Full Description
Since the late nineteenth century, theatre has played a significant role in shaping social and political awareness in India. It has served to raise concerns in post-Independence India as well. Modern Indian Theatre: A Reader brings together writings that speak to the historical contexts from which theatrical practices emerged-colonization, socio-cultural suppression and appropriation, intercultural transformations brought about by the impact of the colonial forces, and acute critical engagement with socio-political issues brought about by the hopes and failures of Independence. The volume addresses pertinent questions like how drama influences social change, the response of drama to the emergence and domination of mass media and the proliferation and influence of western media in India, and how mediations of gender, class, and caste influence drama, its language, forms, and aesthetics. The Introduction by Nandi Bhatia provides a comprehensive understanding of the interface between Indian theatre and 'modernity'.
Contents
1. Acknowledgements ; 2. Modern Indian TheatreBhatia ; 3. HISTORY, HISTORIOGRAPHY, AND THE 'MODERNITY' OF INDIAN THEATRE-Rakesh H. Solomon, 'Towards a Genealogy of Indian Theatre Historiography' ; 4. Ananda Lal, 'A Historiography of Modern Indian Theatre' ; 5. Anuradha Kapur, 'Reassembling the Modern: An Indian Theatre Map since SELF-EXPRESSION-Jyotsna Singh, 'Different Shakespeares: The Bard in Colonial/Postcolonial India' ; 7. Sudipto Chatterjee, 'The Nation Staged: Nationalist Discourses in Late 19th Century Bengali Theatre' ; 8. S. Theodore Baskaran, 'Popular Theatre and the Rise of Nationalism in South India' ; 9. Malini Bhattacharya, 'The Indian People's Theatre Association: A Preliminary Sketch of the Movement and the Organization 1942-47' ; 10. INTERROGATING THE NATION FROM THE MARGINS-S. Armstrong, 'The Politics of Translating Indian Dalit Drama with Special Reference to "Bali Adugal" (Scapegoats)' ; 11. Nilufer E. Bharucha, 'Retreating into Tribal Mansions: Race and Religion in Plays Written by Parsi Zoroastrians in India' ; 12. Neera Adarkar, 'In Search of Women in History of Marathi Theatre, 1843 to 1933' ; 13. Amrit Srinivasan, 'Reform and Revival: The Devadasi and her Dance' ; 14. Vasudha Dalmia, '"I Am a Hindu." Assertions and Queries' ; 15. RETHINKING THE RURAL/URBAN AND Defence of the "Theatre of Roots"' Lothar Lutze, 'Enacting the Life of Rama: Classical Traditions in Contemporary Religious Folk Theatre of Northern India' ; 16. LANGUAGE, MYTH, AND MEDIA-Pankaj K. Singh, 'Reconstruction of Legend in Contemporary Panjabi Drama in India' ; 17. Christopher Balme, 'Indian Drama in English: Transcreation and the Indigenous Performance Tradition' ; 18. Diana Dimitrova, 'Neo-Sanskritic and Naturalistic Hindi Drama' ; 19. Atamjit Singh, 'Panjabi Drama and Theater' ; 20. J.C. Mathur, 'Encounter of the Performing Arts and Modern Mass Media' ; 21. Kirti Jain, 'Drama on Television' ; 22. STATEMENTS- A Bill to Empower the Government to Prohibit Certain Dramatic Performances ; 23. Rabindranath Tagore, 'The Stage' ; 24. Satya Prasad Barua, 'Proscenium-arch Stage' ; 25. Bellary Raghava, 'National Theatre' ; 26. Baldoon Dhingra, 'A National Theatre Wanted: A Non-commercial Theatre' (excerpts) ; 27. Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, 'Towards a National Theatre' (excerpts) ; 28. Indian People's Theatre Association, 'Organisational Principles' ; 29. Utpal Dutt, 'In Search of Form' (excerpts) ; 30. Mahesh Dattani, 'Contemporary Indian Theatre and its Relevance' ; 31. Sources ; 32. Copyright Statement ; 33. Notes on Contributors
