |location=Ahmedabad}}

==See also==

* [[Parsi theatre]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |title=McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama |author=Stanley Hochman |author2=McGraw-Hill, inc |chapter=Indian theatre|publisher=VNR AG |year=1984|isbn=0070791694 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zo5os6d0rvMC&q=Gujarati+theatre&pg=PA38 |ref=Ho }}
* {{cite book |title=The Continuum Companion to Twentieth Century Theatre |author= Colin Chambers |publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group |year= 2006|isbn=1847140017 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cFlFhuVMFGQC&q=Gujarati+theatre&pg=PA382 |ref=Ch }}
* {{cite book |title=C.C. Mehta: Makers of Indian Literature Series |author=Shailesh Tevani |publisher=Sahitya Akademi|year=2003|isbn=8126016760 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AbLPU10RFUYC&q=Gujarati+theatre&pg=PA100 |ref=Te }}
* {{cite book |title=History of Gujarati Theatre |author=Hasamukh Baradi |translator=Vinod Meghani |publisher=National Book Trust, India |year= 2003|isbn=8123740328 }}
* {{cite book |title=A History of Indian Literature 1911-1956: Struggle for Freedom: Triumph and Tragedy |author= Sisir Kumar Das|publisher=Sahitya Akademi |year=1995|isbn=8172017987 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sqBjpV9OzcsC&q=Gujarati&pg=PA158 |ref=Da }}
* {{cite book |title=Encyclopedia of Canada's peoples - G - Reference |author=Paul Robert Magocsi |author2=Multicultural History Society of Ontario |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=1999 |isbn=0802029388 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dbUuX0mnvQMC&q=Gujarati+theatre&pg=PA637 |ref=Ma }}
* {{cite book |title=Modern Indian Literature: An Anthology. Plays and prose|chapter=Modern Gujarati Drama |author=K. M. George|publisher=Sahitya Akademi |year=1995|isbn=8172017839 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eTXougCB-NMC&q=Gujarati+theatre&pg=PA179 |ref=Ge }}
* {{cite book |title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: devraj to jyoti, Vol. 2 |author=Amaresh Datta (ed.) |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |year=1988|isbn=8126011947 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zB4n3MVozbUC&q=Gujarati+drama&pg=PA1071 |ref=Dat }}
* {{cite book |title=Handbook of Twentieth Century Literatures of India|chapter=Gujarati literature |author=Nalini Natarajan |author2=Emmanuel Sampath Nelson |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=1996|isbn=0313287783 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1lTnv6o-d_oC&q=Gujarati+drama&pg=PA111 |ref=Na }}
* {{cite book |title=A Dictionary of Indian Literatures: Beginnings -1850 |author=Sujit Mukherjee |publisher=Orient Blackswan|year=1999|isbn=8125014535|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YCJrUfVtZxoC&q=Gujarati+drama&pg=PA322 |ref=Mu }}

==External links==
* [http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/gujarati/ Gujarati Theatre] at Mumbai Theatre
{{Gujarati language}}

[[Category:Gujarati theatre| ]]
[[Category:Gujarati culture]]
[[Category:Gujarati language]]
[[Category:Culture of Ahmedabad]]
[[Category:Theatre in India]]

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Gujarati theatre