The ephemerality in ‘humane’ existence: Understanding Begum Ka Takiya as a parable

Abstract

Pandit Anand Kumar’s Begum Ka Takiya, was first published in 1985 as a drama. The work has been adapted by the National School of Drama, New Delhi which staged the play in 2010, directed by Ranjit Kapoor, and subsequently, several other theatre groups performed the play around the country. Begum Ka Takiya explores the ethical dilemmas of human life through the confrontation of several fundamental questions. It attains the quality of a parable in being morally didactic by giving out an ideal message otherwise forgotten in the modern utilitarian world. The paper focuses on one such primary aspect which the author emphasizes on: the temporality of human lives and everything associated with it. The play reiterates the factual and philosophical truth of the ephemeral nature of time in human lives as well as all the elementary things that one thrives for in a lifetime. Every individual is subject to the test of time and fate; however, it is the persistence of fatefulness through ethical perseverance that makes one’s existence fundamentally ‘humane’. The paper explores the ‘humane’ understanding of the ephemeral nature of human lives through a study of the play as directed by Ranjit Kapoor and performed by the National School of Drama Repertory Co. in continuous deliberation with the author himself.