For the love of Konark
DIWAN SINGH BAJELI
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Jagdish Chandra Mathur's play "Konark" drawing on a legend associated with the construction of Konark temple was etched in harmony.
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FOR THE TEMPLE A scene from Jagdish Chandra Mathur's "Konark".
Revolt against oppression by an idealistic young man, a deep sense of agonising guilt for the betrayal of true love, the overweening impatience of an army chief to overthrow his benign and credulous king are the thematic strands which are well woven into the basic dramatic structure of the play "Konark".
Written by the late Jagdish Chandra Mathur, the play has been a source of fascination for several directors in the Hindi region over the years. Published in 1951, so far its six editions have been brought out, apart from its translation into some of the regional languages. This past week Ravi Taneja mounted it at Shri Ram Centre for Yavanika, a dramatic group formed by Deen Dayal Upadhyay College to a near-capacity hall.
The play is set in the medieval Orissa known for its great temple architecture. The temples of Bhubaneswar and Jagannath-Puri stand today as the testimony to that rich legacy of architectural splendour. Mathur has chosen the ruins of the Konark temple for his play, trying to unravel the mystery behind the existing fragmented condition of the temple. Other temples built earlier stand as beautiful monuments with all their structural richness intact.
The playwright finds the answer to the mystery that shrouds the existing ruins of Konark - the struggle for power between King Narsimhadev and his army chief with the craftsmen forging an alliance with the king to quell the revolt. The craftsmen fought with the stones they so lovingly chiselled. So the temple was destroyed by their own creators in a desperate bid to protect themselves from an enemy who had surrounded the temple from outside.
On stage
As the play opens we watch a worried chief craftsman Vishu sharing his anxiety with his friend Saumya Shridatt, teacher of the dramatic art of the temple. Enters a young man who himself is a highly skilled craftsman and takes upon himself the architectural work which the chief has failed to accomplish. The young man is not only endowed with exceptional skill as a stone carver but is also a rebel agitated over the plight of artisans,once treated well by the king. He exhorts his men to unite and fight against their oppressor, the chief of the royal army who has usurped powers from the king.
The element of contrivance and verbosity at palaces would have diverted our attention but Ravi's direction and the way he has conceived the production made the evening absorbing. Ravi has been actively involved as an actor and director for the last 30 years in the amateur theatre movement in the Capital. He has offered us some fine productions and performances. Infusing the latest production with a vision he gives it a distinctly pro-artist perspective, highlighting their plight and their resolve to fight against suppression by the state. Music by Nupur with dance composition by Sumati transformed the production into a delightful theatrical piece. Young and beautiful dancers with delicate poses provided the backdrop for the dramatic action. For the most part of the unfolding of the drama these dancers maintained their poses in a seemingly effortless manner.
It was heartening to watch a young cast full of dynamism, exuding their love for acting. Naveen Gupta as Dharmpad, who leads the artisans to fight soldiers with carved stones against the enemy, was not for acquiring the state power but to help a benign king to regain his lost kingdom from his treacherous army chief hoping that he would ensure craftsmen their dignity and creative freedom. Yogendra Tripathi as the treacherous chief of the royal army, Prashant Bhadwaj as Vishu and Saurabh Bedi as King Narsimhadev give creditable performances.
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