Connecting Ancient and Modern: A Textual Study of Ghanaśyāma’s Ānandasundarī, a Prakrit Play by an 18th-Century Marathi Poet

Abstract

Among 18th-century Indian literary texts, Ghanaśyāma’s saṭṭaka titled Ānandasundarī is one of the most interesting plays for many reasons. First, while in classical Indian drama, the Sanskrit and various Prakrit dialects are attributed to different characters to indicate their social status, in a saṭṭaka all dramatis personae speak the same language : the Prakrit. This unusual language distribution was applied first by Rājaśekhara (9–10th c.) in his Karpūramañjarī, which became the exemplar for later authors. Secondly, the Prakrit, alongside Sanskrit, served as a classical literary language from the first centuries of the Common Era onwards. While Sanskrit remained a widely-used language of the literati until the early modern period, the number of individuals proficient in Prakrit was reduced significantly over time. Thus, writing in Prakrit became a sign of scholarship. Thirdly, it was believed by scholars of the last century that poets after Rājaśekhara gradually stopped producing classical plays, and traditional Indian theatre slowly fell into decay. Ghanaśyāma’s Ānandasundarī is the last play to come down to us from this tradition, and it is a fine example of how classical Indian drama was still appreciated in the author’s time. Fourthly, Ghanaśyāma lived in Thanjavur in a period when terms with multiple meanings, puns, and oblique expressions were in vogue. The Prakrit language naturally lends itself to polysemy. Last, his innovations in the Ānandasundarī, such as the introduction of a ‘ play within a play’ are remarkable and deserve special attention. The textual study of the Ānandasundarī reveals Ghanaśyāma’s concept of poetic beauty.