Theatre of India is one of the most ancient forms of theatre and it features a detailed textual, sculptural, and dramatic effects which emerged in mid first millennium BC. Like in the areas of

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

and

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...

, the Indian theatre is also defined by the dramatic

performance A performance is an act of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Management science In the work place ...

based on the concept of '' Nritya'', which is a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

word for drama but encompasses dramatic narrative, virtuosic dance, and music. Historically, Indian theatre has exerted influence beyond its borders, reaching ancient China and other countries in the Far East. With the

Islamic conquests The early Muslim conquests or early Islamic conquests ( ar, الْفُتُوحَاتُ الإسْلَامِيَّة, ), also referred to as the Arab conquests, were initiated in the 7th century by Muhammad, the main Islamic prophet. He estab ...

that began in the 10th and 11th centuries, theatre was discouraged or forbidden entirely.Brandon (1997, 72) and Richmond (1998, 516). Later, in an attempt to re-assert indigenous values and ideas, village theatre was encouraged across the subcontinent, developing in a large number of regional languages from the 15th to the 19th centuries. Modern Indian theatre developed during the period of colonial rule under the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

, from the mid-19th century until the mid-20th. From the last half of the 19th century, theatres in India experienced a boost in numbers and practice. After Indian independence in 1947, theatres spread throughout

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

as one of the means of entertainment. As a diverse, multi-cultural nation, the theatre of India cannot be reduced to a single, homogenous trend. In contemporary India, the major competition with its theatre is that represented by growing television industries and the spread of films produced in the Indian film industry based in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

(formerly Bombay), known as "

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...

". Lack of finance is another major obstacle.

History of Indian theatre

Sanskrit theatre

History of the origin of Theatre in India is severely disputed. Early dating According to some scholars, Indian theatre emerged in the 15th century BC. Vedic text such as

Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts ('' śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only on ...

provides evidence of drama plays being enacted during Yagya ceremonies. The dialogues mentioned in the texts range from one person monologues to three person dialogues such as the dialogue between Indra, Indrani and Vrishakapi. The dialogues are not only religious in their context but also secular for instance one rigvedic monologue is about a gambler whose life is ruined because of it and has estranged his wife caves dating back to the 3rd century BC and Khandagiri caves from the 2nd century BC are the earliest examples of theatre architecture in India. Dating of Bhasa is controversial, it ranges from pre

Natyashastra The ''Nāṭya Śāstra'' (, ''Nāṭyaśāstra'') is a Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts. The text is attributed to sage Bharata Muni, and its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates var ...

date of the 5th century BC to the 2nd century AD, Bhasa according to some scholars preceded Natyashastra tradition.

Nandikeshvara Nandikeshvara ( sa, नन्दिकेश्वर) (5th century-4th century BC) was a major theatrologist of ancient India. He was the author of the . Influence on Bharata Nandikeshvara seems to have preceded Bharata, according to Rama ...

who wrote ''Abhinaya Darpana'' lit. The Mirror of Gesture''' which itself was based on the abridgement of a long treatise of 400 sholakas called Bharatarnava, according to some scholars seems to have preceded Bharata. The most concrete example of Nandikeshvara's teachings have survived thanks to Bhasa. Natyashastra, dated earliest to 200 BC, although mentions various teachers and call them acharya but doesn't name them, but it still ends with a reference to a lost treatise of dramatist Kohala. Late dating According to scholars who insist on late dating, Sanskrit theatre emerged in the 2nd century BCE and flourished between the 1st century CE and the 10th, which was a period of relative peace in the

history of India According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by ...

during which hundreds of plays were written. Despite its name, Sanskrit theatre was not exclusively in

Sanskrit language Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

. Other Indic languages collectively called as

Prakrit The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...

were also used in addition to Sanskrit.Richmond, Swann, and Zarrilli (1993, 21). The earliest-surviving fragments of Sanskrit drama date from the 1st century CE. The wealth of archeological evidence from earlier periods offers no indication of the existence of a tradition of theatre.Richmond (1998, 516). The ''

Vedas upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

'' (the earliest Indian literature, from between 1500 and 600 BCE) contain no hint of it; although a small number of hymns are composed in a form of

dialogue Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American and British English spelling differences, American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literature, literary and theatrical form that depicts suc ...

), the

ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...

s of the

Vedic period The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, betwe ...

do not appear to have developed into theatre. The '' Mahābhāṣya'' by Patañjali contains the earliest reference to what may have been the seeds of Sanskrit drama.Richmond (1998, 517). This treatise on

grammar In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraints, a field that includes doma ...

from 140 BCE provides a feasible date for the beginnings of theatre in India. However, although there are no surviving fragments of any drama prior to this date, it is possible that early Buddhist literature provides the earliest evidence for the existence of Indian theater. The

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

suttas Buddhist texts are those religious texts which belong to the Buddhist tradition. The earliest Buddhist texts were not committed to writing until some centuries after the death of Gautama Buddha. The oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts a ...

(ranging in date from the 5th to 3rd centuries BCE) refer to the existence of troupes of actors (led by a chief actor), who performed dramas on a stage. It is indicated that these dramas incorporated dance, but were listed as a distinct form of performance, alongside dancing, singing, and story recitations. The major source of evidence for Sanskrit theatre is '' A Treatise on Theatre'' (''Nātyaśāstra''), a compendium whose date of composition is uncertain (estimates range from 200 BCE to 200 CE) and whose authorship is attributed to

Bharata Muni Bharata Muni (Hindi: भरत मुनि) was an ancient sage who the musical treatise '' Natya Shastra'' is traditionally attributed to. The work covers ancient Indian dramaturgy and histrionics, especially Sanskrit theatre. Bharata is co ...

. The ''Treatise'' is the most complete work of dramaturgy in the ancient world. It addresses acting, dance, music, dramatic construction, architecture, costuming,

make-up Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect ...

props A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...

, the organisation of companies, the audience, competitions, and offers a

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

account of the origin of theatre. In doing so, it provides indications about the nature of actual theatrical practices. Sanskrit theatre was performed on sacred ground by priests who had been trained in the necessary skills (dance, music, and recitation) in a ereditary process Its aim was both to educate and to entertain. Characters in Sanskrit plays were important. They were broadly classified into three kinds which are Nayaka(hero), Nayika(heroine) and the Vidusaka(Clown). An appreciation for the stagecraft and classic Sanskrit drama was seen as an essential part of a sophisticated world view, by the end of the seventh century. Under the patronage of royal courts, performers belonged to professional companies that were directed by a stage manager (''sutradhara''), who may also have acted. This task was thought of as being analogous to that of a

puppeteer A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, called a puppet, to create the illusion that the puppet is alive. The puppet is often shaped like a human, animal, or legendary creature. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden fr ...

—the literal meaning of "''sutradhara''" is "holder of the strings or threads". The performers were trained rigorously in vocal and physical technique. There were no prohibitions against female performers; companies were all-male, all-female, and of mixed gender. Certain sentiments were considered inappropriate for men to enact, however, and were thought better suited to women. Some performers played characters their own age, while others played ages different from their own (whether younger or older). Of all the elements of theatre, the ''Treatise'' gives most attention to acting (''abhinaya''), which consists of two styles: realistic (''lokadharmi'') and conventional (''natyadharmi''), though the major focus is on the latter. Its drama is regarded as the highest achievement of

Sanskrit literature Sanskrit literature broadly comprises all literature in the Sanskrit language. This includes texts composed in the earliest attested descendant of the Proto-Indo-Aryan language known as Vedic Sanskrit, texts in Classical Sanskrit as well as ...

.Brandon (1981, xvii). It used

stock character A stock character, also known as a character archetype, is a fictional character in a work of art such as a novel, play, or a film whom audiences recognize from frequent recurrences in a particular literary tradition. There is a wide range of s ...

s, such as the hero (''nayaka''), heroine (''nayika''), or clown (''vidusaka''). Actors may have specialised in a particular type.

Kālidāsa Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and ...

is arguably considered to be

's greatest Sanskrit dramatist, writing in the ca. 4th century CE-ca. 5th century CE. Three famous romantic plays written by Kālidāsa are the ''

Mālavikāgnimitram The ''Mālavikāgnimitram'' (Sanskrit, meaning ''Mālavikā and Agnimitra'') is a Sanskrit play by Kālidāsa. Based on some events of the reign of Pushyamitra Shunga, it is his first play. ''Mālavikāgnimitram'' tells the story of the love of ...

'' (''Mālavikā and Agnimitra''), '' Vikramuurvashiiya'' (''Pertaining to Vikrama and Urvashi''), and ''

Abhijñānaśākuntala ''Abhijnanashakuntalam'' (Devanagari: अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम्, IAST: ''Abhijñānaśākuntalam''), also known as ''Shakuntala'', ''The Recognition of Shakuntala'', ''The Sign of Shakuntala'', and many other variant ...

'' (''The Recognition of Shakuntala''). The last was inspired by a story in the ''Mahabharata'' and is the most famous. It was the first to be translated into English and German. '' Śakuntalā'' (in English translation) influenced Goethe's ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...

'' (1808–1832). The next great Indian dramatist was Bhavabhuti (c. 7th century CE). He is said to have written the following three plays: ''Malati-Madhava'', ''Mahaviracharita'' and ''Uttar Ramacharita''. Among these three, the last two cover between them the entire epic of ''Ramayana''. The powerful Indian emperor

Harsha Harshavardhana ( IAST Harṣa-vardhana; c. 590–647 CE) was a Pushyabhuti emperor who ruled northern India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of Prabhakaravardhana who had defeated the Alchon Huna invaders, and the younger brother of Rajy ...

(606–648) is credited with having written three plays: the comedy ''

Ratnavali ''Ratnavali'' (Precious Garland) is a Sanskrit drama about a beautiful princess named Ratnavali, and a great king named Udayana. It is attributed to the Indian emperor Harsha (606–648). It is a Natika in four acts. One of the first textual ...

'', '' Priyadarsika'', and the

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

drama '' Nagananda''. According to some scholars the earliest form of classical theatre of India was the

Sanskrit theatre The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in ...

which came into existence after the development of Greek and

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

theatres in the west.Richmond, Swann, and Zarrilli (1993, 12). One theory describes this development as an offshoot of Alexander the Great's Indian conquest. The invading army staged Greek-style plays and Indians picked up the performance art. While some scholars argue that traditional Indian theatre predated it, there is a recognition that classical Greek theatre has helped transformed it. The Greek origin of Indian theatre has not received popular acceptance.

Theatre in medieval India

Mid twelfth century – eighteenth century India's artistic identity is deeply routed within its social, economical, cultural, and religious views. For this reason it is essential to understand Indian cultural practices as they relate directly to performers and performances of this time. Performances including dance, music, and text are an expression of devotion for the Indian culture, so when looking at 'theatre' of this time a broader definition must be ascribed to the word. Based on the understanding that performing arts are audience-oriented and must continuously adapt to the socio-cultural landscape of their patronage. Northern India managed to retain their cultural traditions in spite of the new Turko-Persian influences. The early thirteenth century marked this change for the Indian culture, where Sanskrit dramas and stage craft had been previously revered by the elites, it was now no longer relevant. This was due to the invading cultures that began to dominate and did not appreciate or understand, and since they did not understand the Sanskrit language it could no longer be held in such a high regard, and as a consequence many theatre artist suffered from neglect. The commonplace to find performers was in urban centers, because it was there they were able to find work to support themselves. Large temples where home to musical and theatrical shows. A Bharata Natyshatra also known as the śāstra was written to list costumes, gestures, positions of the body, and make up. It also lists plots that were weighed unsuitable and it also the most completed document. Most of Indian theatre had no scenery. There was usually a few props like a brass lamp. When the concept of "Theatrical Art" was introduced medieval India was narrating poems.

Bhakti ''Bhakti'' ( sa, भक्ति) literally means "attachment, participation, fondness for, homage, faith, love, devotion, worship, purity".See Monier-Williams, ''Sanskrit Dictionary'', 1899. It was originally used in Hinduism, referring to d ...

poetry became popular. During medieval India Bhavabhuti was a famous dramatist, he had three portent plays Malati-Madhava, Magviracharita and the Uttar Ramacharita.

Theatre in India under the British

Under British colonial rule, modern Indian theatre began when a theatre was started in

Belgachia Belgachia is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal. History The East India Company obtained from the Mughal emperor Farrukhsiyar, in 1717, the right to rent from 38 villages surrounding their ...

. One of the earliest plays composed and staged during this period was Buro Shalikher Ghaare Roa (1860) by

Michael Madhusudan Dutt Michael Madhusudan Dutt ((Bengali: মাইকেল মধুসূদন দত্ত); (25 January 1824 – 29 June 1873) was a Bengali poet and playwright. He is considered one of the pioneers of Bengali literature. Early life Dutt ...

, both in

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

. Around the same time,

Nil Darpan Nil may refer to: * nil (the number zero) Acronyms * NIL (programming language), an implementation of the Lisp programming language * Name, Image and Likeness, a set of rules in the American National Collegiate Athletic Association allowing col ...

(1858–59, first commercial production in 1872, by Girish Chandra Ghosh at the national theatre in

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, commer ...

) a Bengali play by

Dinabandhu Mitra Dinabandhu Mitra (1830 – 1 November 1873) was a Bengali writer and dramatist. He is notable for his play '' Nil Darpan'' (1860). Early life Mitra was born at Chowberia village in Gopalnagar P.S., North 24 Parganas and was the son of Kalachan ...

garnered both accolades and controversy for depicting the horror and tragedy of indigo cultivation in rural Bengal, and played a major role in the

indigo revolt The Indigo revolt (or ''Nil bidroha''; Bengali: নীল বিদ্রোহ) was a peasant movement and subsequent uprising of indigo farmers against the indigo planters, that arose in Bengal in 1859, and continued for over a year. The vill ...

. Rabindranath Tagore was a pioneering modern playwright who wrote plays noted for their exploration and questioning of nationalism, identity, spiritualism and material greed.Banham (1998, 1051). His plays are written in

and include ''Chitra'' (''Chitrangada'', 1892), ''The King of the Dark Chamber'' (''Raja'', 1910), ''

The Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional servi ...

'' (''Dakghar'', 1913), and ''Red Oleander'' (''Raktakarabi'', 1924). Kalyanam Raghuramaiah, a recipient of the

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama. It is the highest Indian recogni ...

, and the Padmashri, was known for the roles of

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

or Dushyantha, Bhavanisankar, Narada etc. in

Telugu theatre Telugu theatre is Indian theatre in the Telugu language, based in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Gurajada Apparao wrote the play, ''Kanyasulkam'' in 1892, which is often considered the greatest play in the Telugu language.20th Cen ...

. He performed those roles for about 60 years. He indulged in elaborate raga alapana, based on different

raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as ...

s while rendering padyams. One of the finest method actors, He had the ability to sing padyams and songs through whistle, by putting his finger in mouth and producing the

whistle A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a lar ...

or flute sound (meaning Eela in Telugu). He has acted in various dramas and gave more than 20,000 stage performances. He was called the "Nightingale of the Stage" by

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

Article in Eenadu The British believed that the Indian actors were mystical creatures. They believed they brought them luck and prosperity. The emergent modern Indian theater, which is also referred to as Native theater, features a theatrical approach that has been viewed as an intersection of Indian social space with Western theater formats and conventions. The resulting theatrical space is described to be existing at the material, symbolic, and discursive levels. To resist its use by Indians as an instrument of protest against colonial rule, the British Government imposed the Dramatic Performances Act in 1876.

Indian theatre after Independence (1947–1992)

Improvisation

Improvisational (also known as improv or impro) is a form of theatre in which the actors use

improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

al acting techniques to perform spontaneously. Improvisers typically use audience suggestions to guide the performance as they create dialogue, setting, and plot extemporaneously. Many improvisational actors also work as scripted actors and "improv" techniques are often taught in standard acting classes. The basic skills of listening, clarity, confidence, and performing instinctively and spontaneously are considered important skills for actors to develop. Improvisational Theatre in India is largely used for educational, interventional and entertainment purposes. The traces of Improvisational theatre in India dates back to the 1990s with the advent of

Forum theatre Forum theatre is a type of theatre created by Brazilian theatre director Augusto Boal. It is one of the techniques under the umbrella term of Theatre of the Oppressed (TO). This relates to the engagement of spectators influencing and engaging with ...

with Janasanskriti under the leadership of Sanjoy Ganguly. After that in 1999, a team from the US with Bev Hoskins and Mary Good introduced

Playback theatre Playback Theatre is an original form of improvisational theatre in which audience or group members tell stories from their lives and watch them enacted on the spot. History The first Playback Theatre company was founded in 1975 by Jonathan Fox and ...

to India. Thus Playback theatre and Forum theatre began to take its shape in the remotest parts of India, such as Karur, Chennai, West Bengal, as well as Bangalore too. Yours Truly Theatre, a Bangalore-based group, developed "complete the story", an indigenous format of improvisational theatre developed under the leadership of Ranji David and Nandini Rao in 2006. In 2009, they also developed another form of improvisational theatre called "mushyara theatre". In the late 1960s Badal Sircar introduced a new form of political theatre called the Third Theatre. Badal Sarkar's anti-establishment experimental theatre created a new genre of social enlightenment. He formed his first Third Theatre Group satabdi, in the year 1967. They used to perform Drama written by Badal Sircar in Anganmancha (theatre in the courtyard) in the Third Theatre form that break away from the tradition of One point view of the Proscenium and urged on the taking theatre to the people. Improvisational Theatre groups in India: * Yours Truly Theatre Improvisational Theatre forms practiced in India: *

Theatre of the Oppressed The Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) describes theatrical forms that the Brazilian theatre practitioner Augusto Boal first elaborated in the 1970s, initially in Brazil and later in Europe. Boal was influenced by the work of the educator and theor ...

Notable theatres in India in different Indian languages and regions

* Bengali theatre * Gujarati theatre * Hindi theatre * Marathi theatre *

Notable people

Ancient Indian playwrights

* Bhāsa * Bhavabhuti *

Kalidasa Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and t ...

Playwrights working under British rule

* Vishnudas Bhave * Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari' *

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (also Chattopadhayay) CIE (26 or 27 June 1838 – 8 April 1894) was an Indian novelist, poet, Essayist and journalist. Staff writer"Bankim Chandra: The First Prominent Bengali Novelist" ''The Daily Star'', 30 June 201 ...

* Govind Ballal Deval *

* Girish Chandra Ghosh * Annasaheb Kirloskar * Bhartendu Harishchandra *

* Jaishankar Prasad *

Dwijendralal Ray Dwijendralal Ray (19 July 1863 – 17 May 1913), also known as D. L. Ray, was an Indian poet, playwright, and musician. He was known for his Hindu mythological and nationalist historical plays and songs known as ''Dwijendrageeti'' or the ''Son ...

Post-Independence theatre-makers

Notable theatre directors: *

Ebrahim Alkazi Ebrahim Alkazi (18 October 1925 – 4 August 2020) was an Indian theatre director and drama teacher. A rigid disciplinarian, he instilled in his acting students an awe and reverence that they still carry with them, with several of them havin ...

* K.V. Akshara * Nadira Babbar *

Ram Gopal Bajaj Ram Gopal Bajaj is an Indian theatre director, academician, and a Hindi film actor. He has also been a faculty member and a former Director of National School of Drama, New Delhi (1995 – September 2001). He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2003 a ...

* Ajitesh Bandopadhyay *

Sisir Bhaduri Shishir Kumar Bhaduri or Sisir Kumar Bhaduri (2 October 1889 – 30 June 1959) was an Indian stage actor and theatre founder, who commonly referred to as the pioneer of modern Bengali theatre, where he was an actor, director, playwright and eve ...

* Suresh Bhardwaj *

Bijon Bhattacharya Bijon Bhattacharya ( bn, বিজন ভট্টাচার্য; 17 July 1906 – 19 January 1978) was an Indian theatre and film actor from West Bengal. He was an eminent playwright and dramatist. Bhattacharya was born in 1906 at Farid ...

Raj Bisaria Raj Bisaria (born 10 November 1935) is an Indian director, producer, actor and educationalist, described by the Press Trust of India as "the father of the modern theatre in North India". He founded Theatre Arts Workshop in 1966, and Bhartendu ...

* Manish Joshi Bismil * Bibhash Chakraborty * Chandradasan *

Soumitra Chatterjee Soumitra Chatterjee (also spelt as Chattopadhyay; 16 June 193515 November 2020) was an Indian film actor, play-director, playwright, writer, thespian and poet. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors in the history of I ...

* Neelam Mansingh Chowdhry *

Satyadev Dubey Satyadev Dubey (13 July 1936 – 25 December 2011) was an Indian theatre director, actor, playwright, screenwriter & film director. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1971. He won the 1978 National Film Award for Best Scr ...

Utpal Dutta Utpal Dutta () (29 March 1929 – 19 August 1993) was an Indian actor, director, and writer-playwright. He was primarily an actor in Bengali theatre, where he became a pioneering figure in Modern Indian theatre, when he founded the "Little The ...

Arvind Gaur Arvind Gaur is an Indian theatre director known for innovative, socially and politically relevant plays in India. Gaur's plays are contemporary and thought-provoking, connecting intimate personal spheres of existence to larger social politi ...

Sachin Gupta Sachin Gupta (born 9 March 1978) is an Indian film producer, writer and director. He produces films under Chilsag Motion Pictures and is also an artistic director of Chilsag Chillies Theatre Company. He made his writing and directorial debut w ...

* Safdar Hashmi *

Rohini Hattangadi Rohini Hattangadi (''née'' Oak; born 11 April 1955) is an Indian actress, known for her work in Hindi, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Kannada, and Gujarati films, and Marathi soap operas and theatre. She has won two Filmfare Awards, one National Fi ...

* Shafi Inamdar * Nemi Chandra Jain *

Shyamanand Jalan Shyamanand Jalan (13 January 1934 – 24 May 2010) was a Kolkata-based Indian theatre director, and actor. He is credited for the renaissance period of modern Indian theatre and especially the Hindi theatre in Kolkata from the 1960s to 1980s. ...

* Prithviraj Kapoor *

Shashi Kapoor Shashi Kapoor (pronounced �əʃi kəpuːɾ (born Balbir Raj Kapoor; 18 March 1938 – 4 December 2017) was an Indian actor and film producer who is best known for his work in Hindi films. A recipient of several accolades, including four Nation ...

* B.V. Karanth * Bansi Kaul *

Kader Khan Kader Khan (22 October 1937 – 31 December 2018) was an Indian actor, screenwriter and film director. As an actor, he appeared in over 300 Bollywood films after his debut film in the 1973 film '' Daag'', starring Rajesh Khanna, in which h ...

* Mohan Maharishi *

Ramesh Mehta Rameshwar Nath "Ramesh" Mehta, (born 7 August 1923) is an Indian playwright, director, actor and translator. Biography Mehta moved to Delhi in 1942 in search of a job after his graduation. His farce ''Under Secretary'' has been translated in ...

Shaoli Mitra Shaoli Mitra শাঁওলি মিত্র); 1948 – 16 January 2022) was an Indian Bengali theatre and film actress, director, and playwright. She played the role of ''Bangabala'' in Ritwik Ghatak's ''Jukti Takko Aar Gappo''. She is ...

Sombhu Mitra Sombhu Mitra (22 August 1915 – 19 May 1997) was an Indian film and stage actor, director, playwright, reciter and an Indian theatre personality, known especially for his involvement in Bengali theatre, where he is considered a pioneer. ...

Shankar Nag Shankar Nagarakatte (9 November 1954 – 30 September 1990) was an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, and producer known for his work in Kannada-language films and television. A popular cultural icon of Karnataka, Nag is often referred to as ...

* Balraj Pandit * Kavalam Narayana Panicker * Mrityunjay Prabhakar * Prasanna *

Rathna Shekar Reddy Rathna Shekar Reddy is an Indian actor. He is the co-founder of the prominent Hyderabad-based theatre group Samahaara, along with writer-director Anjali Parvati Koda. He starred in the National Award-winning Telugu film, ''Na Bangaaru Talli.'' ...

Rudraprasad Sengupta Rudraprasad Sengupta (born 31 January 1935) is a Bengali Indian actor, director and cultural critic. Biography Sengupta was born in Calcutta (now Kolkata), Bengal, the son of Anant Sengupta and Usha Prabha Sengupta. He studied at the Scottis ...

* B.M. Shah *

Naseeruddin Shah Naseeruddin Shah (born 20 July 1950) is an Indian actor. He is notable in Indian parallel cinema. He has also starred in international productions. He has won numerous awards in his career, including three National Film Awards, three Filmfare ...

Gursharan Singh Gursharan Singh (born 8 March 1963) is a former Indian cricketer who played in one Test and one One Day International in 1990. While appearing as a substitute for Roger Binny in the Third Test against West Indies in 1983 at Ahmedabad, he b ...

* Badal Sircar * Deepan Sivaraman * Anjan Srivastav * K.V. Subbanna * Habib Tanvir

Bhopal Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...

* Ratan Thiyam * Kumara Varma * Sankar Venkateswaran

Notable playwrights

* Gurazada Apparao (Telugu) *

Abhimanyu Abhimanyu is a legendary warrior from the ancient Hindu history ''Mahabharata''. He was born to the third Pandava prince Arjuna and the Yadu princess Subhadra, who was Krishna's younger sister. The ''Sambhava Parva'' of the Adi Parva states ...

(Malayalam) *

Satish Alekar Satish Vasant Alekar (born 30 January 1949) is a Marathi playwright, actor, and theatre director. A founder member of the Theatre Academy of Pune, and most known for his plays ''Mahanirvan'' (1974), ''Mahapoor'' (1975), ''Atirekee'' (1990), ''Pi ...

(Marathi) * Rambriksh Benipuri (Hindi) * Datta Bhagat (Marathi) *

Dharamvir Bharati Dharamvir Bharati (25 December 1926 – 4 September 1997) was a renowned Hindi poet, author, playwright and a social thinker of India. He was the chief editor of the popular Hindi weekly magazine '' Dharmayug'', from 1960 till 1987.The Illustr ...

(Hindi) *

(Bangla) * Anupama Chandrasekhar (English) *

Mohit Chattopadhyay Mohit Chattopadhyaya (also spelled Mohit Chattopadhyay) (1 June 1934 – 12 April 2012) was a Bengali Indian playwright, screenwriter, dramatist and poet. He was a leading figure in modern Indian drama. Mohit Chottopadhya died on 12 April 2012. ...

(Bangla) * Asif Currimbhoy (English) *

Gurcharan Das Gurcharan Das (born 3 October 1943) is an Indian author, who wrote a trilogy based on the classical Indian goals of the ideal life. ''India Unbound'' was the first volume (2002), on artha, 'material well-being', which narrated the story of I ...

(English) * Mahesh Dattani (English) *

Swadesh Deepak Swadesh Deepak (born 1943) is an Indian playwright, novelist and short-story writer. Deepak has been active on the Hindi literary scene since the mid-1960s and is best known for ''Court Martial,'' a 1991 play. Deepak's most recent book is ''Maine ...

(Hindi) *

Govind Purushottam Deshpande Govind Purushottam Deshpande (Devanagari: गोविंद पुरुषोत्तम देशपांडे; 1938 – 16 October 2013) was a Marathi playwright and academic from Maharashtra, India. Biography Education and career Bor ...

(Marathi) *

Utpal Datta Utpal Datta is an Assamese film critic from Guwahati. Career Utpal Datta earned his Masters in Arts from Gauhati University.He later joined the All India Radio Guwahati Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of ...

(Bangla) * Utpal Dutt (Bangla) *

Mahesh Elkunchwar Mahesh Elkunchwar (born 9 October 1939) is an Indian playwright and screenplay writer in Marathi language with more than 20 plays to his name, in addition to his theoretical writings, critical works, and his active work in India's ''Parallel Cin ...

(Marathi) *

(Hindi) * Hasan Imam (Hindi) *

Rajesh Joshi Rajesh Joshi (born 18 July 1946) is a Hindi writer, poet, journalist and a playwright, who was the recipient of 2002 Sahitya Akademi Award in Hindi for his anthology of poems - 'Do Panktiyon Ke Beech' (Between Two Lines), given by Sahitya Akade ...

(Hindi) *

Sharad Joshi Sharad Joshi was an Indian poet, writer, satirist and a dialogue and scriptwriter in Hindi films and television. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1990. Biography Early life and education Sharad Joshi was born on 21 May 1931 in Ujjain, Madhya ...

(Hindi) *

T. P. Kailasam Tyagraj Paramasiva Iyer Kailasam (Kannada: ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜ ಪರಮಶಿವ ಐಯ್ಯರ್ ಕೈಲಾಸಂ, 1884–1946), was an Indian playwright and prominent writer in the Kannada literature. Literary criticism in Kannada ...

(Kannada, English) *

Sriranga Adya Rangacharya (26 September 1904 – 17 October 1984), known as R.V. Jagirdar till 1948, later popularly known by his pen name Sriranga, was an Indian Kannada writer, actor and scholar, and a member of the ''Adya Jahagirdar family''. He ...

(Kannada) * Samsa (Kannada) * Chandrashekhara Kambara (Kannada) * Prithviraj Kapoor (Hindi), (Urdu), (Pashto), (Bangla) *

Girish Karnad Girish Karnad (19 May 1938 – 10 June 2019) was an Indian actor, film director, Kannada writer, playwright and a Jnanpith awardee, who predominantly worked in South Indian cinema and Bollywood. His rise as a playwright in the 1960s marked the ...

(Kannada) *

(Urdu) *

Tulsi Lahiri Tulsi Lahiri (7 April 1897 – 22 June 1959) was a Bengali actor, director and play writer. Early life Lahiri was born in 1897 in a zamindar family of Naldanga village, Rangpur of British India. He passed B.A and B.L and started his lawyer care ...

(Bangla) *

Sajitha Madathil Sajitha Madathil is an Indian film and theatre actor. Her performance in Joy Mathew's feature film '' Shutter'' (2012) won her the State film award for second best actress. She is the head of the department of Acting at the K. R. Narayanan Na ...

(Malayalam) *

(Urdu) * Piyush Mishra (Hindi) * Manoj Mitra (Bengali) * Torit Mitra (Bengali) * Narendra Mohan (Hindi) *

Arun Mukherjee Arun Mukherjee or Arun Mukhopadhyay is a Bengali actor who started his career in films with '' Kshudhita Pashan'' in 1960 followed by his performance in Satyajit Ray's 1962 film ''Kanchenjunga''. Other films he was in include ''Ekdin Pratidin'', '' ...

(Bangla) *

Manjula Padmanabhan Manjula Padmanabhan (born 23 June 1953) is an Indian playwright, journalist, comic strip artist, and children's book author. Her works explore science, technology, gender, and international inequalities. Life Padmanabhan was born in Delhi in ...

(English) * Samkutty Pattomkary (Malayalam) *

Vayala Vasudevan Pillai Vayala Vasudevan Pillai (22 April 1945 – 29 August 2011) was a Malayalam-language playwright from Kerala, India. He was the disciple of eminent playwright G. Sankara Pillai. He directed over 40 plays. Some of his popular plays include ''Viswad ...

( Malayalam) * Mohan Rakesh (Hindi) * Bhisham Sahni (Hindi) * Badal Sarkar (Bengali) * Sarveshwar Dayal Saxena (Hindi) *

B. M. Shah Brij Mohan Shah (1933–1998), better known as B M Shah, was an Indian theatre director and playwright. Shah along with Mohan Upreti, are together credited for the revival of the theatre in the Uttarakhand. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akad ...

(Urdu) * Partap Sharma (English) * Gopal Sharman (English) *

Javed Siddiqui Javed Siddiqi (13 January 1942) is a Hindi and Urdu screenwriter, dialogue writer and playwright from India. He has written over 50 storylines, screenplays and dialogues. During his career, Siddiqi has collaborated with some of India's most pro ...

(Urdu) * Harcharan Singh (Punjabi) * Hrishikesh Sulabh * Rajesh Talwar (English) * Habib Tanvir ( Hindi/ Urdu ) *

Vijay Tendulkar Vijay Dhondopant Tendulkar (6 January 1928 – 19 May 2008) was a leading Indian playwright, movie and television writer, literary essayist, political journalist, and social commentator primarily in Marāthi. His Marathi plays established him as ...

(Marathi) * Shreekumar Varma (English) *

Surendra Verma Surendra Verma (born 7 September 1941) is a leading Hindi litterateur and playwright. He started out as a playwright, when his play ''Surya Ki Antim Kiran Se Surya Ki Pahli Kiran Tak'' (From sunset to sunrise, 1972) became quite well known; it ...

(Hindi) * Asghar Wajahat (Urdu) * Naren Weiss (English)

Forms of Indian theatre

Traditional Indian theatre

Kutiyattam is the only surviving specimen of the ancient Sanskrit theatre, thought to have originated around the beginning of the

Common Era Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...

, and is officially recognised by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

as a

Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity The Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity was made by the Director-General of UNESCO starting in 2001 to raise awareness of intangible cultural heritage and encourage local communities to protect them and th ...

. In addition, many forms of Indian folk theatre abound.

Bhavai Bhavai, also known as ''Vesha'' or ''Swang'', is a popular folk theatre form of western India, especially in Gujarat. Etymology ''Bhavai'' may derive from the Sanskrit word ''Bhava'', meaning expression or emotion. It is also associated wit ...

(strolling players) is a popular folk theatre form of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

, said to have arisen in the 14th century AD.

Bhaona Bhaona ( as, ভাওনা) is a traditional form of entertainment, with religious messages, prevalent is Assam, India. It is a creation of Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva, written in the early sixteenth century. He created the form to convey ...

and

Ankiya Nat Ankia Naats ( as, অংকীয়া নাট) are a class of one act plays performed in Assam, India. The invention of the Ankia Naat is usually attributed to the medieval saint and social reformer Srimanta Sankardeva. These plays were writte ...

s have been practicing in

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

since the early 16th century which were created and initiated by

Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva Srimanta Sankardev( শ্ৰীমন্ত শংকৰদেৱ )(; ; 1449–1568) was a 15th–16th century Assamese polymath; a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, dancer, actor, musician, artist social-religious reformer and a figure of i ...

. Jatra has been popular in

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

and its origin is traced to the Bhakti movement in the 16th century. Another folk theatre form popular in

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...

, Uttar Pradesh and

Malwa Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also sy ...

region of

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the second ...

is Swang, which is dialogue-oriented rather than movement-oriented and is considered to have arisen in its present form in the late 18th – early 19th centuries. Yakshagana is a very popular theatre art in Karnataka and has existed under different names at least since the 16th century. It is semi-classical in nature and involves music and songs based on

carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and Sri Lanka. It ...

, rich costumes, storylines based on the ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...

'' and ''

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...

.'' It also employs spoken dialogue in-between its songs that gives it a

folk art Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative. The makers of folk art are typically tr ...

flavour.

Kathakali Kathakali ( ml, കഥകളി) is a major form of classical Indian dance. It is a "story play" genre of art, but one distinguished by the elaborately colourful make-up and costumes of the traditional male actor-dancers. It is native to the M ...

is a form of dance-drama, characteristic of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Ca ...

, that arose in the 17th century, developing from the temple-art plays Krishnanattam and Ramanattam. File:Kondadakuli.jpg

Urdu/Hindustani Theatre

Urdu Drama evolved from the prevailing dramatic traditions of North India shaping Rahas or Raas as practiced by exponents like Wajid Ali Shah,

Nawab of Awadh The Nawab of Awadh or the Nawab of Oudh was the title of the rulers who governed the state of Awadh (anglicised as Oudh) in north India during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Nawabs of Awadh belonged to a dynasty of Persian origin from Nish ...

. His dramatic experiments led to the famous Inder Sabha of Agha Hasan Amanat and later this tradition took the shape of Parsi theatre.

Yahudi Ki Ladki ''Yahudi Ki Ladki'' (The Jew's Daughter) is a historical Urdu play by Agha Hashar Kashmiri, on the theme of persecution of Jews by the Romans. It was first published in 1913. The play became his best known work, and a classic in Parsi-Urdu theatr ...

(The Jew's Daughter) by

Agha Hashar Kashmiri Agha Hashar Kashmiri (born Muhammad Shah, 3 April 1879 – 1 April 1935) was an Urdu poet, playwright and dramatist. A number of his plays were Indian Shakespearean adaptations. Early life He started to show interest in stage dramas and mo ...

is culmination of this tradition. Among all the languages Urdu (which was called Hindi by early writers), along with Gujrati, Marathi and Bengali theatres have kept flourishing and demand for its writers and artists has not subsided by the drama aficionados. All the early gems of Urdu Theatre (performed by Parsi Companies) were made into films. Great works like those by Shakespeare have influenced Modern Urdu tradition to a large extent when Indian, Iranian, Turkish stories and folk was adapted for stage with heavy doses of Urdu Poetry. In modern times writers like Imtiaz Ali Taj, Rafi Peer, Krishan Chander, Manto, Upender Nath Ashk, Ghulam Rabbani, Prof. Mujeeb and many others shaped this tradition. While Prof Hasan, Ghulam Jeelani, J.N. Kaushal, Shameem Hanfi, Jameel Shaidayi etc. belong to the old generation, contemporary writers like Mujeeb Khan,

, Sayeed Alam, Danish Iqbal, Anis Azmi, Aftab Hasnain, Aslam Parvez, Anis Javed, Iqbal Niyazi,

Syed Sahil Agha Syed Sahil Agha Born: 1984 (age 38 years) is a writer, author, and storyteller from New Delhi, India who specialized in the verbal art of ''dastangoi''. Storytelling background Agha performs dastangoi, a 13th-century Urdu art of oral stor ...

and Zaheer Anwar are few post modern playwrights actively contributing in the field of Urdu Drama. Zaheer Anwar has kept the flag of Urdu Theatre flying in Kolkata. Unlike the writers of previous generation, Danish iqbal and Zaheer do not write bookish Plays but their work is a product of vigorous performing tradition. Iqbal Niyazi of Mumbai has written several plays in Urdu. His play, "Aur Kitne Jalyanwala BaughU??" won National award other awards. Hence this is the only generation after Amanat and Agha Hashr who actually write for stage and not for libraries. An upcoming group Aatrangi Pitaara Foundation is actively performing and saving Hindustani Theatre. Their presentation of Anti-National Ghalib written by Danish Iqbal has been well received by the Delhi Theatre enthusiasts. Leading the group, Keshav Raina is developing more Hindustani shows showcasing the rich history and heritage of India.

Indian puppet theatre

Yakshagana is a popular semi-classical theatre art from coastal Karnataka. It uses rich costumes, music, dance, and dialogue. Puppet shows in parts of Karnataka uses all these elements of yakshagana to depict stories from the ''

'' and ''

.''

Indian street theatre

* Jan Natya Manch (JANAM)

Mobile theatre

Mobile theatres are a kind of popular theatre form that exist mainly in

. For staging their plays, theatre groups travel different places with their casts, singers, musicians, dancers and entire crew. Even the tent and chairs for the audience are carried with them. Mobile theatre was first staged on 2 October 1963 in Pathsala, Assam. Achyut Lahkar is known as the father of mobile theatre. Mobile theatre in Salempur Deoria Eastern Uttar Pradesh is over 900 times played on stage within fifteen years. sanskritiksangam.com is a leading cultural organisation that has been promoting rich Indian culture through regional artists based in Eastern Uttar Pradesh. Since its establishment in 2005, One of its most popular classical-Musical-Dance Drama creation Sanskritik Sangam Salempur, Meghdoot Ki Puravanchal Yatra in Bhojpuri an adaptation of Kalidasa's Meghdootam has done a record 96 shows in cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Rishikesh, Agra, Varanasi, Patna, Sonpur Mela Gorakhpur, near by areas in eastern UP among others. The creations has won many awards and recognitions for its team through leading organisations Its creations revolve around famous mythological and historical personalities and stories like, Ramayana (7 to 9 days play) 56 places, and 9 days in Surinaam,Guyana, Trinidad &Tobago iof caribbion countries Bhagwata (7 days play) two places, Kabir (32 places), Harishchandra Taramati, (32 Places), Utho Ahilya (36 places) and Sri Krishna (Three places). And also perform popular plays from Hindi literature including Kaptan Sahab (31), Court Marshall (1), Saiyyan Bhaye Kotwal (22), Muvaavaje (2), Bakari (2), Bade Bhai Saheb (63), Kafan(12), Bholaram ka jeev (17), Satgati (2), Boodhi kaaki (3), kakha ga kaa chakkar (7), Jago grahak jaago (3) etc. among other presentations based on famous literary geniuses like Munshi Premchand, Bhikaari Thakur, etc.Manvendra Tripathi as a Director of this team handling the institution .

Notable awards and festivals

Awards

* Theatre Pasta Theatre Awards * Kalidas Samman

Festivals of theatre in India

Prithvi Theatre Prithvi Theatre is one of Mumbai's best known theatres. It was built by Shashi Kapoor and his wife Jennifer Kapoor in memory of Prithviraj Kapoor, Shashi's father, who had dreamt of having a "home" for his repertory theatre company, Prithvi ...

Festival (Prithvi Festival), held every year since its inception on 3 November, the birth anniversary of its legendary founder Prithviraj Kapoor * Bharat Rang Mahotsav, NSD, New Delhi * Jairangam - Jaipur Theatre Festival, Jaipur * Nandikar's National Theatre Festival * Purple Umbrella Theater Festival, New Delhi

Notable groups and companies

* Aasakta Kalamanch *

Bhoomika Theatre Group Bhoomika is an Indian Theatre group based in Hyderabad. It was founded in 1989 by Udaya Bhanu Garikipati. The group began its first production in 1989 with Kaki Bangaram , an adaption of Vijay Tendulkar's Pahije Jathiche. It later produced vari ...

Chilsag Chillies Theatre Company Chilsag Chillies is an Indian theatre company and the flagship LiveShow, Stageplay and musical production arm of the Chilsag Entertainment Network. The company has operations in US, UK, Canada and India and has a network of talented artists all o ...

* Dramanon *

Indian People's Theatre Association Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) is the oldest association of theatre-artists in India. IPTA was formed in 1943 during the British rule in India, and promoted themes related to the Indian freedom struggle. Its goal was to bring cultu ...

Kerala People's Arts Club Kerala People's Arts Club (KPAC) is a theatrical movement in Kayamkulam, Kerala, India. It was formed in the 1950s by a group of individuals having close ties with Communist Party of India in Kerala. KPAC was very influential in popularising t ...

Mandap A mandapa or mantapa () is a pillared hall or pavilion for public rituals in Indian architecture, especially featured in Hindu temple architecture. Mandapas are described as "open" or "closed" depending on whether they have walls. In temples, ...

* Manch Theatre *

Madras Players The Madras Players are the oldest Indian English, English-language theatre group in Chennai, India. The Madras Players have staged over 240 theatre productions for more than 50 years. History The Madras Players has its origins from Kilpauk Gene ...

* Nandikar *

Ninasam Ninasam (Kannada: ನೀನಾಸಂ) is a cultural organisation located in the village of Heggodu in Sagar Taluk of the Shivamogga district in the state of Karnataka, India. Ninasam (also spelt as Neenasam) is the short form of Sri NIlakantes ...

* Platform for Action in Creative Theater *

* Rangayana *

Ranga Shankara ''Ranga Shankara'' is one of Bangalore's well known theatres. It is located in the south Bangalore area of J.P Nagar and is run by the Sanket Trust. The auditorium, which opened in 2004, was envisioned by Arundathi Nag, in remembrance of her la ...

Samahaara Samahaara is an Indian theatre group based in Hyderabad. It was founded by two young theatre personalities, the actor-director Rathna Shekar Reddy and the playwright Anjali Parvati Koda. The group began with touring its maiden production, ''Th ...

* Theatre Arts Workshop (TAW) * Theatre Formation Paribartak * WeMove Theatre

Notable theatres

* Academy of Fine Arts, Calcutta (Ranu Mukherjee Mancha) * Circle Theatre Company (2003) *

Girish Mancha Girish Mancha is a theatre auditorium located in Bagbazar, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. The auditorium was inaugurated on 1 July 1986 by Chief Minister of West Bengal (at that time) Jyoti Basu. The auditorium was named after Girish Chandra Ghosh ...

Kalidasa Kalakendram Kalidasa Kalakendram is a professional drama theatrical group founded by O. Madhavan, a well-known Malayalam theatre director, in Kollam, Kerala. The group was founded on 25 January 1963 as a society under the parent organisation, Paul Found ...

Rabindra Sadan Rabindra Sadan is a cultural centre and theatre in Kolkata, located close to the St. Paul's Cathedral on Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Road in South Kolkata. It is noted for its large stage which is a prime venue for Bengali theatre and Kol ...

Star Theatre A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth ...

Surabhi (theatre group) Surabhi (also known as Sri Venkateswara Surabhi Theatre) is a family theatre group based in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The group performs plays based on stories from Hindu mythology and the Puranas. History The Surabhi theatre group was form ...

Notable practitioners who have moved from theatre to films

Sadashiv Amrapurkar Sadashiv Dattaray Amrapurkar (11 May 1950 – 3 November 2014) was an Indian actor, best known for his performances in Marathi and Hindi films from 1983 to 1999. He acted in more than 300 movies in Hindi, Marathi, and other regional language ...

* Shabana Azmi * Raj Babbar *

Manoj Bajpai Manoj Bajpayee (born 23 April 1969), also transliterated as Manoj Bajpai, is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Hindi cinema and has also done Telugu and Tamil language films. Regarded as one of the finest actors of Hindi cinema, he i ...

Tanikella Bharani Tanikella Bharani (born 14 July 1954) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, poet, playwright and director who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He has worked as an actor in more than 750 films, including some in Tamil and Hindi; while he was ...

* Suresh Bhardwaj *

Seema Biswas Seema Biswas (born 14 January 1965) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films and the theatre. She gained prominence after playing the role of Phoolan Devi in Shekhar Kapur's film ''Bandit Queen'' (1994), for which she won the National F ...

* Deepak Dobriyal * Utpal Dutt * Neena Gupta * Rajendra Gupta *

A. K. Hangal Avtar Kishan Hangal (1 February 1914 – 26 August 2012) was an Indian freedom fighter from 1929 to 1947 and also stage actor from 1936 to 1965 and later became a character actor in Hindi language films from 1966 to 2005. His most notable role ...

* Shafi Inamdar *

Brijendra Kala Brijendra Kala is an Indian actor who works in Bollywood films. He is known for his subtle portrayals of characters rooted in reality. He gained attention for his small roles in mainstream cinema. Early life Kala spent his childhood in Mathu ...

Pankaj Kapoor Pankaj Kapur (born 29 May 1954) is an Indian actor who has worked in Hindi theatre, television and films. He has appeared in several television serials and films. He is the recipient of several awards, including a Filmfare Award and three Nati ...

* Shahid Kapoor * Prithviraj Kapoor *

Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: �aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of th ...

Shammi Kapoor Shammi Kapoor (born Shamsher Raj Kapoor; (pronounced �ʌmːi kʌpuːɾ 21 October 1931 – 14 August 2011) was an Indian actor who worked in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of two Filmfare Awards, winning in the categories of Best Actor for ...

Satish Kaushik Satish Chandra Kaushik (born 13 April 1956) is an Indian actor, director, producer, comedian and screenwriter. Early life Satish was born on 13 April 1956 in Mahendragarh, Haryana. He graduated from Kirori Mal College, Delhi in 1972. He is ...

Shah Rukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. Referred to in the media as the " Baadshah of Bollywood", "King of Bollywood ...

* Kulbhushan Kharbanda * Anupam Kher * Swanand Kirkire *

Shilpi Marwaha Shilpi Marwaha is a well known name in the Delhi Theatre Circuit, having worked as a theatre artist and activist for the past decade. She gained prominence through her activism through street theatre during the "anti corruption movement" in Delh ...

* Piyush Mishra * Sohrab Modi * Ananth Nag *

* Alok Nath *

Nana Patekar Vishwanath Patekar (born 1 January 1951), better known as Nana Patekar, is an Indian actor, screenwriter, film maker, and a former Indian Territorial Army officer, mainly working in Hindi and Marathi cinema. He is regarded as one of the finest an ...

Om Puri Om Prakash Puri (18 October 1950 – 6 January 2017) was an Indian actor who appeared in mainstream commercial Hindi films as well as Bengali, Kannada,English,Punjabi and one Telugu film, as well as independent and art films and also starred ...

* Rajkumar *

Kangana Ranaut Kangna Amardeep Ranaut (; born 23 March 1987) is an Indian actress and filmmaker who works in Hindi films. Known for her work in female-led films, she is the recipient of several awards, including four National Film Awards and five Filmfar ...

Paresh Rawal Paresh Rawal (born 30 May 1955) is an Indian actor, comedian, film producer and politician known for his works notably in Hindi films, and Telugu, and a few Gujarati and a few Tamil films. He has appeared in over 240 films and is the recipien ...

Balraj Sahni Brigadier Balraj (born Balasegaram Kandiah) was a senior commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Early life Balraj was the fifth and youngest child of Kandiah and Kannagias. He received his primary education in Kokkuthoduwaai ...

* Ratna Pathak Shah * Om Shivpuri * Sudha Shivpuri * Shilpa Shukla * Nawazuddin Siddiqui * Pankaj Tripathi *

Ashish Vidyarthi Ashish Vidyarthi (born 19 June 1962) is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, English, Odia, Marathi and Bengali films. He is noted for his antagonist and character roles. In 1995, he received t ...

* Rajpal Yadav

Training

Bhartendu Academy of Dramatic Arts Bharatendu Academy of Dramatic Arts or Bharatendu Natya Akademi is a theatre training institute in Lucknow, India. It is named after Bharatendu Harishchandra, father of Hindi theatre. It offers a two-year full-time diploma course in theatre tr ...

National School of Drama National School of Drama (NSD) is a theatre training institute situated at New Delhi, India. It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 1959 by the Sangeet Natak Akademi and became an in ...

Madhya Pradesh School of Drama The Madhya Pradesh School of Drama or MPSD, is a theatre training institute situated at Bhopal, India. It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 2011 by the cabinet of Madhya Pradesh. The d ...

References

Notes

Sources

* Banham, Martin, ed. 1998. ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre.'' Cambridge: Cambridge UP. . * Brandon, James R. 1981. Introduction. In Baumer and Brandon (1981, xvii–xx). * ---, ed. 1997. ''The Cambridge Guide to Asian Theatre. 2nd, rev. ed. Cambridge: Cambridge UP. . * Brockett, Oscar G. and Franklin J. Hildy. 2003. ''History of the Theatre''. Ninth edition, International edition. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. . * Baumer, Rachel Van M., and James R. Brandon, eds. 1981. ''Sanskrit Theatre in Performance.'' Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1993. . * Richmond, Farley. 1998. "India." In Banham (1998, 516–525). * Richmond, Farley P., Darius L. Swann, and Phillip B. Zarrilli, eds. 1993. ''Indian Theatre: Traditions of Performance.'' U of Hawaii P. . * Sharma, Shrikrishna, ed. 1996. ''Rangkarmi.'' Cultural Societies of Rajasthan. (1996, 139)

History of Indian theatre

Sanskrit theatre

Theatre in medieval India

Theatre in India under the British

Indian theatre after Independence (1947–1992)

Improvisation

Notable theatres in India in different Indian languages and regions

Notable people

Ancient Indian playwrights

Playwrights working under British rule

Post-Independence theatre-makers

Notable playwrights

Forms of Indian theatre

Traditional Indian theatre

Urdu/Hindustani Theatre

Indian puppet theatre

Indian street theatre

Mobile theatre

Notable awards and festivals

Awards

Festivals of theatre in India

Notable groups and companies

Notable theatres

Notable practitioners who have moved from theatre to films

Training

References

Notes

Sources

Further reading