April 2020
5
ISSN 2278 0742
English Literature Crying in the Wilderness: The Social Issues in Mahesh Dattani’s Seven Steps around the Fire Anita Konwar
Abstract:
Literature is the mirror of society. It can be a powerful medium to represent the voice of the oppressed. In spite of the rapid progress in the 21st century at national level, the attitude of society towards the weaker sections has not changed and their cry for equal rights becomes a cry in the wilderness. The ‗hijras‘ do not find a space in the mainstream society and they are marginalized and neglected. At the national level, sincere effort to represent the voice of the ‗hijra‘ is seen in playwrights like Mahesh Dattani. Mahesh Dattani, one of the exponents of modern Indian drama, is a renowned playwright and an active theatre practitioner. This paper aims at analyzing the social issues in Dattani‘s Seven Steps around the Fire. The play has raised many questions regarding the rights and social status of the ‗hijra‘ community. The methodology applied in the paper is analytical method. In Seven Steps around the Fire, Dattani has focused on the marginalized ‗hijra‘ community who do not find a place in the writings of other playwrights.
Key Words: Oppressed, Wilderness, Marginalized, Hijra, Rights
Introduction:
It is not always a story that Dattani wants to tell his audiences across the world. It is sometimes a cause, a point of view, a sense of contemporaneity and a social message that he tries to convey through his plays. The various plays that he has written deal with some issues prevalent in the society and expose it most honestly and candidly. Dattani makes an abundant use of Indian mythology, rituals and traditions and contemporary problems, India is beset with but he elevates these themes to a higher level, touching the human chords that emanate love, happiness, sexual fulfillment and problem of identity.
Volume 9 Issue 1
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