existentialism in girish karnad's plays: tughlaq, hayavadana ...

International Referred Research Journal,May,2011,ISSN-0975-3486,RNI: RAJBIL 2009/30097,VOL-II*ISSUE 20
May, 2011
A B S T R A C T
Research Paper- English
EXISTENTIALISM IN GIRISH KARNAD'S
PLAYS: TUGHLAQ, HAYAVADANA &
NAGAMANDALA.
* Dr. Asha lata Raman
* Lata Building, Kela Plots, Jatharpeth, Akola
Girish Karnad shows different dimensions in play writing and becomes visible as a humanist, as a mythical playwright and as an
existentialist. As an existentialist, Karnad nicely maintains existentialism in the plots of mythical, historical and folk tales. With his
first play "Yayati", he touches the theme of existentialism which becomes apparent in his later plays. In Tughlaq, a sensitive and
intelligent ruler who embarks on to do the best for his people, misunderstood and maligned, suffers an increasing sense of alienation
and is forced to abandon his earlier idealism and end up as a tyrant. In "Hayavadana " the characters Kapila and Devadutta seems
the epitome of incompleteness of human beings, searching for completeness but are helpless. Another play Nagamandala puts the
question of the meaning of reality and existence.
In modern times, new theory of existentialism is gaining
currency. The theory is based on the existential
theory, first brought by Heideggar and Sartre in 20th
century and later it was developed by
philosophers:Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. Kierkegaard
was a devout believer so he appealed Christians to
"leap faith" to maintain their belief. But Nietzsche
completely rejected the transcendental reality and suggested
that life can be made joyful with self consciousness.
This generated problems like- infinite mind
trapped in finite body, which produces anxiety and
frustration. According to the theory the divinity and its
will are ultimately unknowable to human consciousness
and the nature of human experience remains incommunicable
to others. So the individual is absolutely
alone. In literature, existentialism makes "the
characters to experience some kind of mental or spiritual
breakdown in which they begin to question the
meaning of reality and existence."
Girish Karnad is a playwright, an actor, a
script writer, a director and a scholar. He got many
prizes in the field of play writing and theatre as - The
State award for 'Yayati' in 1961; Sangeet Natak Academy
award in 1972 for play writing; Kamladevi award
in 1971 for 'Hayavadana'. In 1974 Padma Shri was
also conferred on him by govt. of India for his precious
services in the field of theatre. He has won President's
award for excellence in direction. He also received the
Karnataka Sahitya Academy Award in 1993 and the
Sahitya Akademi (National Academy of the Letters)
Award in 1994. He has produced many plays from his
pen, mostly written in Kannada. Some of them have
been translated in English by the author himself.
Important plays which reveal direct impact of the theory
of existentialism are Tughlaq (1972), Hayavadana
(1975) and Naga Mandala (1990).
Tughlaq was a great success on the stage. It is a story
on a historical figure of India - Mohammad Bin
Tughlaq. Only five years from the reign of Tughlaq
have been taken by the author. In Tughlaq almost all
characters can be seen in the light of existentialism,
but the most important is Muhammad Bin Tughlaq.
His individual identity, his so called absurd decisions,
his frustration, his individual way of thinking about
life, are all good examples of the themes of existentialism.
Individual perception supersedes any abstract
conceptual or transcendentally grounded theory of what
is real or the nature of reality and human life. Neither
the behavior nor the nature of others can be understood
by observation as Tughlaq could not understand
the real nature and identity of Aziz.
According to Sartre, if one realizes his freedom
of choice then one lives an "authentic existence",
as opposed to the "bad faith" of believing oneself bound.
When the step mother of Tughlaq asks him to tell the
reason of not sleeping in night after doing so much
work in day time, he replies. "... I wish I could believe
in recurring births like the Hindu but I have only one
life, one body, my hopes, my people, my God are all
fighting for it. Tell me, how dare I waste my time by
sleeping?"Thus Tughlaq's authentic existence is visible
in the whole play and this makes his life full of
responsibilities, as Sartre says -
"To live an authentic existence is indeed a
great burden (of a great yet frightening freedom) and
most people choose to live " in bad faith", in a state of
denial." In the play Tughlaq, Aziz, Najib are the characters
who live authentic existence. Danish thinker
and devout believer of existentialism. Kierkegaard
realizes that the divinity and its will are ultimately
unknowable to human consciousness. When Tughlaq
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International Referred Research Journal,May,2011,ISSN-0975-3486, RNI: RAJBIL 2009/30097, VOL-II *ISSUE 20
finds that his policies are being questioned, he rather Ramanujan in Chicago. These stories convey female
feels that his identity as a ruler is at a stake. So, he understanding of the reality around her, a patriarchal
wants to become a complete man. He is restless and pattern of typical Indian family institutions. The stories
suffering from the problems of isolation and frustration.
symbolically express the meaning of reality and
Examples are galore in the play to show that on woman's, existence in it. In the first story, man is not
several occasions, the decisions taken by Tughlaq aware of the transcendental reality and is not serious
become wrong such as the decision of shifting the for the mendicant's premonition about his death. But
capital from Delhi to Daulatabad. In another occasion as the last night of his life comes,he because of fear of
he defends his decision of giving same value to copper death goes in a temple which is nameless and empty
coin as well as silver coin.
which symbolizes human being's disbelief in the existence
"It's a question of confidence. A question of trust.The
of God. He maintains his belief on God only in
other day I heard that in China they have paper currency-paper,mind
fear of disasters. The man sayspeople
you and yet it works because the "... I swear by this absent God ..."
accept it.They have faith in the Emporor's seal Karnad argues that the oral tales are paradoxical
on the pieces of paper."
in nature. Their status is like that of a daughter
A similar feeling is expressed in 'Hayavadana'. who has her own .Similarly as a daughter has to leave
"... I have tried everything. But where is my her home, a tale has to leave its home of origin for
society? Where? You must help me to become a complete
being passed on to people. A tale symbolizes a daugh-
man, Bhagavata Sir. But how? What can I do?" ter, like a tale daughter has his own existence indepen-
Here in the novel ,the story of Devadatta, Kapila and dent of the parent and as a tale live only when it is
Padmini deals with the problems of all the three individually.
passed on from the possessor to listener similarly a
Padmini is attracted to Kapila's body and daughter has to go somewhere else. It is the reality of
loves Devadatta's intelligence. When all the three go a female existence.
to visit a fair in Ujjain, on the way they go one by one The main story of Naga Mandala is the story
in the Kali temple. At first, Devadatta and then Kapila of Rani which deals with the absurdities of universe;
offer their heads to Goddess Kali. At last .Padmini the individual perception of reality and authentic existence.
after seeing the dead bodies of Devadatta and Kapila
Marriage in a joint family can be problematic
tries to offer her head to Kali. The Goddess wakes up for a woman when the husband and wife live as strangers
and says in irritation that human beings should come
in day time. If the symbolic expression is given then
to Her to hack of their heads in Her name, in reality the "the empty house Rani is locked in could be the family
reason is something else. By the boon of Goddess she is married into" and "the position of Rani in the
Padmini fixes heads with bodies but she commits a story can be seen as a metaphor for the situation of a
mistake of fixing different heads on different bodies young girl in the bosom of a joint family where she see
which causes the sufferings and a problem of identity her husband only in two unconnected roles - as a
for Devadatta and Kapila . Now both claim to be stranger in during the day and as lover at night." Therefore
Devadutta as one has his body and other head. They
authentic existence of a married young woman in
seek to solve the problem by dyeing. "What won't end Indian joint family is almost impossible. She tries to
has to be cut." Kapila says -
observe the reality and struggles for authentic
"... Now whose head - whose body - suicide or murder
existence.Thus Girish Karnad has a keen understand-
-nothing's clear."
ing of the problems of human being and his place on
At the end both die but the problem remains the earth. He casts human desires, which show the way
unsolved for Padmini."Kali, Mother of all nature, you to inhuman harassments through his plays. Tughlaq,
must have your joke even now. Other women can die Hayavadana, Padmini, Kapila, and Rani are the characters
praying that they should get the same husband in all
in the midst of situations giving a picture of the
the lives to come. You haven't left me even that little way from attractive imagination to ugly reality. Both
consolation."'Naga Mandala' is based on two Kannada the inner and outer world of man is tormented with
folk tales that Karnad had heard from Professor A. K. psychological and communal limitations.
R E F E R E N C E
1. Abrams M.H., A Glossary of Literary Terms. 6th ed. Bangalore,Prism Books, 1993. 2.Bhatta S. Krishna, Indian English Drama: A Critical
Study. New Delhi, Sage Publishers. 1987) 3. Karnad Girish, Three Plays: Naga-Mandala, Hayavadana, Tughlaq.Delhi: Oxford University
Press, 1995) 4. Pandey Mithlesh K., Contemporary Indian Literature in English: A Humanistic Perspective.Noida: Kalyani ," 1999)
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