Girish Karnad's Flowers
The play is a dramatic monologue about a devoted and pious priest who violates both his ‘dharma’ and his ‘bhakti’ because of his love for a courtesan. Torn between his love for his God and his love for Chandravati, between his duty to the king and his duty to his wife, the priest tells the story of his life after matters have come to a head and all his loves and duties collide on a single night. Girish Karnad takes a folk tale about the human condition and refreshes it with a contemporary sensibility that embraces love, loyalty and honour..jpg)
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Playwright’s note
“Flowers” is based on a folktale from the Chitradurga region of Karnataka. The tale deals with the metaphysical dilemma that would result if God were truly merciful and all-forgiving. Would God’s grace ignore moral turpitude? What has greater weightage in the cosmic order of things – faith (bhakti) or morality?
It has been pointed out that the Indian philosophical tradition has never treated what would be called moral philosophy as a separate discipline. But the painful moral concerns are very much alive and find expression in epic stories or narrative literature or as here, in tales orally handed down.
Related Links :
http://www.thehindu.com/features/magazine/showcase-transcending-moral-dilemmas/article3711179.ece
http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/reviews/flowers.asp
http://vagabondmind.blogspot.in/2007/06/flowers-by-girish-karnad-dissolving.html
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