EMANCIPATION OF WOMEN IN GIRISH KARNAD’S HAYAVADANA

Abstract

The Indian cultural traditions are male-dominated, hardly giving any scope for women to exercise their freedom for fulfillment of desires and development of identity which they claim as of their own. Karnad was well acquainted with feminist ideologies and the havoc wrought by patriarchal ideologies in Indian society. His plays abound with subalterns especially women and lower caste people subjected since ancient time by patriarchy or upper hierarchy of the society. Karnad’s women play lead roles in the discussion of several contemporary issues and problems. It is quite interesting to point out that Karnad gauges both internal and external world of woman’s life. The theme of the play Hayavadana if analyzed from the socio-cultural and gender level, we notice that there is a conflict between two polarities namely, Apollonian and Dionysian. Hayavadana depicts the drama of tangled relationships where Devadatta a man of intellect and mind, and Kapila a man of steel like body, are friends and lovers of Padmini, the wife of Devadatta. She loves the fabulous mind in the fabulous body.  Padmini’s quest for completeness and perfection brings downfall in her personal life and is alienated. Her performance of ‘Sati’ is a social demand for infidelity in married life. She tries to revolt against socio-cultural forces which engulfed her. These forces alienated her from the worldly life she does not wish to compromise with and finally she finds relief in death.