The natyashastra-based analysis of Mahesh Dattani's Where Did I Leave My Purdah

Abstract

This article uses the Natyashastra, an Indian treatise on performing arts, to develop an overlooked method of theatrical analysis. This treatise offers useful insights on how gestures are produced during the performance, which has been practiced by performers across the world. While scholars research the Natyashastra in the contexts such as theatre, rasa theory, and its bodymind connection, this treatise has been employed to analyze gestures produced by contemporary Indian theatre performers in Mahesh Dattani's Where Did I Leave My Purdah. The outlined exercise through an examination of a case study advocates a method of theatrical analysis.