Sunday, August 12, 2007

Baaki Itihaas: Juxtaposing the absurdities of life

The absurd philosophy of the 20th century has given literature and theatre a new dimension to pursue human life in a better prospect, exploring the intricacies and mysteries of birth and death. The awkward predicaments suffered by humans in the post world war scenario has been explored and dealt with great amount of details. The principles of psychoanalysis formulated by Freud has provided various playwrights with an insight into the complexity of human life and relationship. Conceptualised on the principles freudian psychoanalysis, Badal Sarkar's 'Baaki Itihaas' makes a prompt attempt in delivering answers to certain questions that have been shrouded in the darkness of human history.
Staged by Rangasiri, a city based theatre group, the Kannada version of Baadal Sarkar's much acclaimed 'Baaki Itihaas' seem to be well conceptualised play after Evam Indrajeet of the same author. Even though the translation sees lose ends at some point, eventually wins at the end through powerful dialogues. The course of the play, taking cue from a newspaper headline, escalates into a serious literary debate among the litterateur couple. What seem to be a noetic action initially, soon becomes a verisimilitude commentary on individual's dark and harrowing thoughts which never been addressed by any writers in detail.
The main story revolving around a couple dwells into the life story of another family and finding answers to the death of its chieftain in their own way. Sharad, a college lecturer and his writer wife Vasanti ponder over the reasons for Sitanath's suicide whom they had met sometime back. Colouring the event with their own imagination capabilities, Sharad comes out with a splendid story that eventually puts him into a kind of conflict that Sitanath had undergone while committing suicide.
The play directed by H K Ramamurthy, interlaces three stories of different background into one. Coincidentally Sitanath's and Sharad's thoughts have the same tonal intensity as same as Kanaka and Vasanthi's thoughts. Going by the playwright's account both the families tries to push the defined boundaries of the society in their own way. Further, the play also gives suitable answers to the raging debate about the unanswered fate of human kind. Not all the powerful dialogues of the original has found a place in this translation as it becomes monotonous at some point of time and the neutral articulation of dialogues by the actors without pumping in the required amount of tonal variation. However the logic of arguments exchanged by Sharad and Sitanat's ghost at the last lights up the pessimistic play with resplendent colours.

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