Ghashiram Kotwal
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Ghashiram Kotwal | |
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Directed by | Jabbar Patel |
Written by | Vijay Tendulkar |
Ghashiram Kotwal is a
History
Tendulkar based his play on a 1863 story by author-historian Moroba Kanhoba who tossed together history and fiction to write Ghashiram Kotwal and saw it as something of a simple morality play.[5]
The first performance of this play was at Bharat Natya Mandir in
Synopsis
The play begins with an invocation to lord
Ghashiram barters his own daughter Gauri to get the post of Kotwal (police chief) of Pune from Nana. Having got the post he begins to enforce strict rules in the city. He starts asking for permits for everything and starts throwing people in jail for the smallest offenses. When the commoners come to Nana with a complaint, he dismisses them & is deeply indulged with Gauri. In the meantime, Gauri becomes pregnant by Nana and dies during childbirth. Nana asks her body thrown in the river in secret. He convinces Ghashiram that the title he enjoys is only because of his patronage. The situation goes out of hand when a few brahmins visitors to the city are put in jail, and die from suffocation due to inadequate ventilation in their custody. The Brahmin of Pune then complains to the Peshwa. The Peshwa summons Nana who orders Ghashiram to be killed in the most inhumane way possible. Nana ignores his summons, the Brahmins then surround his palace protest. To save his skin Nana finally gives orders for execution of Ghashiram.
Style
The play is notable for the use of the "Tamasha" form in Marathi folk theatre. Singing and dancing are used here to good effect. "Abhangas" (devotional songs) are mixed with "Lavnis" (love songs).
Original cast and crew
- Ghashiram Savaldas: Ramesh Tilekar
- Nana Phadnavis: Mohan Agashe
- Sutradhar (Narrator): Shreeram Ranade
- Singers: Anand Modak, Ravindra Sathe, Chandrakant Kale
- Music: Bhaskar Chandavarkar
- Dance: Krishndev Mulgund
- Director: Jabbar Patel
- Arvind Thakar
Musicians
- Music: Bhaskar Chandavarkar
- Ravindra Sathe - manjiri/tal
- Chandrakant Kale - Chipali
- Ashok Gaikwad - Dholaki/Tabla
- Prabhashankar Gaikwad - sundri
- Shrikant Rajpathak - Mrudung
- Shyam Bhende - Harmonium[7]
Controversy
Like many of Tendulkar's plays, this play created a lot of controversy because it offended the
The play was based on historical facts.[10] Ghashiram was a North Indian Brahmin, a resident of Aurangabad, who was appointed as the Police prefect of Poona on 8 February 1777 and continued to hold officer till his death which took place on 31 August 1791 under violent circumstances. He had earned Nana's confidence by his faithful service during the critical times that followed the Peshwa Narayan Rao's murder. He enjoyed the full trust of Nana Phadnavis and his administration was notoriously worse than that of his predecessors. He was the man who had been appointed to watch the movements and plans of Raghunath Rao and his family and he reported to Nana whatever suited his purpose. He had under him a large body of unscrupulous spies, everyone possessing ample means of harassing people in consequence of which the word Ghashiram has become a permanent synonym for oppression and tyranny. The rule of Ghashiram was cruel and tyrannical.[11] However, there is no historical evidence to support the portrayal of Nana Phadnavis as depicted in the play.[5] The controversy also unfortunately undermines the crucial contribution made by
Film adaptation
The play was adapted into a Marathi film, Ghashiram Kotwal (1976), which was the debut film of actor Om Puri. The main characters were played by Prakash Belawadi and Mohan Agashe. The film's screenplay was written by Vijay Tendulkar. The film was directed by K. Hariharan and Mani Kaul in cooperation with 16 graduates of the FTII.[13]
Further reading
- Ghashiram Kotwal, Vijay Tendulkar, Sangam Books, 1984. ISBN 81-7046-210-X.
- Collected Plays in Translation: Kamala, Silence! the Court Is in Session, Sakharam Binder, the Vultures, Encounter in Umbugland, Ghashiram Kotwal, a Friend's Story, Kanyadaan. New Delhi, 2003, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-566209-1.
- Vijay Tendulkar's Ghashiram Kotwal: a Reader's Companion. M. Sarat Babu, Asia Book Club, 2003. ISBN 81-7851-008-1.
- Vijay Tendulkar's Ghashiram Kotwal: Critical Perspectives. Vinod Bala Sharma and M. Sarat Babu. 2005, Prestige Books, New Delhi. ISBN 81-7851-002-2.
- P. Dhanavel, "Subversion of Values in Tendulkar's Ghashiram Kotwal," Voice, Vol.3, No.3, (June 2005),pp. 84–92.
References
- ^ "Indo-American Arts Council, Inc". Iaac.us. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
- ^ "Sorry". Indianexpress.com. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
- ^ "पीडीए अर्थात Progressive Dramatic Association बद्दल काही …". 2010-06-06.
- ^ "Performance Tradition and Modern Theatre: Sanskrit classical tradition in North India, performance tradition in South India, Kutiyattam of Kerala, performing tradition of Sanskrit drama, Vishnu temples, Rise of Modern Theatre, theatre activity by British Clubs, -, Performance Tradition and Modern Theatre". Archived from the original on December 11, 2007. Retrieved December 15, 2007.
- ^ a b c "Reign of tyranny". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 2019-08-12.
- ^ 'घाशीराम' आनंदपर्व by Anand Modak
- ^ 'घाशीराम' आनंदपर्व
- ^ "'My writing has always been honest', Interview with Vijay Tendulkar". The Frontline. Archived from the original on 2012-02-20. Retrieved 2012-11-06.
- ^ "Rebel playwright Vijay Tendulkar takes a final bow". The Economic Times. 2008-05-20. Retrieved 2019-08-12.
- ^ "Journal : The Historical Ghashiram Kotwal". 2012-04-22.
- ISBN 9788126908714.
- ^ "Nana Phadnis: last man standing". Pune Mirror. No. 16 March 2019. 16 March 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
- ^ "My writing has always been honest". frontline.thehindu.com. Retrieved 2019-01-08.
External links
- Ghashiram Kotwal at IMDb