A performance of the classical play Shakunthala with classical dancer Nirupama Rajendra (center) as the play's protagonist
The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in the form of dialogues, or even scenes, as well as hymns that make use of other literary forms such as animal fables[1] However, Indian drama begins its classical stage in the 3rd-4th century BCE with the composition of the Nātyaśāstra (lit. The Science of Drama).[2] Indian classical drama is regarded as the highest achievement of Sanskrit literature.[3]
The Buddhist playwright, poet and philosopher Asvaghosa, who composed the Buddhacarita, is considered to have been one of the first Sanskrit dramatists along with Bhāsa, who likely lived in the 2nd century BCE, and is famous for writing two of the only surviving tragedies in Sanskrit drama.
Despite its name, a classical Sanskrit drama uses both Sanskrit and Prakrit languages giving it a bilingual nature.[4] Sanskrit drama utilised stock characters, such as the hero (nayaka), heroine (nayika), or clown (vidusaka). Actors may have specialised in a particular type. Mahābhāṣya by Patañjali contains the earliest reference to what may have been the seeds of Sanskrit drama.[5] This treatise on grammar provides a feasible date for the beginnings of theatre in India.[5]
Kālidāsa in the 4th-5th century CE, was arguably one of ancient India's greatest Sanskrit dramatists. Three famous romantic plays written by Kālidāsa are the Mālavikāgnimitram (Mālavikā and Agnimitra), Vikramōrvaśīyam (Pertaining to Vikrama and Urvashi), and Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Shakuntala). The last was inspired by a story in the Mahabharata and is the most famous. It was the first to be translated into English and German. Śakuntalā (in English translation) influenced Goethe's Faust (1808–1832).[3] The next great Indian dramatist was Bhavabhuti (c. 7th century CE). He is said to have written the following three plays: Malati-Madhava, Mahaviracharita and Uttararamacarita. Among these three, the last two cover between them the entire epic of Ramayana. The powerful Indian emperor Harsha (606–648) is credited with having written three plays: the comedy Ratnavali, Priyadarsika, and the Buddhist drama Nagananda. Other famous Sanskrit dramatists include Śhudraka, Bhasa, and Asvaghosa. Though numerous plays written by these playwrights are still available, little is known about the authors themselves.
^Stoneman, Richard (2019-02-05). The Greek Experience of India. Princeton University Press. p. 413. ISBN 978-0-691-15403-9.
^Varadpande, M. L.; Varadpande, Manohar Laxman (1987). History of Indian Theatre. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 978-81-7017-221-5.
^ abBrandon (1981, xvii).
^Rachel Van M. Baumer; James R. Brandon (1993). Sanskrit Drama in Performance. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 25–. ISBN 978-81-208-0772-3.
^ abRichmond (1998, 517).
and 28 Related for: Indian classical drama information
The term Indianclassicaldrama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent...
Indianclassical dance, or Shastriya Nritya, is an umbrella term for different regionally-specific Indianclassical dance traditions, rooted in predominantly...
ClassicalIndian musical theatre is a sacred art of the Hindu temple culture. It is performed in different styles. ClassicalIndian musical theatre theory...
Indianclassical music is the classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It is generally described using terms like Marg Sangeet and Shastriya Sangeet...
also numerous anthologies of subhāṣita, such as the Cātakāṣṭaka. Indianclassicaldrama (dṛśya, nātaka) was also mainly written in Sanskrit and there are...
The term "drama" comes from a Greek word meaning "deed" or "act" (Classical Greek: δρᾶμα, drâma), which is derived from "I do" (Classical Greek: δράω...
numerous styles of dances, generally classified as classical or folk. As with other aspects of Indian culture, different forms of dances originated in different...
the Indian subcontinent, with one of the earliest references to the profession being the character Vasantasena from the 5th century BC Sanskrit drama Mṛcchakatika...
considered a form of playwright. Outside of the Western world there is Indianclassicaldrama, with one of the oldest known playwrights being Śudraka, whose attributed...
Part-i. K. H. Dhruva (1923), Mudrārākshasa or the signet ring: a Sanskrit drama in seven acts by Viśākhadatta (with complete English translation) (2 ed...
Korean drama (Korean: 한국 드라마; RR: Han-guk deurama), also known as Koreanovela or K-drama, refers to Korean-language television shows made in South Korea...
dance, the Indian theatre is also defined by the dramatic performance based on the concept of Nritya, which is a Sanskrit word for drama but encompasses...
tradition, including the Indian, Chinese, and Islamic traditions. The study of the classical tradition differs from classical philology, which seeks to...
The theory of rasas still forms the aesthetic underpinning of all Indianclassical dance and theatre, such as Bharatanatyam, kathak, Kuchipudi, Odissi...
Mrinalini Vikram Sarabhai (11 May 1918 – 21 January 2016) was an Indianclassical dancer, choreographer and instructor. She was the founder and director...
(Meitei: Jagoi Raas/Raas Jagoi), is a jagoi and is one of the major Indianclassical dance forms, originating from the state of Manipur. It is one of the...
distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" can also be applied to non-Western art musics. Classical music is often characterized...
Krishnanattam and Ramanattam. Kathakali is a highly stylised classicalIndian dance-drama noted for the attractive make-up of characters, elaborate costumes...
sample of this genre. It can be argued to be an early precursor of Indianclassicaldrama.[by whom?] They are found in the youngest part of the Rigveda (RV...
major Indianclassical dances. It originates from a village named Kuchipudi in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance...
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. It is one of two main subgenres of Indianclassical music that evolved from ancient Hindu texts and traditions, particularly...
1825 Classical unities, rules for drama derived from a passage in Aristotle's Poetics Classical (album), a 1997 album by Wolf Hoffmann A Classical, a 2013...
giving inspirations to the development of the Manipuri Raas Leela classical dance drama form. The dance form is believed to be first performed by Khuman...
Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and...
Bajinath Prasad also known as Pandit Lachhu Maharaj (1901–1978) was an Indianclassical dancer and choreographer of Kathak dance. He came from a family of...
Neelima Azeem (born 2 December 1958) is an Indian actress, classical dancer, writer and the mother of actors Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter. She is...
closely related to Classical Sanskrit in that it "is derived from the Old Indian Indo-Aryan dialect of the Madhyadeśa on which Classical Sanskrit was mainly...
Indian dance includes eight classical dance forms, many in narrative forms with mythological elements. The eight classical forms accorded classical dance...
Global Information
Literature portal