>Monkbot at 14:45, 22 December 2020

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{{short description|2007 Gujarati-language play}}
{{Infobox play
| name = Apurva Avsar
| image = Apurva Avsar poster.jpeg
| caption = Official poster
| writer ={{plainlist|
* [[Manoj Shah]]
* Raju Dave
}}
| characters =
| setting =
| premiere = {{Start date|df=y|2007|2|28}}
| place = [[Prithvi Theatre]], [[Mumbai]]
| orig_lang = [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]
| subject = [[Shrimad Rajchandra]]
| genre = Biographical play
| web = https://www.iuproduction.com/apurva-avasar
}}
'''''Apurva Avsar''''' is a 2007 biographical play about an Indian [[Jain]] philosopher and mystic [[Shrimad Rajchandra]] directed by [[Manoj Shah]]. The play is co-written by Shah and Raju Dave.

==Background==
Manoj Shah contributed significantly in the development of [[Jain]] performing art. He directed several plays on Jain personality including: ''Apurva Khela'' based on [[Anandghan]], ''Veerayan'' based on [[Mahavira]], ''Bhavaprapanch'' based on Siddharishi Gani, ''Siddhahem'' based on [[Hemachandra]], ''Vastupal Tejpal'' based on two brothers [[Vastupala|Vastupal]] and Tejpal, and ''Jiyo Jee Bhar Ke''.<ref name="Bhatt2020">{{cite journal|last=Bhatt|first=Aradhana|date=September 2020|editor-last=Doshi|editor-first=Deepak|title=Manoj Shah: Ek Mulakat|script-title=gu:મનોજ શાહ: એક મુલાકાત|trans-title=Interview with Manoj Shah|journal=Navneet Samarpan|language=gu|publisher=P. V. Shankarankutti, [[Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan]]|location=Mumbai|volume=41|issue=5|pages=65–72|issn=2455-4162}}</ref>

''Apurva Avsar'' is second in the series. The play's title comes from Rajchandra's poem "Apurva Avsar Aevo Kyare Aavshe".<ref name="Parekh 2011">{{cite journal|last=Parekh|first=Dhwanil|author-link=Dhwanil Parekh|script-title=gu:મનોજ શાહ દિગ્દર્શિત નાટકો-એક અભ્યાસ|url=http://www.sahityasetu.co.in/issue5/dhvanil.html|trans-title=Plays Directed by Manoj Shah: A Study|journal=Sahityasetu|volume=1|issue=5|date=September–October 2011|issn=2249-2372|access-date=2020-10-26|archive-date=2020-02-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200220140237/http://www.sahityasetu.co.in/issue5/dhvanil.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The play premiered on 28 February 2007 at [[Prithvi Theatre]], [[Mumbai]].<ref name="Bhayani2008">{{cite book|last=Bhayani|first=Utpal|author-link=Utpal Bhayani|title=Rangbhoomi 2007: Reviews of Dramas Performed on Stage in Different Languages and Other Articles on Theatre During 2007|year=2009|location=Mumbai|publisher=Image Publication Pvt. Ltd.|pages=13–15|isbn=((81-7997-285-4))|language=gu}}</ref> The play narrates Rajchandra's life story from his childhood in a small remote village of [[Gujarat]] to his eventual renunciation of all worldly pleasures, and shows how [[Jainism]] contributed in the development of the Indian heritage, religion, language, literature, art and philosophy.<ref name="Indian Express 2012">{{cite news|title=A Walk in the Woods|newspaper=Indian Express|date=19 July 2012|url=http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/a-walk-in-the-woods/976678/|access-date=26 October 2020|archive-date=12 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201012141141/http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/a-walk-in-the-woods/976678/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Mumbai Mirror 2011">{{cite news|title=Manoj Shah's Apurva Avsar today|newspaper=Mumbai Mirror|date=19 March 2011|url=https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/art-theatre/Manoj-Shahs-Apurva-Avsar-today/articleshow/16111264.cms|access-date=26 October 2020|archive-date=27 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027201019/https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/art-theatre/Manoj-Shahs-Apurva-Avsar-today/articleshow/16111264.cms|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Cast and characters==
The original cast included:<ref name="MumbaiTheatreGuide">{{cite web|title=Apurva Avsar Gujarati Play/Drama|website=www.MumbaiTheatreGuide.com|url=https://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/gujarati/apurva_avsar.asp#|access-date=26 October 2020|archive-date=25 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170925205943/http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/gujarati/apurva_avsar.asp|url-status=live}}</ref>
*Dharmendra Gohil as [[Shrimad Rajchandra]]
*Pulkit Solanki
*[[Pratik Gandhi]]

==Reception==
Theatre critic [[Utpal Bhayani]] considers the play as a 'noble attempt' as it tries to capture the astonishing and almost magical life of the protagonist who had divine powers of knowing previous births, undertaking several tasks at once and even reading minds. While intriguing by themselves, these scenes seem stretched, especially in the second half, he adds, lack of dramatic dialogues adds to that feeling as well. Bhayani obverses that Manoj Shah, who is also the co writer, is better at directing the play than writing it. Several formal and directorial interventions, especially novel usage of props, voice overs, light design etc make the stage space interesting and notable. Dharmendra Gohil, in the role of protagonist, takes the cake and shows his range as an actor.<ref name="Bhayani2008"/>

[[Dhwanil Parekh]] notes that the static scenes of Apoorva avsar, where dialogues are spoken sitting down or are spoken with one bed at the centre of the stage, leads to minimal usage of stage space. However, extensive usage of red and orange lights, which are usually shades rarely used, convey the sense of tension and intensity nicely. Light design is one of the key positive aspects of the play.<ref name="Parekh 2011"/>

Deepa Punjani of ''Mumbai Theatre Guide'' praised the concept and philosophy but was disappointed with the "glorification" of the Gujarati intelligentsia through what was a 2 and a half hour biographical exposition of the distinguished Jain seer Srimad Rajchandra. The dramatization is focused singularly on the goodness of this child prodigy who achieved [[moksa]] before his premature death, a narrative choice which, in her view, left the audience as passive spectators rather than actively engaged in the dramatic tensions of life. This defect is allayed however by incidents where Rajchandra interacts with people he encountered, such as [[Mahatma Gandhi]], on whom he exercised a notable influence. However the concentration on ideas undermined an otherwise poetic and finely crafted script and story, and Punjani admitted to a sense of disappointment. She nonetheless praised the performances of Gohil, Gandhi and Solanki as well as the music and lighting.<ref>{{cite web|last=Punjani|first=Deepa|title=Apurva Avsar play review|url=https://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/reviews/apurva_avsar.asp.asp|website=www.MumbaiTheatreGuide.com|access-date=26 October 2020|archive-date=29 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029194517/https://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/reviews/apurva_avsar.asp.asp|url-status=live}}</ref>

== See also ==

* ''[[Yugpurush (play)|Yugpurush: Mahatma Na Mahatma]]''– A play on Shrimad Rajchandra

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:2007 plays]]
[[Category:Biographical plays about writers]]
[[Category:Biographical plays about philosophers]]
[[Category:Gujarati-language plays]]
[[Category:Plays set in the 19th century]]
[[Category:Plays set in India]]
[[Category:Biographical plays about religious leaders]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of philosophers]]

Apurva Avsar - Revision history

>Monkbot at 14:45, 22 December 2020