Inquilab
INQUILAB Prof.S.Jayaraman
Inquilab means revolution. ‘Inquilab’ is one of the much - acclaimed plays of Asif Currimbhoy. This play is about the Naxalbari Movement that started in a small village in West Bengal in 1967. This uprising, by the peasants, tried to usher in a revolutionary new social order through violence and hence the title ‘ Inquilab.’
Asif Currimbhoy, an Indian playwright writing in English, had exposure in experimental American theatre. He brought some of their techniques like management of light in his stagecraft. It gives more depth to the mood of the episodes in the individual scenes. Moreover, Asif Currimbhoy produced plays on contemporary themes. For example ‘Inquilab’, written in 1971, is based on the Naxalbari uprising in 1967. In this play, Asif Currimbhoy does not take any side. He presented the views of the naxalites as well as the government and those who oppose the naxalite ideology. He leaves the decision to the audience or the readers.
The term naxalites comes from Naxalbari, a small village in West Bengal. A section of the CPI (M) led by Charu Mazumdar, Kanu Sanyal and Jangal Santhal initiated a violent uprising in 1967. Charu Mazumdar, inspired by the doctrines of Mao-ze-dong provided ideological leadership for the Naxalbari Movement. He called the Indian peasants and lower class tribals to overthrow the government and the upper classes through armed struggle. A radical section of students in Calcutta and other parts of India was attracted towards it. It inevitably brought a very strong reaction from the government of the day to crush the movement. In 1972, Mazumdar was arrested and died in Alipore jail. But the impact of the movement continues till today.
The play opens in a classroom in a College in Calcutta. Prof.Datta, a renowned Professor of Law faces a set of students who are intelligent, alert, but at the same time bored and restless. He speaks of “Principles founded on freedom of thought and speech by Gandhiji.”But
Inquilab means revolution. ‘Inquilab’ is one of the much - acclaimed plays of Asif Currimbhoy. This play is about the Naxalbari Movement that started in a small village in West Bengal in 1967. This uprising, by the peasants, tried to usher in a revolutionary new social order through violence and hence the title ‘ Inquilab.’
Asif Currimbhoy, an Indian playwright writing in English, had exposure in experimental American theatre. He brought some of their techniques like management of light in his stagecraft. It gives more depth to the mood of the episodes in the individual scenes. Moreover, Asif Currimbhoy produced plays on contemporary themes. For example ‘Inquilab’, written in 1971, is based on the Naxalbari uprising in 1967. In this play, Asif Currimbhoy does not take any side. He presented the views of the naxalites as well as the government and those who oppose the naxalite ideology. He leaves the decision to the audience or the readers.
The term naxalites comes from Naxalbari, a small village in West Bengal. A section of the CPI (M) led by Charu Mazumdar, Kanu Sanyal and Jangal Santhal initiated a violent uprising in 1967. Charu Mazumdar, inspired by the doctrines of Mao-ze-dong provided ideological leadership for the Naxalbari Movement. He called the Indian peasants and lower class tribals to overthrow the government and the upper classes through armed struggle. A radical section of students in Calcutta and other parts of India was attracted towards it. It inevitably brought a very strong reaction from the government of the day to crush the movement. In 1972, Mazumdar was arrested and died in Alipore jail. But the impact of the movement continues till today.
The play opens in a classroom in a College in Calcutta. Prof.Datta, a renowned Professor of Law faces a set of students who are intelligent, alert, but at the same time bored and restless. He speaks of “Principles founded on freedom of thought and speech by Gandhiji.”But