Dr Surbhi Saraswat

Mahesh Dattani’s The Big Fat City (2014) is a representative work of contemporary Indian English Drama that explores the changing mindscape due to urban conditions. This paper is an attempt to evaluate the performance and performativity of the urban inhabitants and their consequential transformation. The paper explores the play at the cross-section of performance studies and urban theory to highlight the influence of ever evolving and fast paced life of city on its inmates with high aspirations, who gradually get stuck in the labyrinthine life with its compulsions. City as a social force works as an organic entity and presents an ambivalent vision of human relationship. Whenever characters fail in realising the pulse beat of time and the changing social system, they meet their predicament that ends in miseries and sufferings. Keywords: Urban Materiality, City Space, Performance Studies, Contemporary Indian English Drama, Mindscape

Mahesh Dattani's play Thirty Days in September highlights the issue of child sexual abuse and its post traumatic effect on female body and psyche. This paper highlights the issue of incest and the consequent trauma due to child sexual abuse. The paper analyse the play as a case study to understand the psychological perspective of trauma due to sexual abuse. Drama reflects life and this play brings such serious topic in the form of stage performance in itself is commendable. The play also questions and highlights the stigma that is associated with victim instead of perpetrator. This paper evaluates all these issues to discuss the play as Trauma Narrative.

The Bengali short story Stanadayini or 'Breast Giver' by Maha Swetadevi and the Malayalam short story Maratthottil or 'The Wooden Cradle' by Lalithambika Antherjanam outline and explore women's identity as a mother and how the romanticism of motherhood for some woman is nothing more than a successful ploy to misuse and exploit her. Both Jashoda and Nangelipennu spend their lives rearing the children of their masters only to die after being rejected by the families. The stories acts as a window to the caste, class, gender, sex, culture, identity, body, and power that plays its role in the society. The status of both the women as care giver or mother collapses as soon as her material worth to the family fades. They swiftly revert to a normal woman who, as a result of her illness, becomes a liability. This research paper attempts to explore the vulnerability of a lower class/caste women by the hands of the upper class/caste custodians, thus making them vulnerable to exploitation and thereby negating her identity.

This research paper highlights the need of Dalit feminist writings as these writings provide a platform to the marginalized women of this community. Referring to Bama's two major works we can easily trace the atrocities that dalit women undergo in professional and personal sphere. The best part about both these works is that it ends with self realization that empowers the author and in turn the readers for the better tomorrow. Noida It is not so much that subaltern women did not speak, but rather that others did not know how to listen, how to enter into a transaction between speaker and listener. The subaltern cannot because their words cannot be properly interpreted. Hence, the silence of the female as subaltern is the result of failure of interpretation and not a failure of articulation. (195) Gayatri Spivak's argument that the voice of the subalterns is not heard properly clearly highlights the need of dalit feminist writings. Dalit women writing protests the established ...

Wabi-Sabi is a traditional Japanese aesthetics that focuses on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The concept is taken from the Buddhist teaching of the impermanence, suffering and emptiness. Chitra Banerjee Devakaruni in her story “Meeting Mrinal” focuses on this aesthetics by presenting sentiments of both dislocation and solitude. The author presents the liminal space of diasporic Indian woman by highlighting the plight of Indian women in an unhappy marriage. The idea of perfectly imperfect drifts them to affirm rebellion against social traditions even when after pain and bitterness in life.

Mohan Rakesh’s Halfway House ( Aadhe-adhure ) is one of the most significant plays about urban middle class family and poignantly projects the transition of values in the changing urban scenario in India.  It is an epoch making work on the changing human relations and in particular the changing dynamics in the man woman relationship. Its central character, Savitri, a working woman and mother of three, is portrayed initially with sympathy but ends as a figure more threatening than threatened, damned to an impossible situation with a hopeless husband. The play does not stand comfortably on any univocal guiding perception of meaning and direction. It is built on shifting ground, eclectically appropriating and deploying elements and concerns of realistic, naturalistic and absurd or, more specifically, existentialist, traditions, creating in the process dissension, fragmentation and slipperiness at the very core of its meaning. This paper highlights the changing roles of women in the mod...

A great story teller Chitra Banerjee in her latest novel portrayed three generations and their strong bond even after getting apart from each other. This research paper focuses on the use of myth and gender as entwined by the author in the novel. The novel unfolds the journey of women to womanhood. The novel is a discourse of identity and independence as strived and achieved by all the characters.

This paper looks at the meaning of the word queer and develops an understanding that is associated with the link that it has with the theory. It also brings to a fore a different equation of gender and sex that is developed by the theorists in the recent past. Though Queer theory is comparatively new in the sphere of literary criticism still it brings a lot of speculations and contestation of ideas along with its theoretical framework. This paper is intended to bring the basics of this theory by refereeing to the key theorists who have evolved it as a subject of academia.

Mahesh Dattani's play Thirty Days in September highlights the issue of child sexual abuse and its post traumatic effect on female body and psyche. This paper highlights the issue of incest and the consequent trauma due to child sexual abuse. The paper analyse the play as a case study to understand the psychological perspective of trauma due to sexual abuse. Drama reflects life and this play brings such serious topic in the form of stage performance in itself is commendable. The play also questions and highlights the stigma that is associated with victim instead of perpetrator. This paper evaluates all these issues to discuss the play as Trauma Narrative.

Abstract Mohan Rakesh’s Halfway House (Aadhe-adhure) is one of the most significant plays about urban middle class family and poignantly projects the transition of values in the changing urban scenario in India. It is an epoch making work on the changing human relations and in particular the changing dynamics in the man woman relationship. Its central character, Savitri, a working woman and mother of three, is portrayed initially with sympathy but ends as a figure more threatening than threatened, damned to an impossible situation with a hopeless husband. The play does not stand comfortably on any univocal guiding perception of meaning and direction. It is built on shifting ground, eclectically appropriating and deploying elements and concerns of realistic, naturalistic and absurd or, more specifically, existentialist, traditions, creating in the process dissension, fragmentation and slipperiness at the very core of its meaning. This paper highlights the changing roles of women in the modern urban setup and the changing dynamics of family as projects in the play. It ponders on the materialistic compulsions of the modern man; resulting in the disintegration of human relations, the loneliness of man, the sense of suffocation and disgust, boredom and the search for quick and easy escape routes. The desire to look for “completeness” may look like Everyman’s essential and irresolvable problem. Though we find all characters in this play are incomplete (in one or the other way) caught in their predicaments but the women are more incomplete than men. Key Words: Realistic, Naturalistic, Absurd, Existentialism

The proposed paper discusses Manjula Padmanabhan's play Harvest (1997). Though cast is in a futuristic mould, the play highlights the postmodern reality of emerging technologies and its influence on our day to day life. The play posits the heinous self-inflicted suffering of people who require money to survive in the demanding environment of a modern city. It projects the economic desperation for which the marginalized poor sell their organs in a commercial process which benefits the rich and influential. As a piece of 'science fiction', the play uses the strategy of 'futurization' to speak of present day realities in an oblique fashion. It depicts the condition of helpless people of a third world country. There is a broader social critique in which Harvest projects, with mingled admiration and horror, the metropolitan aspirations and the increasing craze for electronic gadgets. The futuristic city space delineates urban India's new life style-an aimless striving for 'equipment', addiction to TV and a complete dependence on modern props. Apart from these issues, Padmanabhan also addresses the problems created by over population in urban spaces as she refers to organ trade, prison-like existence, partiality of parents towards employed children, and the pathetic condition of women. The play Harvest not only depicts the postcolonial scenario but also articulates the neo-colonisation process. It focuses on the power of foreign purchasers over third world organ donors, showing a 'cannibalistic' equation in sociological terms. Through this the playwright voices the subaltern existence of the city dwellers who suffer both the poverty and exploitation for survival. The city itself is an entity in this game. It fascinates in the beginning but gradually entraps the individual in its vicious coils.

This paper highlights the important prose work of Saadat Hasan Manto a Letters to Uncle Sam which are well written documents on the Manto's foreign policy and understanding of world politics way ahead of his time. Though not many paid attention to what he has mentioned in these letters as he is known for his stories but these letter are extremely important to understand the political views and ideas of this great author.

Lights Out protests against physical vulnerability of women. Like her other plays Manjula Padmanaban has confronted with the realistic issues that disturbs her as an individual. Though the time has changed the globalized world is of no aid to women of any class. The playwright through this play focuses on an urgent need to address this treatment and vulnerability quotient in women. The play is a perfect example of subjugation and subordination of woman in walks of life.

A great story teller Chitra Banerjee in her latest novel portrayed three generations and their strong bond even after getting apart from each other. This research paper focuses on the use of myth and gender as entwined by the author in the novel. The novel unfolds the journey of women to womanhood. The novel is a discourse of identity and independence as strived and achieved by all the characters.

Dina Mehta's Getting Away with Murder is a play where the female bodies become the site of contestation. Dina Mehta uses Bakhtin's theory of polyphony to voice out the predicament of Indian women as all the three women characters have their independent voice but the only thing that holds them together is their helplessness. The idea of victimization hints towards the dichotomy of oppressed and oppressor that is prevalent in the Indian scenes where most of the time women are victims of patriarchy. They suffer physically, psychologically, sexually and economically as they are sometimes deprived of fundamental rights and sometimes deprived of social security, dignity and even self-worth. The play is about the resurrection of three friends, Mallika, Sonali and Raziya, out of their horrendous private hells as they deal with the severe issues of child sexual abuse, gender discrimination, infidelity and insecure relationships. The paper brings to the fore the voices of three women characters who freed themselves from the vicious circle of shame, guilt and humiliation to fight back as a stronger personas.

This research paper highlights the need of Dalit feminist writings as these writings provide a platform to the marginalized women of this community. Referring to Bama’s two major works we can easily trace the atrocities that dalit women undergo in professional and personal sphere. The best part about both these works is that it ends with self realization
that empowers the author and in turn the readers for the better tomorrow.

Feminism is not a clichéd term. Though with so many writings on women issues we find this topic very redundant but as a reader we forget the importance of subject, subjectivity and agency. This is where the idea of this paper rests. By analyzing these paradigms this paper will unfold the gender matrix structured by Rama Mehta in her novel Inside the Haveli. The novel is not only a voice a Geeta but it voices the plight of every woman caught in the maze of social dichotomy.

Ismat Chugtai is one of the most accomplished Indian writers. She is known for her
progressive, feminist, bold writing style. Chugtai’s short stories revolve around the odds
faced by women. In most of her works she raises a serious concern towards the unjust
treatment of women. The phrase personal is political is a clear hint towards the social
concerns she explored in her writing. Chugtai’s writing reflects her ideology of female body
as a site of women’s oppression and that every aspect of female identity and struggle is
controlled by female sexuality. She sensitively highlights the politics of the private sphere
such as home marriage and sexuality apart from social evils like ignorance, illiteracy,
orthodoxy and abuse of women.

Mohan Rakesh’s Halfway House (Aadhe-adhure) is one of the most significant plays about urban middle class family and poignantly projects the transition of values in the changing urban scenario in India.  It is an epoch making work on the changing human relations and in particular the changing dynamics in the man woman relationship. Its central character, Savitri, a working woman and mother of three, is portrayed initially with sympathy but ends as a figure more threatening than threatened, damned to an impossible situation with a hopeless husband. The play does not stand comfortably on any univocal guiding perception of meaning and direction. It is built on shifting ground, eclectically appropriating and deploying elements and concerns of realistic, naturalistic and absurd or, more specifically, existentialist, traditions, creating in the process dissension, fragmentation and slipperiness at the very core of its meaning.
This paper highlights the changing roles of women in the modern urban setup and the changing dynamics of family as projects in the play. It ponders on the materialistic compulsions of the modern man; resulting in the disintegration of human relations, the loneliness of man, the sense of suffocation and disgust, boredom and the search for quick and easy escape routes. The desire to look for “completeness” may look like Everyman’s essential and irresolvable problem. Though we find all characters in this play are incomplete (in one or the other way) caught in their predicaments but the women are more incomplete than men.
Key Words:  Realistic, Naturalistic, Absurd, Existentialism