Sangeet Natak
Encyclopedia
Sangeet Natak in Marathi language
literally means Musical Drama
. As the name suggests, this form of drama
combines prose
as well as poetry
in form of songs to convey the story
. In a manner, they are much similar to Operas
. Sangeet Natakas played a vital role in the development of Marathi theater and thus the Marathi cinema
as well as Indian film industry. Sangeet Natak start with praise of Lord Natraja which is called as Naandi, usually the famous one Panchatunda Nararundamaldhar. They are popular for use of Indian classical music
.
in 1843. But the integration of music in the dramas took place quite late in 1879 when play writer and producer Trilokekar presented his musical play Nal-Damayanti (नल-दमयंती). It was the first musical play on Marathi stage.
But only when Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar (popularly known as Annasaheb Kirloskar
) staged his first musical play Shaakuntal on October 31, 1880 in Pune
did the trend of Sangeet Natak really start. Kirloskar included 209 musical pieces in his Shaakuntal of 7 acts. They consisted of a mix of Hindustani
and Carnatic classical music, and lighter music.
then existing in India, Sangeet Natakas were compared with the Operas
and thus local Marathi
Indians found synonymous recreation. In the blooming times, Sangeet Natakas were mainly based on mythological stories of Mahabharata
or Ramayana
which would hence easily connect with the masses. They did not cover the complete epics but were limited to only small stories in them.
With popularity & success, experimentation started on stage with abandoning mythological themes and bringing social issues to audiences. Sangeet Sharada, for example, by portraying the feelings of a teenage girl to be married to a widower in his late seventies, brought out a social message. Few dramas, like Keechakavadh, even agitated the British rulers to the extent that they were banned. Keechakavadh compared the Britishers with Keechaka, an evil character from Mahabharata who tried to dishonour Draupadi
. Draupadi was then synonymous with the oppressed common Indian masses.
who founded the Sangeet Natakas also offered other famous playes like Sangeet Saubhadra and Ramrajyaviyog.
Bal Gandharva's
Gandharva Natak Mandali; Vasudeorao Dongre's Dongre Mandali; Pandoba Gurav Yavateshwarkar's Waikar Sangeet Mandali; Janubhau Nimkar and Keshavrao Bhosale's Swadesh-Hita-Chintak Mandali, which evolved into Lalit-Kaladarsha Mandali; and Master Dinanath's Balwant Natak Mandali were the other main performing companies which were formed in Maharashtra.
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
literally means Musical Drama
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
. As the name suggests, this form of drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
combines prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
as well as poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
in form of songs to convey the story
Story
Story or Stories may refer to:*Story, a recounting of a sequence of events* Narrative* Bedtime story, a traditional form of storytelling, told to children to prepare them for sleep* Organization story, a narrative used in organization studies...
. In a manner, they are much similar to Operas
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
. Sangeet Natakas played a vital role in the development of Marathi theater and thus the Marathi cinema
Marathi cinema
Marathi cinema refers to films produced in the Marathi language in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is the oldest and pioneer film industry in India...
as well as Indian film industry. Sangeet Natak start with praise of Lord Natraja which is called as Naandi, usually the famous one Panchatunda Nararundamaldhar. They are popular for use of Indian classical music
Indian classical music
The origins of Indian classical music can be found in the Vedas, which are the oldest scriptures in the Hindu tradition. Indian classical music has also been significantly influenced by, or syncretised with, Indian folk music and Persian music. The Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music...
.
The beginning
The Marathi theater dates back to 1840s. The first public performance on Marathi stage was of the play Seeta Swayamvar (सीता स्वयंवर) by Vishnudas BhaveVishnudas Bhave
Vishnudas Bhave, विष्णुदास भावे in Marathi, was the leading dramatist of Maharashtra in India. The first play in Marathi "Sita Swayamvar" was staged first in Sangli 1843 by Vishnudas Bhave. In this venture, Vishnudas Bhave was fully supported by Rajasaheb Chintamanrao Patwardhan. After the success...
in 1843. But the integration of music in the dramas took place quite late in 1879 when play writer and producer Trilokekar presented his musical play Nal-Damayanti (नल-दमयंती). It was the first musical play on Marathi stage.
But only when Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar (popularly known as Annasaheb Kirloskar
Annasaheb Kirloskar
Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar , popularly known as Annasaheb Kirloskar, was a Marathi playwright from Maharashtra, India.Kirloskar was born on March 31, 1843 in Gurlhosur in Belgaum district....
) staged his first musical play Shaakuntal on October 31, 1880 in Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
did the trend of Sangeet Natak really start. Kirloskar included 209 musical pieces in his Shaakuntal of 7 acts. They consisted of a mix of Hindustani
Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music is the Hindustani or North Indian style of Indian classical music found throughout the northern Indian subcontinent. The style is sometimes called North Indian Classical Music or Shāstriya Sangeet...
and Carnatic classical music, and lighter music.
The bloom
The new trend of Sangeet Natakas catched up with the popularity quite quickly. With British RajBritish Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
then existing in India, Sangeet Natakas were compared with the Operas
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
and thus local Marathi
Marathi people
The Marathi people or Maharashtrians are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, that inhabit the Maharashtra region and state of western India. Their language Marathi is part of the southern group of Indo-Aryan languages...
Indians found synonymous recreation. In the blooming times, Sangeet Natakas were mainly based on mythological stories of Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
or Ramayana
Ramayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
which would hence easily connect with the masses. They did not cover the complete epics but were limited to only small stories in them.
With popularity & success, experimentation started on stage with abandoning mythological themes and bringing social issues to audiences. Sangeet Sharada, for example, by portraying the feelings of a teenage girl to be married to a widower in his late seventies, brought out a social message. Few dramas, like Keechakavadh, even agitated the British rulers to the extent that they were banned. Keechakavadh compared the Britishers with Keechaka, an evil character from Mahabharata who tried to dishonour Draupadi
Draupadi
In the epic Mahābhārata, Draupadi, also known as ' is the "emerged" daughter of King Drupada of Panchāla and the wife of the five Pandavas. When Yudhisthira becomes the king of Hastinapura at the end of the war, Draupadi becomes the queen of Indraprastha...
. Draupadi was then synonymous with the oppressed common Indian masses.
The descent
As the Sangeet Natakas mainly used the classical singing forms in them, with advancement, they started to lag behind. Not many artists could perform based on classical singing and hold up the audiences. Trials of bringing light music can be seen through plays like Moruchi Mavshi.Notable contributions
Annasaheb KirloskarAnnasaheb Kirloskar
Balwant Pandurang Kirloskar , popularly known as Annasaheb Kirloskar, was a Marathi playwright from Maharashtra, India.Kirloskar was born on March 31, 1843 in Gurlhosur in Belgaum district....
who founded the Sangeet Natakas also offered other famous playes like Sangeet Saubhadra and Ramrajyaviyog.
Bal Gandharva's
Bal Gandharva
Narayan Shripad Rajhans , better known as Bal Gandharva was one of the greatest Marathi singers and stage actors. He was famous for his roles of female characters in Marathi plays, since women were not allowed to act on stage during his time....
Gandharva Natak Mandali; Vasudeorao Dongre's Dongre Mandali; Pandoba Gurav Yavateshwarkar's Waikar Sangeet Mandali; Janubhau Nimkar and Keshavrao Bhosale's Swadesh-Hita-Chintak Mandali, which evolved into Lalit-Kaladarsha Mandali; and Master Dinanath's Balwant Natak Mandali were the other main performing companies which were formed in Maharashtra.
List of famous Sangeet Nataks
To attract the audiences, many of the Sangeet Nataks used to prefix the word Sangeet before their actual name.- Sita Swayamvar
- Shaakuntal
- Sangeet Saubhadra
- Sangeet Maanaapmaan
- Matsyagandha
- Sanyastkhadga
- Keechakavadh
- Ramrajyaviyog
- Mruchhakatik (1889)
- Sangeet Sanshaykallol
- Shapsambhram (1893)
- Sangeet Sharda (1899)
- Sangeet Swayamvar (1916)
- Ghashiram KotwalGhashiram KotwalGhashiram Kotwal is a Marathi play written by playwright Vijay Tendulkar in 1972 , as his response to the rise of a local political party, Shiv Sena, in Maharashta . The play is a political satire, written as historical drama. Based on the life of Nana Phadnavis , one of the prominent minister in...
- Devmaanus
- He Bandha Reshmache
- Moruchi Mavshi
- Mandarmala
- Geeta Gati Dnyaneshwar
- Suwarnatula
- Sangeet Vidyaharan
- Ekach Pyaala
- Bhavbandhan
- Madanachi Manjiri
- Punya Prabhav
Further reading
- Marathi book by Govindrao Tembe "माझा संगीत व्यासंग" (My Study of Music); published 1939