THE CINDERELLA OF INDIAN ENGLISH LITERATURE: A STUDY OF INDIAN DRAMA IN ENGLISH

Abstract

Indian English drama is one of the most underdeveloped and neglected genres in Indian English literature. Despite the far more substantial input of Krishna Mohan Banerji in his The Persecuted (1831), Indian drama in English never saw the kind of massive growth such as poetry or fiction experienced. The main hindrance seems to be the intrinsic relationship between drama and theatre. Different from poetry or fiction, drama needs stage, actors, and an audience for its embodiment. The paper deals with the historical development of Indian English drama, with a special focus on playwrights like Girish Karnad. His works like Yayati, Tughlaq, and Hayavadana evolved as a blend of traditional myths with modern existentialist concerns, much akin to the works of Sartre and Camus. His use of folk conventions, synoptic announcements, and self-referential theatrical techniques recalls the Brechtian model of alienation, which demands intellectual engagement instead of passive emotional response.