Author(s): Dr. Jayalakshmi B, Dr. Sowmya A

Abstract: Hayavadana(1971) by Girish Karnad is an experimental play in many ways as it adopts stylistics features of the two major theatre forms moving away from the regionalist tradition of drama: Epic and Absurd. The Absurd dramatic tradition presents the post-modern human condition as against the conventional depiction of life. The conventional drama presents plays in a structured way with its beginning, middle and end. This paper attempts to trace Hayavadana in the light of both theatre traditions to evaluate how the play itself was a new influence on Indian drama that merged in it the influence of the existential philosophy of the West as reflected in the rapidly evolving theatre forms while presenting a tale from mythology on stage. Hence the paper attempts to unravel the enigmatic human relationship in the light of absurdism and incompleteness as a whole. Therefore, the paper is divided into two parts to understand the influence of the absurd movement on the theatrical style and to bring out the absurdity of the human relationships.Absurd Theatre, a form heralded by its proponents Samuel Beckett, Jean Genette, and Harold Pinter and Epic Theatre propounded by Bertolt Brecht are both distinct theatre traditions developed in the 20th century.

Keywords: Girish Karnad, Absurdity, incompleteness, Bertolt Brecht, Hayavadana.

Article Info: Received: 26 Nov 2021; Received in revised form: 15 Jan 2022; Accepted: 22 Jan 2022; Available online: 29 Jan 2022

DOI: 10.22161/ijels.71.11