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CHAPTER - II

VIJAY TENDULKAR — HIS ART AND CONVICTIONS

The famous Indian Marathi playwright, Vijay Dhondopant Tendulkar

belonged to Bhalavalikar Saraswat Brahmin family. He was born on 6th Jan, 1928
in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. He was a writer for movie and television, a literary
essayist, a political journalist and also a social commentator. His father was a
clerk and owner of a small publishing business. For writing he got the required
literary environment at his home. His favourite past time was to watch western
plays. He wrote his first play while he was a school going boy. Later, he started
working as an assistant in a book shop to help improve the financial condition of
his family. Besides writing he also acted in his first play. He was then only of
eleven years of age. His family shifted to Pune and thus he got a different
environment.

When he shifted to Pune, at that time India was under the British rule. ―He
participated in the Indian freedom movement in 1942 at the fourteen years of age‖
(Tendulkar, Interview with Priya Adarkar 49-50). ―He was so much devoted for
the freedom struggle movement that he left his studies‖ (Tendulkar, An
introduction by Samik Bandopadhyay 598). He then had his admission in a new
school. During Quit India Movement, Gandhiji appealed to the students and called
them to boycott the schools run by the British Government as a part of the
campaign. It was an initiative to end the British rule in India. Vijay was one of
those students who replied Gandhi‘s call and took interest in it and attended secret
meetings and distributed pamphlets to rebel against the English officials. He was
also associated with the communist party and Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh for
some time. These incidents encouraged him and brought out the fearlessness and
adventurous nature of Tendulkar.
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Tendulkar‘s love and devotion for his country reached to the immediate
heights. These qualities are easily seen in his writings. Vijay was to go to the
police station due to a sudden meeting. He was freed after being given a severe
warning by the police to his father, as he was a minor. His father, Dhondopant
prohibited him from taking any more part in the nationalist movement and he was
forced to return to school. But it was too late, by now he had fallen far behind in
his studies. He was often punished at school. When it became unbearable, he
began bunking the classes and wasted his precious time in watching movies. He
wasted all the money given to him for the school fee. He also spent much of his
time at the city library in reading books. He due to the fear of getting beaten by
his parents escaped from his family and friends. Writing became his only
companion when he was alone and sad. Tendulkar shared his views with Mukta
Rajyadhyaksha in an interview in following words:

I participated in a small way in the 1942 movement. Owing to that, I

stayed away from school a lot and was often humiliated whenever I turned

up in class. I was confused, a loner without many friends, not much of a

talker. Writing was an outlet for emotions (www.flonnet.com).

He could complete his education only up to matriculation. But he was an

extraordinary example of a person, who achieved fame and name without much
progressive education. He published his first story in the year 1948. But his
writing actually flourished after 1955. He worked as a journalist for some time at
the beginning of his career. Later he worked with weeklies Maratha and Navyug.
He also worked for the magazine Vasudha. He was also associated with teaching
in the Tata Institute of Social Sciences during 1978 to 1981.

Tendulkar started writing for news paper. He made up his mind to pursue
writing and as such he took interest in writing for newspapers and magazines. He
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also worked in various printing presses as a proof-reader for three years (1944 to
1947). In 1948, he worked as the sub-editor in daily ‗Navabharat‟. ―He also
worked for ‗Maratha‘ and ‗Loksatta‘. He was the executive editor of ‗Vasudha‘
and ‗Dipawali‟ for some time. He wrote columns for ‗Manus‘ and ‗Maharashtra
Times‟. He also spent a few years as public relations officer for the Chowgule
Group of Industries‖ (Tendulkar, Interview 1983). During his career as a
journalist, he got good knowledge of society and human life. Tendulkar states in
N.S.Dharan‘s Indian English Drama Critical Perspectives:

It started with my journalistic dissatisfaction, but it grew into much bigger

proportions, in the sense that it became a matter of conscience as a human

being. I became restless (Dharan 93).

His varied professional experience brought him in touch with people of

different classes. He came into contact with Acharya Atre, a famous Marathi
playwright while he was working for daily „Maratha‟. Atre`s assistance had a
great influence on Tendulkar‘s writing style. According to N.S. Dharan,
―Tendulkar`s creative genius sharpened by his keen observation and seasoned by
journalistic experience, found expression in his plays‖ (93).

He had great love for writing and his penchant for writing was reflected in
his experiences which show that somewhere a talent was hidden in him. His
vigilant mind was always curious to know about the worldly situations around
him, regarding this Amar Nath Prasad and Satish Barbuddhe writes about him in
these words:

He was not satisfied with the ‗second hand‘ information which he got,

while sitting in the newspaper office. In his study tours he got ‗first hand‘

information of the outside world (Prasad and Barbuddhe 6).

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He wrote twenty eight full-length plays, seven collections of one-act plays,

five collections of short stories, five volumes of literary and social criticism,
seventeen film scripts, six collections of children's plays, two novels and a
biography.

He wrote two novels Kadambari: Ek (Novel: One) in 1996 and

Kadambari: two (Novel: Two) in 2005. He also wrote short stories like Dwandwa
(Duel) in 1961 and Phulapakhare (Butterflies) in 1970,

The story „Amchyavar Kon Prem Karnar‟ (Who Will Love Us) was
Tendulkar‘s first published work. At the age of twenty–two he wrote his first full-
length play „Gruhastha‟ (The Householder) but unfortunately it could not be
succeeded. He wrote „Shrimant‟ (The Rich) in 1955 dealt with the subject of
unmarried motherhood and jolted the conservative audience of the times.
Arundhati Banerjee says about Tendulkar‘s early plays:

Tendulkar‘s first major work that set him apart from previous generation

Marathi playwrights was Manus Nawache Bet (An Island Called Man,

1956), which gave expression to the tormenting solitude and alienation of

a modern individual in an urban industrialized society. His dramatic

genius was cut out for the newly emerging experimental Marathi theatre of

the time (Banerjee 570).

Some important plays in Tendulkar‘s career are „Chimniche Ghar Hote

Menache‟ (The Wax House of Sparrow), ‗Madhlya Bhinti‟ (The Walls Between),
„Kavlyanchi Shala‟ (School for Crows), „Mee Jinklo Mee Harlo‟ (I won, I Lost),
and „Sari ga Sari‟ (Drizzle O Drizzle). He deals with the conflict between the
individual and the society in all these plays. Throughout these plays there occurs
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sympathy in the mind of the readers. The course of modern Marathi theatre was
rapidly changed in the 1950s and 1960s.

The play„Shantata! Court Chalu Ahe‟ (Silence! The Court is in Session)

was written and produced in 1967. It was based on the story „Die Panne‟ (Traps)
written by Friedrich Durrenmatt. It bagged the prestigious Kamaladevi
Chattopadhyaya Award for the best play of the year in 1970.

The play ‗Dambadwipcha Mukabala‟ (Encounter in Umbugland) was

written in 1968. It deals with the various evils of politics such as intrigues,
treachery and corruption. The play „Gidhade‟ (The Vultures) was produced in
1971. Tendulkar shows how the lust for money makes human beings turn into
vultures in this play.

The play „Sakharam Binder‟ was published in 1972 and suffered the same
fate like Vultures. It deals with the issue of the domination of the male over the
female. His next play „Mitrachi Goshta‟ (A Friend‘s Story) appeared in 1980. It
was based on a short story ‗Mitra‘ written by the author himself in the mid-fifties.
It presented the pathetic life of Sumitra, the protagonist, who is a lesbian. The play
created a sensation because nothing like this had been created in writings during
those days.

Tendulkar‘s next play „Kanyadaan‟ (The Gift of a Daughter, 1983)

became controversial as it was criticised as an anti-dalit play. In this play an upper
class Brahmin girl marries a dalit poet and suffers untold miseries. At the end of
the play she blames her idealist father for not training her to face raw life.

His important works in translation are Adhe Adhure (originally in Hindi)

by Mohan Rakesh, Tughlaq (originally in Kannada) by Girish Karnad, A
Streetcar Named Desire (originally in English) by Tennessee Williams, Shantata!
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Court Chalu Aahe (Silence! The Court Is in Session) (1972), Nishant (End of
Night) (1975), Samna (Confrontation) (1975), Manthan (Churning) (1976),
Simhasan (Throne) (1979), Gehrayee (The Depth) (1980), Aakrosh (Cry of the
Wounded) (1980), Akriet (Unimaginable) (1981), Umbartha (The Threshold)
(1981), Ardh Satya (Half Truth) (1983), Kamala (Kamala) (1984), Sardar (1993),
Yeh Hai Chakkad Bakkad Bumbe Bo (2003), Eashwar Mime Co. (The Mime
Players) (2005) and Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Dastaan (1978).

He was also interested in translating the plays into Marathi. He translated

nine novels, two biographies, and five plays by other authors into Marathi. His
writings were not for getting fame and popularity. He instilled a new authenticity
in the depiction of the urban lower middle class in Marathi theatre.

His early writings brought him a real life experience of this class. His
writings significantly changed the face of Indian drama of that time as regards
‗experimental presentations by theatre groups like Rangayan‘ (Varde 87). ―The
leading actors of theatre groups were Shreeram Lagoo, Mohan Agashe and
Sulabha Deshpande. They lent a special power to Tendulkar's creations and gave a
new direction to Marathi theatre‖ (www.dnaindia.com).

During the 1970s and 1980s he wrote the original scripts and dialogue for
Hindi films. He had been the screen writer for eleven films in Hindi and eight in
Marathi. ‗The famous films among them are Nishant, Akrosh, Ardhya-Satya,
Manthan and Aghat—that defined the paradigm for the 'Middle-Cinema'
movement in India‘ (Tandon 124). The famous Marathi films are Samana (1975),
Simhaasan (1979), and Umbartha (1981). ―The film is based on women's activism
in India. It was directed by Jabbar Patel, and featured by Smita Patil and Girish
Karnad‖ (www.youtube.com). He was considered equal amongst the famous art
and commercial cinema film-makers of Bollywood- Satyajit Ray, Shyam Benegal
etc. Besides this, he had written and directed as a social commentator in various
shows on current social issues for Indian television in Hindi.
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When he started his dramatic career he was influenced by B.V. Varerkar,

P.K.Atre and M.G.Ranganekar. He not only imitated their style but also grew in
their shelter and guidance. But the period between 1920 and 1950 was not much
easy in the history of Marathi Drama. He was influenced by facing all the
difficulties and instead of remaining affected by the situation, he came out of it.
―A festival of Tendulkar plays was organized by the actor Amol Palekar in Pune‖
(Prasad and Barbuddhe 6). He contributed in the field of journalism also with his
highly individual outlook, his vision of life and his personal style of writing.
Through his active participation in the field of journalism he had made a powerful
impression in the field of literature and drama. He made all his efforts to put
Marathi drama on the national and international map.

His contribution has not only enriched the Marathi drama and theatre, but
theatres all across India. He took into consideration the varied problems of the
native life of Maharatsra and gave Marathi drama a new dimension. His personal
life is full of gloominess and sadness as he lost his wife Nirmala and son Raja in
2001. ‗His only daughter Priya Tendulkar, who was a renowned television actress,
died of cancer in 2002‘ (timesofindia.indiatimes.com). ‗Tendulkar died at Prayag
Hospital‘ (timesofindia.indiatimes.com). ‗He was battling with Myasthenia Gravis
and took his last breath on 19 May, 2008‘ (Tendulkar, The Telegraph 2008).

Tendulkar autobiographically delineated his inner urge about his flight for
his passion of writing drama, to initiate the dimensions of society that so far had
been neglected or never been dared to project in writings and in theatre. Tendulkar
in an Interview with K. Kannan in When Writing is Life itself, states-

Like a seagull, I have flown over the ocean of life patiently, calmly,

without discussion, without a purpose. There is only one curiosity. How

deep will this ocean be? How will the bottom look like?

(www.thehindu.com)
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Tendulkar here compares himself with a seagull. The metaphor of seagull

implies Tendulkar‘s aspired project to dive deep into the depth and unfathomed
world of ocean i.e to analyze the unexplored concerns of the society and nation
through his theatrical art and drama.

Tendulkar is credited with a milestone in the development of the Marathi

drama. He had been a highly influential dramatist and theatre personality in India
for over five decades particularly in Maharashtra. His writings in drama have
played a vital role to bridge the gap between conventional and contemporary
theatre. C. Coelho is probably the first critic who has considered Tendulkar‘s
resemblance with Antonin Artaud‘s concept of ‗Theatre of Cruelty‘. Artaud
believed that ―unblinkered perceptions of the world‘s inherent cruelty must be
given a new art form‖ (Coelho 34). Tendulkar was not interested on the impact or
on the aspects of atrocities or on the results of the merciless treatment; rather he
wanted to make aware his audience of the fundamental causes of compelling
someone to inflict cruelty or to face cruelty or to be afflicted with cruelty. He
implied with this genre in drama that there is an altered way to understand and to
change the environment and emotions causing cruelty.

Tendulkar too, alike Coelho, ―was disillusioned with life around and
brokethrough the traditional and conventional theatre, making an extreme
excursion into a new kind of theatre experience like Fugard‖ (Coelho 31).
Tendulkar tried his best to change the form, style and pattern of Indian Drama.

In his writings he dealt with the suffering of persons trapped in separation

and unfriendly surroundings. Through his plays he raised disturbing questions
about love, sex, marriage and moral values. He highlighted the conditions of
middle-class society and tries to demolish the social constraints imposed on them.
His multifaceted genius explored, experimented and modified the potentials of the
dramatic genre. His plays have a massive impact on the tender youth and
generation of the century.
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His fame has crossed the boundaries of Marathi culture. All his plays
voiced the silence of the middle class common man. He is ranked very high on
both the national and international stage for dramatics. He achieved the fame in
his life time and posthumously, that a very few Indian authors are able to achieve.
He made all the stones unturned by his strength and touched the greater heights in
his literally achievements. He chose the unique subject for his studies. It is
because of the uniqueness of his subject that took him to international level of
drama. He always considered writing significant for men‘s growth and to acquire
intellect. This very uniqueness in his thoughts ensured that his writings were
highly impressive. He was of the view that:

Creative writing has never been my first Love; my primary interest has

always been life itself. I would rather play with child or meet an

interesting person or learn a new skill than write. Writing to me is like

talking and I'm not the one to fall in love with my own voice. I am more

interested in other people's voice (Pandey 209).

His writings derived inspiration from real-life incidents or social problems

instead of directly handling the social issues. The core of his writing was human
behaviour and human life. On one hand, the brutal and cruel aspects of human
behaviour is seen through his famous plays Gidhade(Vultures) (1971)
and Sakharam Binder (1972), whereas the play Ghashiram Kotwal (1972)
represents class and gender disparity, besides injustice in society. The play
Shantata! Court Chalu Ahe (1967) attacks false valour and mannerisms. It puts
forth a different aspect of human behaviour. Tendulkar in this context theorizes
his experiential expressions in the ‗Afterword‘ written for the play Kanyadaan
(1983) in the following words:
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I have written about my own experiences and about what I have seen in

others around me. I have been true to all this and have not cheated my

generation. I did not attempt to simplify matters and issues for the

audience when presenting my plays, though that would have been easier

occupation …. My plays … contain my perceptions of society and its

value and I cannot write what I do not perceive (71).

―Tendulkar as an outstanding playwright had imparted a new life to

Marathi theatre‖ (The world is his stage 2004). The content of his story lines was
courageous and he handled them with great intelligence. With difference in his
vision as an author he was far ahead of his time. The subjects and issues that he
handled forty years back are relevant even today and they show his vision for
future in the literary world. In 1955 a large number of audiences were shaken by
his plays. Tendulkar expresses his contemplation in Shri Ram Memorial Lecturer
in the The Play is the Thing in these words:

I always feel that this first and repeated experience of the mystique of the

theatre has something to do with my being drawn to the theatre (13).

At the outset his serene contemplations reflected in dialogues and plot of

the play, thus his plays were bitterly rejected by the audience. He faced public
opposition at the beginning of his career for his plays, but ironically it brought
him international glory later. His views on facing this opposition revealed his
thought processes. His desire rested on his simple need to write the way he
wanted. His primary need was writing. The prime theme of each play determined
the societal condition that to be re-examined. He diligently worked towards
presenting human feelings through his works. With his turbulent ideology and
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principles, he not only broke the rigid walls of dramatics, but also gave a new
dimension to drama – staging, script, dialogues, backstage etc.

The use of the words in his plays is a unique subject to study. His story
line deals with extremely simple and clear use of words. His words create the
expected change and leave a deep impact. The selection of words used by him is
perfect. His screenplays and plays are equally readable and viewable. It leaves
people struck by his command over the medium while reading. The direction in
his plays written in detail in parenthesis against each scene. They do not require
director. Such directions can‘t be separated from the story as it helps in the
smooth writing of story. As such he gave a new concept of story writing,
presentation of plays and screenplays due to his multifaceted personality.

He was a renowned writer in line with contemporary writers of drama in

Indian English Writings such as - Girish Karnad, Habib Tanvir, and Badal Sircar.
These writers gave a new content and form to Indian theatre. They wrote about
contemporary issues and themes in an artistic way. Tendulkar never accepted the
traditional set up and always desired for something challenging and new.

His indepth reflection for the current dominating issues and the use of his
experimental techniques has made all his plays fantastic and unique. Here it is apt
to quote that: ―Tendulkar's plays are very tightly constructed and display
tremendous control over dramatic structure‖ (www.expressindia.com).

His plays were totally opposed to his contemplative personal character and
personality. The common theme of his writings was violence and it was the only
subject for his study. He was of different opinion and he feels that violence is
basic natural instinct in human beings. Different forms of violence are seen in all
his stories. Though his thematic concerns were totally different and exhibit
pessimistic views but he was full of optimistic thinking. He was of dual nature
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and used to say that whatever he experienced and observed, he expressed through
his writings. Writing was his only weapon to explore more about human nature
and predicament.

He was a social activist and was able to perceive the mind of people in
society. He took active participation in social movements like the ―Narmada
Bachao Andolan (a movement to save the displaced people owing to the Narmada
Dam Project) and cultural movements like Granthali, movements that expressed
freedom of thought, experimentations in dramatics, etc‖ (www.manase.org).

Tendulkar's contribution in dramas and theatrical activities in Marathi

were widely recognised. ―He was honoured with the Maharashtra State
Government Award (1956, 1969, 1973), the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
(1971) and the Filmfare Award for the best screenplay for 'Akrosh' in 1980, and
―
for 'Ardhya-Satya' in 1983‖ (The Hindu 2001). His lifetime achievement in the
literary and performing arts was recognized by the Government of India's
‗Padmabhushan Award‘ (1984), the Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar (1990), The
Janasthan Award (1991), the Kalidas Samman (1992), The Pandit Mahadev
Shastri Joshi Award (1999) and the Dinanath Mangeshkar Award (1998). Among
his other honours are a Nehru Fellowship (1973-74), an Honourary Doctorate
from the Ravindra Bharti University, Calcutta (1992), and a Lifetime Fellowship
from the National Academy of the performing Arts, New Delhi (1998)‖
(Banerjee 7).

Tendulkar won the National Film Award for the Best Screenplay in 1977
for his Shyam Benegal's movie, Manthan (1976). He has written screenplays for
many significant art movies, such as Nishant, Akrosh, and Ardh Satya. Tendulkar
received many awards during his career. In 1970, he won both Sangeet Natak
Akademy Award and Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay Award. He won Filmfare Best
Screenplay Award for Aakrosh and Filmfare Best Story Award for Aakrosh 1981.
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He was also awarded with Filmfare Best Screenplay Award for Ardh Satya
in1983. Tendulkar received Padma Bhushan in1984 and Saraswati Samman in
1993. He was also honoured with Sangeet Natak Academy Fellowship (1998),
Kalidas Samman (1999), Katha Chudamani Award (2001) and The Little
Magazine Salam Award (2006).

The play Ghashiram Kotwal was written and staged in 1972. It acclaimed
international reputation. The play was stamped as Anti-Brahmin and was bitterly
criticized by the society. The condition became so turbulent that he had to seek
protection from police. His play Kanyadaan also faced same humiliation as it was
a criticism on brahmanical social order against dalits. But still he was awarded the
Saraswati Samman for this play. ―While speaking at the awards ceremony, he
revealed in the ‗Afterword‘ written for the play Kanyadaan (1983) “that once he
had a slipper hurled at him for this play‖ (71). Thus he received both- awards and
honours as well as curses and abuses for his plays. Arundhati Banerjee aptly
comments, that ―Tendulkar is both venerated as well as controversial figure in the
country`s theatre scene‖ (Banerjee 7).

Tendulkar through his writings has explored the complexities of human

mind in all the ways predicting the anger and frustration of young generation. The
men-women have been presented in terms of violence & sensuality. He writes in
Preface to Raatra Ani Itar Ekankika:

Recently, my name has been repeatedly counted amongst the followers of

the new drama sect. I have felt no great urge thus, far to determine which

sect I belong to, nor do I expect to feel the need to do so in the future. I

have written on any theme that has occupied my mind over time,

stubbornly insisting that I write on in which ever form I thought best…It is

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wrong to support that everything different from the establishment is bad,

childish and irrelevant. It is equally wrong to think that only which is

different is good, true or valuable. Personally, despite being counted

amongst the new dramatist, I love to lose myself in the best of Deval,

Gadkari, Khadikar and Warerkar…(197).

Vijay Tendulkar, talks about his characters in an interview with Indian

Express on 27 March 1983 in these words:

….. A violent goonda may be equally noble at heart, a smuggler extremely

God-fearing and religious, a popular chief minister may be a sex- maniac,

and affectionate loving father may be corrupt as a public servant, a

brilliant poet may be a rank opportunist. ‗Good‘ is invariably entangled

with ‗bad‘….(5)

Violence, physical or psychological can be described as consciously

hurting someone at a very sensitive level. It is something which has to be accepted
as a matter of fact. His works analyzes the relationship between power and
violence, he observes that violence is:

. . . not as something that exists in isolation, but as a part of the human

milieu, human behaviour, human mind. It has become an obsession. At a

very sensitive level, violence can be defined as consciously hurting

someone, whether it is physical violence or psychological

violence…..Violence is something which has to be accepted as fact. It‘s no

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use describing it as good or bad. Projection of it can be good or bad. And

violence, when turned into something else, can certainly be defined as

vitality, which can be very useful, very constructive. So it depends on how

you utilize it (Wadikar 90).

Tendulkar is a psychologically a curious author, for whom violence is a

part of the human behavior and human mind. He says in an interview with Naik:

Unlike the communists I don‘t think violence can be eliminated in a

classless society, or for that matter, in any society. The spirit of aggression

is something that human being is born with. Not that it is bad. Without

violence man might have turned into a vegetable (157).

He delves deep into the realities of life in contemporary social milieu.

Tendulkar as a writer and a playwright states in his Collected Plays in
Translations: ―My inner personality as a writer underwent a natural change to suit
the role, to make it look convincing and effective. My writing changed as my
roles changed‖(9). Autobiographically, he becomes mature in showing silenced
violence. He attacks on the issues of marriage, exposes hypocrtic selfish nature of
the success-oriented modern youths, and presents the vices in the field of
journalism in the play Kamala. The triangular man-woman relationship of Sarita-
Jaisingh-Kamala is the theme of the play. Jaisingh Jadhav is the protagonist of the
play. He fetches Kamala from a woman-trafficking auction place and presents her
at the press conference. His main objective is to achieve name, fame, and position
and not to expose the inhuman flesh market. He considers Kamala as a marketable
commodity that can bring him reputation in his career and professional. It is apt to
quote here M. Sarat Babu‘s comment:
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Tendulkar perceives the realities of the human society without any

preconceived notions, reacts to them as a sensitive and sensible human

being and writes about them in his plays as a responsible writer (Babu 25).

Tendulkar holds a unique place n the history of Marathi Drama.

Chandrashekhar Barve opines: ―Tendulkar pioneered and guided the experimental
theatre movement in Marathi‖ (Taraporwala and Barve 9). Experimental theatre is
also known as avant-garde theatre. It began in Western theatre in the late
nineteenth century. The technique dominted the ways of writing and producing
plays. The term had a paradigm shift over time, as the mainstream theatre world
adopted many forms that were once considered radical. Tendulkar experimented
with all aspects of drama and he adopted the model of naturalistic drama and was
deeply concerned with the realistic human condition. He perceived everything
with his own naked eyes. He was a thinker and this thinking preceded all his
creation. He wrote that ―I think a lot before I write and from my point of view,
every word has its importance‖ (Pandey 214).

His collection of plays includes a number of translations of American

plays especially in Marathi language. He spent one full year to produce the
Marathi translation of Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams as
Vasanachakra. His plays are the representation of the themes of sex and violence.
They were remarkably associated with the similar concern with sex and violence
perceived in Williams‘s plays. There has been a complex literary relationship
between Tendulkar and Williams. This relationship can be observed as a literary
interface between Vijay Tendulkar and Tennessee Williams. They shared the
common spaces in terms of literary tradition. There is a literary interface of
Marathi theatre and American theatre in both Vijay Tendulkar and Tennessee
Williams‘s literary works.
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Tendulkar has portrayed violence in large ways as endorsed by Williams

in his plays too. Tendulkar‘s plays, Ghashiram Kotwal, Vultures, Kanyadaan,
Sakharam Binder etc. symbolizes the elements of physical violence in the same
manner such offensiveness and antagonism has been portrayed in Camino Real,
Gnadiges Fraulien, Sweet Bird of Youth and Orpheus Descending. Debauchery
and bloodshed on the stage are seen in both Williams‘s Gnadiges Fraulien, and
Tendulkar‘s Vultures. Williams‘s Streetcar named Desire and The Night of
Iguana represents violence which resembles the plays like Ghashiram Kotwal,
Sakharam Binder.

Both the dramatists, Vijay Tendulkar and Tennessee Williams offer

unchangeable interpretations of the world‘s inherent cruelty. Like Artaud, they
attack by means of cruelty and through shocking representation of violence. This
idiom of cruelty operated through shock tactics that assaulted the eye and the ear.
Their plays manifest a synthesis of the theatrical impulses of Artaud with the
crudest and subtlest forms of violence.

The complex social factors like poverty and inequality can have
favourable or adverse effects on different classes of society. Generally he talks
about the people from the middle strata who are the greatest sufferers. Gender,
class and the patterns of the class division drew the attention of Tendulkar. He
wrote about women who are infringed and are exploited emotionally, socially, and
physically. Women play a central role in his plays and he focused on the
hypocritical double standard of the civilized urban middle class society. In this
connection, Smita Paul comments in her book Theatre of Power:

The women characters in Tendulkar‘s theatre undergo a series of

sufferings and tortures as the victims of the hegemonic power-structure. In

the male- dominated theatre-world they are constantly being ‗other-ed‘. In

Silence! The focal point of interest lies is the struggle between women like
 18

Benare and her antagonists headed by the orthodox Kashikar and his

associates (Paul 34).

His female characters in the plays Sakharam Binder, Ghashiram Kotwal,

Kamala, Kanyadaan, Vultures and Silence! The Court Is In Session are mainly
from the lower and middle classes. These women bring a broad range of emotions
and generate sentimental feelings into the plays. Arundhati Bannerjee, in this
context, comments as follows:

The subject of his plays ranges from the unbelievably gullible to the

clever, from the malleable to the stubborn, from the conservative to the

rebellious, from the self-sacrificing to the grasping (Banerjee 10).

He successfully gives the readers a clear perception about the lives of his
characters. He portrays the socially deprived women characters, who are so close
to the real life. His strengths are evident and he depicts his central character with
tenderness. He is one of the most creative Indian play wrights and with his
creative thoughts he has enriched the Indian drama and theatre by picturising the
varied problems of native life in Maharashtra.

During early years of his age, India was under colonial rule and Tendulkar
sensitively incorporated structured device like realism in the narrative plot of his
dramas. ―Realism is used by literary critics in two chief ways: (1) to identify a
literary movement of the nineteenth century; and (2) to designate a recurrent
mode, in various eras, of representing human life and experience in literature,
which was especially exemplified by the writers of this historical movement‖
(Abrams 152-154). The main reason for our attraction for him is his uniqueness.
His characters exhibit fundamental, orthodox Indian society. Throwing more light
on the poor state of established traditional values in India, Tendulkar shares his
 19

experience with Gowri Ramnarayan on February 8, 1998 in the following given

words:

Now as I watch life I get restless, upset, even murderous, when I see the

change that have come. I feel agitated and helpless because I can do

nothing except watch sometimes I want to walk out….. I can‘t take it

anymore. I asked myself, whether our playwrights actors and audiences

are aware of the serious, complex changes that are going to affect our fat

in a big way? Because, unless we are deeply concerned with life, what we

write or stage or film, whether they are seen, read or discussed, don‘t

really matter…… I continue to watch film and plays but they don‘t move

me anymore (Ramnarayan 12-17).

These lines show that all his plays sharply focus and illuminate the social
upheavals. Through his writings he attacks on the social hypocrisies.
Thematically, his plays have ranged from isolated life of the modern individual to
contemporary politics. He starts from social-individual tensions and ends at
depicting the complexities of human character. He begins with the exploration of
man-woman relationship and ends with reinterpretations of historical episodes.

The themes of sexual norms, gender relation, and institution of marriage

and issues of conventional morality have been spotlighted in his plays. Individual
concern was the main theme in his works. Tendulkar himself clears it when he
tells Wadikar and L.S. Deshpande in an interview that: ―gender discrimination
plays no role here. What counts here is person or whatever happens to him/her‖
(152). In Silence the Court is in Session he has combined social criticism with the
tragedy of an individual, victimized by society.
 20

Tendulkar‘s plays deal with entanglement of human relationships. Each of

his play contains a distinct character and message. The play Kanyadaan deals with
a sensitive, social and political issue of inter-caste marriage that occurs between a
bourgeoisie class and a proletariat class, besides the lexes of gender-difference.
Dalits have been suffering for a lot many years in the hands of the aristocratic and
noble-born people of the society. Tendulkar in this play presents the suffering of a
woman belonging to upper class and her family in the hands of a Dalit educated
young man. It has the background of the twentieth century history of the struggle
over the practice of untouchability in the nation as a whole. The institution of
marriage is unique in the caste based society of India. It is apt to quote his words
here:

I have been writing about life around me, who I fill the need to say or to

something, I do it, otherwise I will not be able sleep (www.thehindu.com).

Tendulkar through his writings has exposed the theme of man's isolated
existence. There is a streak of naturalism and humanism in all his plays. All this
convey a social message. He wanted to make society a better place to live in
through his contribution in writing. Tendulkar's central concern is the relationship
between individual and society. He answers the question of his honest perception
of society in an interview:

I personally don‘t bother about people who haven‘t seen life. They close

their eyes at the sight of suffering as if it does not exist. The fact is that life

is dark and cruel, it‘s just that you don‘t care for the truth (Trivedi 2).

In his 1972 play Sakharam Binder Tendulkar deals with the aspect of the
domination of the male gender. ―The main character, Sakharam, is man devoid of
ethics and morality‖ (Theater Review). He professes not to believe in ‗outdated‘
 21

social codes and traditional wives, and uses them for his sexual gratification while
remaining unaware to the moral and emotional significance of his exploits. Thus
the play Sakharam Binder treats varied aspects of sex and harshness. Tendulkar in
an interview with The Indian Express on March 27, 1983 says:

Even in the plays of Sakharam Binder and The Vultures, the theme is not

harshness. Harshness comes as a way of life - a natural way of life if you

consider the background of the characters. It is there as a part of

functioning of a character (Qtd. in Manchi Sarat Babu).

Paradoxically, some of the women whom Sakharam has enslaved are

attracted by his arguments. Tendulkar draws a pattern of very complicated
interrelationships between his characters. It created sensation in the theater world
of Maharashtra. The aspects of burning naturalism were the reasons behind such a
reaction against Sakharam Binder.

His primary compulsion is and has always been humanistic. His concerns
are survival, the morals of life and the social position of women. Vijay Tendulkar
has powerfully connected the episodes of the contemporary socio-political
situations in his plays. He has expressed it by saying:

As an Individual or rather as a social being, I feel deeply involved in the

existing state of my society (because I am affected by it though not

immediately in some cases or not as much as some others are) and in my

way brood over it. Once in a way I even do something to relieve myself of

the tension and anxiety and agitation produced by this brooding. I

participated in a protest meeting or dharma or a fast or morcha or a

 22

satyagragh, I align myself with some civil liberty organization… As a

writer, I find myself persistently inquisitive, non conformist, ruthless, cold

and brutal as compared to the other committed and human… As a social

being, I am against all exploitation and I passionately feel that all

exploitation must end… As a writer, I feel fascinated by the violent

exploiter and exploited relationship and obsessively delve deep into it

instead of taking a position against it. That takes me to a point where I feel

that the relationship is external fact of life however cruel, will never end.

Not that, I relish this thought while it grips me but I cannot shake it off

(Trivedi 1).

The play The Vultures displays the unmitigated violence arising from
selfishness, greed, and sinfulness. It was produced in 1970 and published in 1971.
There was a great storm in the society around when it was first performed on the
stage. It caused sensation as regards sex and violence in the conservative section
of Maharashtrian society. It led the Maharashtrian people stunned as the vulgar
reality of their lives presented through the sexual relations and the scenes of
violence in the play. As a result Girish Karnad says: ―The staging of Gidhade
could be compared with the blasting of bomb‖ (Tandon 158). Since the play was
bitterly criticized by the theatre-going public, it was obscene and suspended for
the time being for the public performances. It depicts violence, greed, selfishness,
sensuality, and sheer wickedness inherent in man‘s life and this aspect is easily
seen in the title itself that the subject-matter of the play was unpleasant. It was
translated in fourteen Indian languages and also awarded with Kamala Devi
Chattopadhyay award.
 23

Tendulkar has exposed the disillusions of bourgeois society which is

trapped between socio-cultural political ambitions and common man‘s mundane
life. Subsequently middle-class has been the subject of dramatic significance for
playwrights to evaluate their morality or their hollowness. Secondly middle-class
cannot free itself from their victimization because of being a play-tool of social-
cultural hegemony. The writer like Tendulkar uses satire to explore the world of
dirty politics inside out. Political notions in his plays symbolise wasteland,
hollowness and hypocrisy inherent in the accepted social value and norms.

The playwright not merely allegorizes the political event but also satirizes
the cultural intolerance and deprivation, which results in social violence.
Moreover social conditions paradoxically signify political violence that aims to
create a terror so that there may always be an acceptance to terror. Political
violence then coordinates with psychological suppression resulting in social
disparity and self-centeredness. Tendulkar has taken note of these prevailing
norms as a journalist that autobiographically influences his plays. For example,
the play Ghashiram Kotwal and Silence the Court is in Session are a good
example of satire on malignant society that inflicts trauma upon the sections of
people with weaker instincts. Once in an interview with scholarly Indian writers
published in New World Literature Series, the following conversations between
the playwright and the interviewer happened. It relates to the author‘s view point
in this way:

INTERVIEWER. This play is a caustic satire on the social as well

as justice….The mental agony suffered by the girl throughout

the play is in no way less than the legal punishment. Is that all

you wished to convey or something more?

 24

INTERVIEWEE. This is exactly what I had in mind. If I say

anything else now, that will be an after-thought. An undaunted

girl of Benare‘s make-up could have, besides defending herself,

made a counter-attack , tearing to pieces the dos and don‘ts of

the selfish society. Had I shown her aggressive that would have

been attitude, not hers? Otherwise also the playwright should

only suggest leaving the rest to the viewers (Tendulkar 280).

Tendulkar depicts Benare as ―a modern woman‖ (Dass 11). Being

different from others, she is easily isolated and is the victim of a cruel game
cunningly planned by her co-actors. Her personal life is exposed and publicly
dissected. Interestingly, the accusation is brought against her at the beginning of
the trail and it is that of infanticide. Contemporary Indian society with its roots
grounded firmly does not allow the birth of a child out of wedlock. Miss Benare
committed a sin of adultery and a crime by going against the Indian marriage rules
and by aborting the pregnancy. The hypocrisy and double standards of our society
are the common features of attitude of the authorities.

The works of Vijay Tendulkar represents a powerful and resurgent Indian

drama. This playwright with his innovative ideas of contemporary relevance has
given new directions to Indian theatre. He believes that theatre is a serious
medium of presentation and not like a comic entertainment source. He believes
that:

If nothing is happening through theatre, then there is something wrong

with the medium itself. The lure of television cannot be faulted for the
 25

decline of theatre. I do not think that the ill effects of one medium can be

trust on another medium (www.thehindu.com).

One of the things which profoundly unite him is his mutually integral
treatment of the issues of contemporary Indian subjectivity. It is based on the
various axes of gender, sexuality, history, politics, tradition, class and socio-
cultural change. Indian drama in recent years has attracted number of critical
thinkers for in-depth critical analysis. They have done a lot of critical work on
Indian drama in translation as well. Tendulkar summed up his life-long
involvement, while delivering the prestigious Shri Ram Memorial Lecture for
Performing Arts:

What I like about those years is that they made me grow as a human being.

And theater which was my major concern has contributed to this in a big

way. It helped to analyze life--my own and lives of others. It led me to

make newer and newer discoveries in the vast realm of the human mind

that still defies all available theories and logic. It's like an ever-intriguing

puzzle or a jungle that you can always enter but has no way out. Not that I

am any wiser than the fool I was when I entered the theater. I still act like

a fool and think like one; but there is a difference. Now I am aware of

what I am doing while I do it. I am my own audience and the critic, if one

may use the language of the theater. Now I enjoy my foolishness and

laugh at it; and of course the foolishness of others too, at times (Tendulkar

36).
 26

A considerable critical work exists on Vijay Tendulkar. His plays have

been critically analysed through the use of advanced literary techniques and tools.
Tendulkar is an exceptional personality who began writing as a means of earning
his livelihood and ended up as a playwright of international stature. He never ran
after name, fame and money. This is supported by Tendulkar‘s own statement in
his View from the Balcony:

My work has come from within… an outcome of my observation of the

world in which I live (Tendulkar 14).

Criticism and failure of his works could not deter him from writing what
he felt to be right. Tendulkar‘s dramas are still relevant in twenty-first century due
to his deep sensibility and plausibility in his writings. His plays basically feature
the prevalent subjects like— political violence which is an ever existing fact in
terms of political ideology, cultural activism, and socio-cultural affairs related to
women that is body politics in political corporation, human trafficking and issues
of man-woman relationship in advanced industrialized technical world.
 27

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 30

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 32

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