For him, the great war in Kurukshetra makes for a medium of reflection on human conditions and ethical dilemmas, and how one reacts when one of his own is insulted or threatened…writes Sukant Deepak
“There are no clear-cut binaries. Shades of gray eclipse every character, thus adding to their dimensions. The good and the bad reside inside everyone who plays a role in the great epic Mahabharata. How can one not be fascinated and spellbound every time he/she reads it,” asks author and scholar Purushottam Agrawal, who is currently working on a book on the epic tentatively titled ‘Nobody Listens to Me: Reflections on Mahabharata’
Agarwal stresses that socially we are living in strange times characterised by distrust, and where violence has been internalised.
He elaborates, “The appeal of one of the most important texts in the world has become more urgent, precisely why I chose to work on it now though the book has been in my mind for the last two decades. ”
For him, the great war in Kurukshetra makes for a medium of reflection on human conditions and ethical dilemmas, and how one reacts when one of his own is insulted or threatened.
” And what do you do when you have to kill one of your own? After winning the war, Yudhishthira instead of being happy or content, just says, ‘We fought like a pack of dogs…’ “
For this scholar, who also served as a member ofbook the Union Public Service Commission, it is important to reach out to the newer generation. While in every age, a stage comes when the young want to go back and rediscover their history, and claim mythology, the author, who was at the Mahindra Kabira Festival produced by Teamwork Arts, warns, “In my quest to acquaint the young with their past, I want to ensure that I do not compromise on my integrity. Facts should not be tampered with, nor any attempts made to rewrite history. Even if I have 10 readers, I am satisfied.”
Agarwal, who has been called ‘Islamprast’ (favouring Islam) and right-leaning at the same time by different groups, says while he is uncomfortable with such charges, he will continue to keep his stand as long as he can.
“Considering I am well-acquainted with the Islamic traditions in India, and talk about them, some groups call me pro-Islam. When I speak against some Islamic traditions and focus on rich Hindu mythology, I am immediately called anti-Islam. How absurd is this?” he asks.
The author, who edited ‘Kabir Granthawali’( Rajkamal Prakashan), the most authentic text of Kabir’s work feels that the legendary mystic poet continues to enjoy immense popularity owing to his interrogative nature and the value system.
“At times, his language is exotic and mysterious, and sometimes it is direct to the point of being offensive. His layered thoughts and straightforwardness are bound to appeal to everyone.”
When it comes to the much controversial issue of reinterpretation of history, Agarwal opines that being a student of history and literature, it is part of the job and he has himself challenged several existing interpretations of Kabir’s work.
“However, in the absence of factual evidence, tampering with history should be termed as misinterpretation. Everyone has a right to opinion, but no one should be allowed to tamper with facts. Kabir may be revered by a larger number of Hindus, but you cannot deny the fact that he was born in a Muslim weaver’s household,” he concludes.
The Mahabharata, Mewari Miniature Paintings (1680–1698) is a Grand Visual Retelling of the Great Indian Epic. An exclusive feature by columnist Riccha Grrover for Asian Lite International.
The collection Showcases nearly 2000 never-before- published miniature paintings of the Mahabharata by Allah Baksh, from late 17th century Mewar. Features fine translations of the Mahabharata from Mewari into Hindi by Chandra Prakash Deval and English commentary by Alok Bhalla. Insightful introductions by Alok Bhalla on each of the parvas, provide a comprehensive understanding of this great Indian epic.
Allah Baksh’s magnificent miniature paintings of Vyasa’s great epic, the Mahabharata, were commissioned by Udaipur’s Maharana Jai Singh, and painted between 1680 and 1698.The selection of nearly 2000 paintings, published in four volumes, are from a folio of more than 4000 extant works illuminating the Mahabharata.The fifth volume of 500 paintings devoted to the Gita, has already been published.
These radiant miniatures, which follow almost every story in every chapter of the Mahabharata, have no precedent in India’s art tradition.The emphasis in these paintings is not on heroic posturing and spiritual pride, but on the pain that the earth and its creatures endure when human beings tragically fail to fulfil their dharma.The images in the paintings are symbolically charged, their colours are clear and luminous, their lines are restrained and precise. Allah Baksh’s art of visionary thoughtfulness deserves an honoured place in the great library of Indian scriptures and their visual interpretations.
Introductions to the parvas illuminated in these four volumes offer reflections on the moral resonance of the stories, as they reveal the fate of a civilisation from its divine beginning to its fateful destruction.The Hindi translation
of the Mewari text in the colophons, describing the story being illustrated, furthers our understanding of the history of cultural exchange between the different religions, regions and languages of India. Comments on the paintings in English enable the reader to decode the images and follow the narrative grandeur of this great Indian epic.
Chandra Prakash Deval says, ‘The Hindi text, published below the reproductions of the paintings, is a faithful translation of the original Mewari version. There are, however, some instances where additional information has been provided to help the reader follow the storyline and make the necessary narrative links.’
Chandra Prakash Deval
Alok Bhalla says, ‘When I first caught a glimpse of more than 4000 magnificent miniature paintings of the Mahabharata and the Gita by Allah Baksh in the State Museum of Rajasthan, Udaipur, I understood what Plutarch meant when he exclaimed, ‘The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled. Our hope is that readers will find, in these miniature paintings, an exciting dialogue between the verbal and the visual imaginations of the poet and the painter; between the grandeur of Vyasa’s epic and the vision of Allah Baksh who draws upon an endless store of images, designs and colours to offer his own discovery of moral truths in old fables.’
Alok Bhalla
On publishing the set Bikash De Niyogi, Managing Director, Niyogi Books says, ‘When I first heard about the magnificent miniature paintings eight years ago depicting the Mahabharata, commissioned by Udaipur’s Maharana Jai Singh, and now in the collection at the Udaipur Government Museum, I was full of curiosity to go and see them. When I saw the paintings, I was filled with wonder at their fine artistry, the depth of detail and the richness of the colours. Publishing this four-volume compendium for me has been a labour of love, which showcases the richness of Indian culture and craftsmanship. It is the biggest and the longest project taken up by Niyogi Books so far. This is our humble contribution in bringing the Mahabharata to discerning readers.’
About the Authors
Alok Bhalla is a widely published critic, translator and poet. He has taught in various universities in the US and India, and has held Fellowships from different academic institutes in France, Italy, England, Germany, Canada and Israel. His books include Stories about the Partition of India (4 volumes), Partition
Dialogues, Shades of the Preternatural, among others. His verse translation of Dharamvir Bharati’s play, AndhaYug, is a recognised classic.
Chandra Prakash Deval is an eminent poet, fiction writer, translator, bibliophile, and cultural historian. He has published 14 collections of poetry in Hindi and Rajasthani. He has also translated the works of Ashok Vajpeyi, Ramakanth Rath and others into Rajasthani. He has been the recipient of many
prestigious awards like the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Padma Shri.
About the Publisher
An internationally acclaimed publishing house, Niyogi Books, established in 2004, has more than 700 titles today. Niyogi Books not only specializes in textual context but also strives to give equal importance to visuals. It purveys a wide range of content on art, architecture, history, culture, spirituality, memoirs, and every aspect which connects with our rich heritage. The house has co-published a number of critically acclaimed books with reputed institutions like the British Library, Rietberg Museum Zurich, IGNCA, National Gallery of Modern Art, Ministry of Culture (Govt. of India), National Manuscript Mission, Sahitya Akademi, among many others.
Niyogi Books also publishes fiction and non-fiction that cover books on social science, cookery, and self-help as well as English translation of modern classics from different Indian languages. Niyogi Books now has four more Imprints: Olive Turtle (English fiction), Thornbird (English translation) and Paper Missile (English non-fiction) and Bahuvachan (Hindi translation: Fiction & Non-fiction).
Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata is the first major international adaptation led by a company from the South Asian diaspora, UK premiere at the Barbican from 1-7 October 2023; preview by columnist Riccha Grrover for Asian Lite International
Mahabharata (Mah-hah-BAH-ruh-tah) is a contemporary adaptation of the Sanskrit epic poem, that follows a devastating family feud and explores profound philosophical and spiritual ideas. Its stories are more than four thousand years old and foundational to Indian culture. The new, large-scale retelling by Toronto-based company Why Not Theatre is the first major international adaptation to be led by a company from the South Asian diaspora and makes its UK premiere at the Barbican Theatre this autumn (1 – 7 October). The world premiere was hailed by critics as “triumphant” (Toronto Star), “stunning” (Globe and Mail) and “Epic in every sense of the word.” (Intermission magazine) at The Shaw Festival Theatre in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada in March 2023.
The stories collected in ‘The Mahabharata’ span thousands of years and over 100,000 verses – almost four times as long as Homer’s ‘The Odyssey’ & ‘The Iliad’ combined, and eight times as long as the Bible. To this day, favourite moments, characters and lessons are remembered and retold in the kitchens and temples of more than 1 billion people of India and its diaspora. These ancient stories continue to resonate powerfully today against a backdrop of territorial war, human rights violations, and climate change.
Almost 40 years since Peter Brook’s legendary production, Why Not Theatre’s adaptation takes audiences on a journey through the past in order to write a thrilling new future. Exploring the act of storytelling itself, the staging evolves from ancient and intimate – a storyteller around a fire and classical Kathakali dance – to a modern spectacle with projection, dynamic soundscapes, poetic stage design and a new opera for the most revered portion of ‘The Mahabharata’, the Bhagavad Gita. A live onstage band creates the atmospheric music score, featuring traditional instruments from the Bansuri (bamboo flute, often depicted as a favourite of the Hindu god Krishna) to the Tabla (percussion, an essential element in music and dance performance across the Indian subcontinent).
The production is presented in two parts and narrated by a storyteller (Miriam Fernandes), a charismatic guide who weaves a path through the forest of stories. Karma (Part 1), is the origin story of the rival Pandava and Kaurava clans, illuminating the choices we inherit and how those choices impact generations to come. In Dharma (Part 2), a great battle destroys the planet and the survivors are left behind to rebuild.
Mahabharata is performed by a company from across four continents, all from the South Asian diaspora. Balancing East and West, traditional and contemporary, the production and ensemble highlight the complex hybrid nature of cultures in today’s globalised world and interconnected lives. The cast includes UK based performers Ajay Chhabra (Rough Diamonds, Netflix), Neil D’Souza (How To Hold Your Breath, Royal Court), Darren Kuppan (Let The Right One In, Manchester Royal Exchange), Goldy Notay (Life of Pi, UK Tour) and Sakuntala Ramanee (Life of Pi, West End), who are joined by Canadian and other international performers Shawn Ahmed, Jay Emmanuel, Miriam Fernandes, Navtej Sandhu, Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu, Ellora Patnaik, Meher Pavri, Munish Sharmaand Sukania Venugopal, and understudies Varun Guru, Karthik Kadam, Suma Nair, Ronica Sajnani and Ishan Sandhu. Performing in the live band are John Gzowski (Conductor/Co-Composer/Co-Sound Designer/Guitar), Suba Sankaran (Band Leader/Co-Composer/Co-Sounder Designer/Vocals), Dylan Bell (Bass/Keyboard), Gurtej Singh Hunjan (Percussion), Hasheel Lodhia (Bansuri/Vocals) and Zaheer-Abbas Janmohamed (Tabla).
The cast of Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shaw Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
Associate Director, Co-Writer, Storyteller and Why Not Theatre Co-Artistic Director, Miriam Fernandes, said:
“We are a small strand among a great lineage of storytellers who have weaved this epic of ‘The Mahabharata’ over the ages. These stories have been passed from storyteller to audience for thousands of years and span the earth, traveling in the memories and imaginations of the South Asian diaspora. Though first composed in an ancient time, the themes of greed, revenge, ecocide and privilege feel acutely relevant in our globalized world.”
Director, Co-Writer and Why Not Theatre Founder and Co-Artistic Director, Ravi Jain, said:
“As a student in London, I watched the world masters dazzle audiences on the Barbican stage. 20 years later it’s a dream come true to share this complex work we’re so proud of at this truly special venue.”
Toni Racklin, Head of Theatre & Dance at the Barbican, said:
“We are thrilled to present this groundbreaking new production to our audiences, a masterclass in exhilarating stagecraft inspired by ancient oral traditions and poetry. We are honoured to welcome Why Not Theatre to our main stage for the first time, following their studio residency in 2019, and we hope that, for many of our audience members, Mahabharata will resonate with the stories that have been passed down for generations. Exploring the power of storytelling to understand where we’ve come from and to help us navigate our future, Mahabharata invites us to connect with perspectives from across the world and inspire us to reimagine what we can achieve together.”
The first sparks for the project started in 2015. Ravi Jain (Founding Artistic Director of Why Not Theatre) chose to adapt just one story (the Bhagavad Gita) within the sprawling Mahabharata for a commission by the intercontinental Pan Am Games. Backed by funding from Canada Council of the Arts, Ontario’s prestigious Shaw Festival Theatre then invited Ravi to ‘Dream Big’ and stage the entire epic poem. Having grown up with the Indian stories transplanted to a Canadian context, Ravi was inspired to dive deep into his past, taking inspiration from many South Asian sources as well as Peter Brook’s 1985 production. Ravi wanted to find a way to share this story with a modern audience by highlighting the myriad ways we tell stories. As part of Why Not Theatre’s deeply ingrained collaborative approach, Ravi teamed up with Miriam Fernandes (now Co-Artistic Director of Why Not Theatre). Together they built the script, drawing primarily from Carole Satyamurti’s ‘Mahabharata, A Modern Retelling’, Devdutt Patnaik’s ‘JAYA’, and the poetry of Rabindranath Tagore, but also pulling from wildly diverse perspectives and combining influences, including folk tales, street theatre, western European physical theatre (from their training at LAMDA and the Lecoq School and contemporary companies such as Simon McBurney’s Complicité and Ariane Mnouchkine’s Théâtre du Soleil), oral storytelling traditions, and the popular Indian staples they grew up with, such as Amar Chitra Katha’s Mahabharata comics and B. R. Chopra’s Mahabharata TV series.
Mahabharata is adapted by Why Not Theatre’s Founding Artistic Director Ravi Jain and Co-Artistic Director Miriam Fernandes, using poetry from Carole Satyamurti’s ‘Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling’. The original concept was developed with Jenny Koons. Set design is by Lorenzo Savoini, costume design is by Gillian Gallow, lighting design is by Kevin Lamotte, projections are by Hana S. Kim, sound design is by John Gzowski and Suba Sankaran, original music is by John Gzowski andSuba Sankaran, with contributions from Dylan Bell, Gurtej Singh Hunjan, Zaheer-Abbas Janmohamed and Hasheel Lodhia (who also serves as traditional music consultant), and choreography is by Brandy Leary with contributions by Jay Emmanuel and Ellora Patnaik. Lead Producers are Michelle Yagi and Kevin Matthew Wong, with Production Manager Crystal Lee. The production is directed by Ravi Jain and made its world premiere at the Shaw Festival, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada.
Miriam Fernandes as the Storyteller, with Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu as Arjuna and Neil D’souza as Krishna, in Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shas Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
Why Not Theatre is an international theatre company based in Toronto, Canada, operating at the intersection of art, innovation and social change. Rooted in values of community and collaboration, Why Not challenges the status quo, rethinking how stories are told and who gets to tell them. Since its inception, the company has developed and produced 50+ new plays to critical and public acclaim. These works have toured to over 50 cities and garnered over 40 awards and nominations. Why Not is led by Founder and Co-Artistic Director, Ravi Jain, Executive Director, Karen Tisch, and Co-Artistic Director, Miriam Fernandes.
Neil D’souza as Krishna and Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu as Arjuna in
Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shaw Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
Supporters credits
A Why Not Theatre Production. Originally presented and commissioned by the Shaw Festival in association with the Barbican.
The Barbican presentation is generously supported by the Bagri Foundation.
Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu as Arjuna, Munish Sharma
as Bhima, Shawn Ahmed as Yudhishthira and Sukania Venugopal as Bhishma with the cast of Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shaw Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
Why Not Theatre acknowledges the support of its Major Production Supporters: Shaw Festival, Canada Council for the Arts, National Arts Centre’s National Creation Fund, The Slaight Family Foundation, Kingfisher Foundation, Deb Barrett & Jim Leech, Lindy Green Family Foundation and Wuchien Michael Than Foundation.
L to R: Darren Kuppan as Duryodhana, Navtej Sandhu as Karna, Sakuntala Ramanee as Shakuni, Harmage Singh Kalirai as Dhritarashtra, Sukania Venugopal as Bhishma and Shawn Ahmed as Yudhishthira in Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shaw Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
About the Barbican
The Barbican is a catalyst for creativity, sparking possibilities for artists, audiences, and communities. We showcase the most exciting art from around the world, pushing traditional artistic boundaries to entertain and inspire millions of people, create connections, provoke debate, and reflect the world we live in.
We are an international arts and events centre rooted firmly in our own neighbourhood, collaborating with local communities and putting the City of London on the map as a destination for everybody. Central to our purpose is supporting emerging talent and shaping opportunities that will accelerate the next generation of creatives.
