7 months ago
Radha-Ramakrishna Explores Gender and Shakti Cult
Radha-Ramakrishna is a play that looks at how people think about men and women.
It tells the story of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, a famous spiritual leader, and his kindness towards transgender people.
The play also shows how actors in old Bengali theatre sometimes played the opposite gender because there weren't enough female actors.
The director, Santanu Das, uses interesting casting choices, like having a woman play Ramakrishna and a man play a famous actress.
The play is full of drama and tries to show what life was like for these people long ago.
Radha-Ramakrishna explores gender stereotypes and the Shakti cult, intertwined with Vaishnava aesthetics.
The play is based on Ramakrishna Paramahamsa's empathy towards the transgender community and his experiments with Radha bhava.
Director Santanu Das casts a female actor as Ramakrishna and a male actor with an androgynous bearing as Binodini Dasi.
The play includes scenes from early Bengali public theatre where cross-gender acting was common due to a lack of female actors.
The production maintains dramatic tension throughout, with notable performances by Monalisa Chatterjee and Ranjan Bose.
- Who
- Rakesh Ghosh (playwright-director), Santanu Das (director), Monalisa Chatterjee, Ranjan Bose, Sudipta Dutta (actors)
- What
- The play Radha-Ramakrishna explores gender stereotypes and the Shakti cult, intertwined with Vaishnava aesthetics.
- Where
- The play is staged by Kalyani Kalamandalam and is inspired by the life and times of figures associated with Dakshineswar and Bengali theatre.
- When
- The play is based on historical events and figures, including the early Bengali public theatre and Ramakrishna Paramahamsa's life.
- Why
- The play aims to question gender stereotypes and explore the lives of famous Bengalis with androgynous traits, highlighting Ramakrishna's empathy towards the transgender community and the historical context of cross-gender acting in Bengali theatre.
Key facts
- Playwright-Director
- Rakesh Ghosh
- Director
- Santanu Das
- Theatre Group
- Kalyani Kalamandalam
- Key Actors
- Monalisa Chatterjee, Ranjan Bose, Sudipta Dutta
- Historical Figure
- Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
- Historical Context
- Early Bengali public theatre
- Notable Work
- Chaitanya Leela
- Inspiration
- Bratya Basu’s novel, Adamrita Katha
