Nāṭya/Rūpaka: Drama, Dramaturgy and Kerala Theatre
The Drama and Theatre section tests both the text of the prescribed play and the theory that classifies it. Expect questions on plot, character, the five sandhis, rasa, the daśarūpaka categories, and Kerala's living Sanskrit theatre.
Structure of the Sanskrit play
- Arthaprakṛtis (five): bīja, bindu, patākā, prakārikā, kārya.
- Sandhis (five): mukha, pratimukha, garbha, vimarśa, nirvahaṇa - dramatic junctures, not grammatical sandhi.
- Rasa: vibhāva + anubhāva + vyabhicāribhāva produce rasa; Bharata's Nāṭyaśāstra gives the sūtra; eight rasas, with śānta added by later writers.
- Daśarūpaka (Dhanañjaya): nāṭaka, prakaraṇa, bhāṇa, vyāyoga, samavakāra, ḍima, īhāmṛga, aṅka, prahasana, vīthi - classified by hero, plot-source, number of acts.
Kerala's contribution
Kūṭiyāṭṭam preserves the oldest surviving Sanskrit theatre practice: pūrvaraṅga, elaborate rasābhinaya, pakarnnāṭṭam (one actor taking several roles), mizhāvu and cheṇḍa, performed by Cākyārs with Nangiārs. Related forms: Krishnanattam (Manaveda's Kṛṣṇagīti), Rāmanattam (Kottarakkara Tampurān), from which Kathakali developed.
Worked example
Classify Mṛcchakaṭikā. The hero Cārudatta is a poor Brahmin merchant, the plot is invented, and the play runs to ten acts. Since the hero is neither a king nor a traditional legend figure, the play is a prakaraṇa, not a nāṭaka.
Traps that cost marks
- Confusing dramaturgical sandhi with grammar sandhi.
- Calling every play a nāṭaka; check hero, plot source and act count.
- Mixing up nirvahaṇa (last sandhi) with nirvahaṇā or with the prologue (prastāvanā).
- Naming Kutiyattam's instruments or community loosely.