SL Bhyrappa's Parva On Stage, How Prakash Belawadi's Adaptation Holds Up

Gautam Chikermane Reviews Prakash Belawadi's Adaptation Of Parva

Interest. Devotion. Wonder. Even love.

These are the common traits I see in all those who have read the Mahabharata, carefully and consciously. But when you watch Prakash Belawadi’s play, Parva, which is based on S.L. Bhyrappa’s novel by the same name, these become mere necessary conditions—they are insufficient to sit through the intense physical, psychological and philosophical experience.

The eight-hour play spread across five acts with four breaks needs more. Urban audiences need an additional, even crucial attribute: Stamina—physical, emotional and intellectual. In rural areas, all-night plays are common. The ‘modern’ short attention span victims have lost their aptitude for deep aesthetics and the proclivity for refined conversations.

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