From the Echelons of Sanskrit Drama to the Popular Folk (original) (raw)

There is a saying about the Mahabharata-"yanna bharate tanna bharate" (Tripathi 86) which means this great epic contains everything encompassed by this vast country i.e Bharata (India). With a slight variation, the same can be applied to the Natyashastra of Bharatmuni. The Natyashastra encompasses everything that sustains and nourishes the Indian tradition of art and aesthetics. Bharatmuni is the Vyas of Indian theatric universe. The term Natya in Sanskrit refers to the art of drama and practice of theatre. Natyashastra, literally means a discourse on the discipline of Natya. It is the codification of a tradition in practise well before its time. It is composed in verse form and comprises around 6000 stanzas in 36 chapters.