When a king forgets his duty and gets involved in his desires, the consequence is nothing but regrets. A Hindi play Swapnavasavadatta showcased the fate of a tender love story of King Udayana and his wife Vasavadatta.
The play was staged here on Friday at Madhya Pradesh State Tribal Museum.
The play was performed under Abhinayan series of theatre performances.
Directed by Anagha Deshpande, the play was staged by the artists of Abhivayaktee, Panaji.
It is to be noted that Swapnavasavadatta is a sequel to Pratijnayougandharayana composed by the great Sanskrit poet, Mahakavi Bhasa.
It is a play of tender love, in both phases of union and separation and also speaks about the never ending conflict between duty and desire.
Bhasa, in his rich poignant style, brings forth the story of the King Udayana who is immersed in Vasavadatta’s love and other worldly pleasures like dance and music. Engrossed in this, he loses his interest in the kingdom discarding his priorities as a King.
The main theme of the drama is the sorrow of Udayana for his queen Vasavadatta, believed by him to have perished in a fire, which was actually a rumour spread by Yougandharayana, a minister of Udayana to compel the king to marry Padmavati, the daughter of the king of Magadha.
The king gets back on the path of righteousness and drowns in the affairs of the state and protects the kingdom. This is when the secret of Vasavadatta’s death is disclosed and the play ends on a happy note.
Anagha beautifully presented the story before the audience. The direction and the performance by the artists was a commendable blend of creativity on stage. The theatre lovers enjoyed the show whole heartedly.