Blast from the past

An adaptation of a play by Girish Karnad will take you back in time and showcase a struggle for social reformation led by philosopher-poet Basavanna

Characters from the 12th century will come alive on stage this May as Niche Stagekraft will present Tale Danda. Written by Girish Karnad, this play is considered a landmark in the history of Indian theatre and has been directed by Harsh Jalan and Kumar Vikrant.


A scene from Tale Damda

Jitendra R Pawar, who has presented the play, has been working on the script alongwith his team for the last 1.5 years and Pawar emphasises the fact that he just read the story and has never seen the play. A lot of in-depth research has also gone into producing it.

"We visited the city where the story is based to understand the culture, traditions and the history. Only after that did we start working on the script," said Pawar. Pawar mentions that he also spoke to Karnad and discussed possible ways to portray the story. "Girish Karnad was open to discussing the story and to diverse ideas. He had given me the freedom to work on it through my personal thought process."

The drama is based in southern India in the 12th century during the Bhakti Movement. The plot relates to the saint-philosopher-minister Basavanna and his struggle for social reformation. The movement opposed idolatry, rejected temple worship, upheld the equality of the sexes and condemned the caste system. But events took a violent turn and their movement backfired.

Pawar points out that the plot has strong relevance even today. "If you look around the world, nothing had changed. Today the political parties and the rich, rule the poorer sections. They are exploiting the common man and the issue of caste and creed still exist," he adds.

The play boasts of around 22 characters and the production house has taken care of costumes that will best represent the 12th century. The team will later stage the play in Bangalore.

On May 21, 5.30 pm onwards
At Bal Gandharva Rang Mandir, Jangli Maharaj Road.
Call 9823342356