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Shakespeare: The Indian Icon
Then came the focus on Indian writing and, of course, post-colonial literatures. But it is, indeed, a feat of sorts that though Indians were influenced by the Bard, in turn, they also appropriated him. As mentioned in the book, Aurobindo placed the Bard, along with Homer and Valmiki, in the sheer range and scope of human emotions and diversity of experience. The book under review is a comprehensive collection of critical responses to Shakespeare’s work by more than one generation of well-known Indian scholars of Shakespeare. The 88 articles are divided into five sections, to make it reader-friendly. The book is also a visual treat, because of the numerous photographs, paintings and sketches that give life to the academic exercise. Shakespeare: The Indian Icon takes into consideration not only just stage productions but also painting music and dance presentations on the Bard. It is a tribute to the Bard by a Shakespeare scholar and a labour of love that is marked by erudition and a scholarly rigour, as engaging as it is admirable. Having retired as an associate professor after teaching English Literature for more than 40 years, Vikram Chopra has achieved the herculean task of putting together this mammoth volume and brought erudite scholars on board. Chopra is the founder secretary of The Shakespeare Society of India. His doctorate thesis was on "Shakespeare’s Major Tragedies: A Study in the Context of Indian approaches". In "Shakespeare: the Indian icon", Chopra has presented a comprehensive view of Shakespeare’s reception and his assimilation into the Indian cultural ethos. The book covers a century of Indian response – social, academic and cultural. The contents of this volume have been divided into four sections. The first, titled "The Panorama: A Few Gleanings", gives a view of the impact of Shakespeare on scholars like Tagore, Aurobindo and Mahatma Gandhi. The remaining three sections consist of scholarly essays from the masters of "craft and art", "vision and value" and "cross cultural perceptions". It is the essays by R.K. Narayan and Mulk Raj Anand that leave an imprint. "There is a lot for everyone in this book, from a philosopher to a common reader. It has the sense of joy, freedom, wisdom, beauty, virtue and celebration of life. Like life has numerous shades, so does Shakespeare, and that is why he is loved and admired in India," says Chopra. And as you read, it all that comes back to you — Portia’s speech on the quality of mercy in Merchant of Venice, Mark Antony’s "Friends, Romans, countrymen" from Julius Caesar and, of course, Hamlet’s, "To be or not to be," used often out of context! What sets this volume apart is the incomparable range, scope and artistic production. Also notable is the balance it strikes between drama as literature and drama as a performing art. It is often said about The Mahabharata that what is in the world is in this text and what is not in the text is not in the world either. In other words, The Mahabharata is often seen as a self-contained literary cosmos. The author, by giving us this treasure trove on the Bard, has convinced us that much the same could be said about Shakespeare, too. — A.N.
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There
were two Englands, one of the penal code and the other of Shakespeare
and Milton, as Jawaharlal Nehru mentioned in the Discovery of India.
The world of Shakespeare defined literature and it was with diligence
and rigour that Indian scholars taught, researched and engaged with
the Bard. In fact, research on the Bard was a sunshine sector before
Independence.