CHAPTER-IV

HAYAVADANA - A QUEST FOR IDENTITY

Humanism forms the core of Girish Kamad’s works - be it his own writings or
the films or dramas that he has acted in. P. Dhanavel in The Indian Imagination of Girish
Karnad enlists as many as eight characteristics of humanism wherein he says “any return
to the past in general is deemed to he humanistic. All of Karnad’s plays fall in this
category, and thus he is deeply a humanist. Another feature of humanism must be a
sympathetic understanding and analysis of problems, trials and travails of men and
women of all ages. Through all his plays Karnad has done so. His real achievement is
that he is relevant to the modern times without being overtly so. To a reader not wanting
to draw parallels between the ancient and the modern, Karnad's plays provide enjoyment
just by the interesting story and a very well-knit plot. However, all his plays touch the
core of very modern human concerns.

Hayavadana, Karnad’s third play was published in 1970. The symbolic core of
Hayavadana comprises the philosophic crisis of estrangement between mind and body.
Like its predecessor Tughlaq, Hayavadana too is thoroughly modern in outlook and
spirit. Again in the manner employed in its predecessor here in Hayavadana too. Karnad
goes back in time to make a very relevant social comment. Only here the inspiration is
not history but mythology and folk core. Karnad here explores all the modern concerns
through the lens of the eternal emotion of love. Through folk tale and myth Karnad gives
us an insight into the issues of modern life in entirely new ways. Hayavadana is
traditional yet modern. Vanashree Tripathi feels that “Karnad's confabulation of the
classics with the folk tales of the transposed heads and the story of a half-man, half-
horse, playfully dilutes the prototypical themes (Shakuntalam and Mrichhakatikam),
where the ideal balance between duty and passion is restored. Hayavadana, in exploring
the realm of love: erotic—man-woman, male bonding, parent- child, offers us insight into
the desires, hopes, fulfilment and frustration it breeds " 2

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 Hayavadana meaning ‘the one with the horse’s head’ is named after a horse­
headed man, who wants to shed the horse’s head and become human. The central
episode of Hayavadana, the story of Devadatta and Kapila comes from
Vetalapanchavimsati in Kathasaritsagara. an ancient collection of stories in Sanskrit and
is blended with the myth of Hayagriva in the Mahahharala. However, of his own
admission, Karnad has "drawn heavily on Thomas Mann's reworking of the tale in 'The
Transposed Heads. ” J The story is about Devadatta and Kapila, two close friends.

Devadatta is a man of "intellect", and Kapila a man of "muscles". Devadatta falls in love
with Padmini and marries her. Kapila also falls in love with her and slowly Padmini gets
attracted towards him. Padmini is travelling with her insecure and jealous husband
Devadatta and his friend Kapila. Devadatta, suspecting his wife's loyalties, goes to a
temple of Goddess Kali and beheads himself. Kapila finds the body and, rightfully
feeling that he will be accused of having killed his dearest friend because he, Kapila,
coveted his wife, in turn beheads himself. When Padmini finds the truncated bodies of the
two men in her life she is beyond consolation. Afraid of the scandal that is bound to
follow, she too prepares to kill herself. Now the goddess Kali takes pity and comes to her
aid. Padmini needs only to rejoin the heads to the bodies and the goddess will bring them
back to life. Padmini follows the instructions; the men come back to life—except that in
her confusion she has mixed up the heads. And this creates a major confusion in their
lives. There arises the confusing question regarding who is the real Devadatta. The head,
or the body? This incident gives Karnad an opportunity to explore the crisis of identity
that modern man is experiencing. The original Sanskrit tale poses a moral problem while
Mann seems to argue that head should not be held superior to body. Even the
transposition of heads will not liberate the protagonists from the psychological limits
imposed by nature. Karnad poses a different problem, more relevant to the modern
complex life, and redefines the original myth. Karnad problematises the issue of personal
identity, adding a sub-plot to the main story. Along with the central theme runs the sub­
plot, the story of Hayavadana, the horse-man. In the beginning of the play, he appears as
a man with a horse's head, searching for completeness. The Sutradhara of the play,
Bhagavata, sends him to the temple of Kali. Towards the end of the play we can see him .
coming back from the temple as a complete horse. The horse head has won over the

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human body. But he is not yet complete, as he still has got a man's voice. In the end,
however, Hayavadana achieves completeness when he loses the human voice too and
acquires a perfect neigh.

Karnad employs this mythological tale to show modern man's efforts towards
achieving a sense of completeness, and a search of human identity in a world of tangled
human relationships. The confusion of identities in the main plot of Devadatta-Padmini-
Kapila reveals ambiguous nature of human personality. After their heads are transposed
Devadatta and Kapila do not retain their original selves. Thus they lose themselves.
Padmini, who after the exchange of heads, thinks that she has the best of both the worlds,
slowly reaches disillusionment. The play seems to suggest that if perfection or
completeness means fusion of two polarities, such completeness is not possible.
Padmini’s rearch for the complete man, who must have the best attributes of mind and
body, is frustrated in spite of her best efforts and she realizes that it is the intellect that is
supreme and always determines what a man is or becomes.

The myth has been reinterpreted and has been used to present a very modern
problem of tangled relationships in the contemporary society. Padmini’s predicament is
the predicament of a modern emancipated woman in our society who is torn between two
polarities - a woman who loves her husband but at the same time is also attracted towards
someone else for a different aspect of his personality.

The ‘sub-plot’ of Hayavadana deepens the significance of the main theme of

incompleteness by treating it on a different plain. The horseman’s search for
completeness ends with his becoming a complete horse and the triumph of the animal
head over the so called superior human intellect. Karnad has created a bizarre world to
make a commentary on the modern life. He uses the conventions and motifs of folk tales
and folk theatre— chorus, masks, curtains, dolls/puppets, the story within the story. It is a
world of incomplete individuals, indifferent gods, dolls that speak and children who
cannot. It is a world which is indifferent to the desires and frustrations, joys and sorrows
of human beings. The play blends modernist ideas of identity and completeness with folk
lore and myth effortlessly. Hayavadana presents a universal and very real emotional

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dynamics that lie close under die whimsical surface of the plot: friendship and jealousy,
self-possession and self-doubt, and most importantly, love.

Hayavadana is unique in sense that it encompasses all the aspects of life and
experience. All three spheres of existence - divine, human and animal are encompassed
and Karnad looks at the problems of each with a sympathetic and discerning eye

Hayavadana is a complex play and it reflects and symbolizes Karnad’s deep

concern and keen understanding of human problems. As has already been said the plot of
Hayavadana comes from written traditions of folk lore. The two folk tales which go into
the making of Hayavadana provide ample scope to Girish Karnad’s dramatic imagination
to weave a world which is as desperately seeking completeness in the same way as the
modern world also is. Both the stories explore the incompleteness of man. The whole of
the story of the sub-plot of Hayavadana though inspired by the myth of Hayavagriva
from Mahabharata has been invented by Karnad. In all his plays Karnad goes back into
the past to explore the present. In Hayavadana also he is doing the same thing. Modern
civilization has made man want to achieve everything so that nothing is left to be
conquered. Interestingly modem man calls it a quest for completeness. All the principal
characters of the play Padmini, Devadatta, Kapila and Hayavadana are searching for
completeness either in themselves or in others. In this respect the play is reflective of the
modern 'perfect' existence However, through the main plot Karnad also raises the
question as to what really completeness means. Throughout the play Devadatta, Padmini
and Kapila are trying to find an existence which they can call complete, and till the end
this quest remains incomplete. Karnad seems to be suggesting that completeness is a
myth, at least, for human beings. The conclusion does indicate that Hayavadana has
succeeded in achieving completeness and he is happy with his completeness. As the play
draws to its end Hayavadana has lost his human voice too and he is enjoying his complete
animal hood.

"(His human voice is gone now. He can only neigh and leaps around
with great joy.)"

Bhagvata: Careful - careful. Don 7 drop the child

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 (But the horse is too happy to listen. It prances around, neighing
gratefully. The boy is also enjoining himself, singing hits of the song
and urging the horse on). " (Hayavadana, p. 138.)

Thus here Girish Kamad presents a picture of, if not perfection, completeness.
Karnad is using a myth to break a popular myth, namely head meaning thereby intellect is
superior to the body. Hayavadana becomes complete when his human-intellect residing
in a horse-head is replaced with the horse-intellect to give completion to the body of the
horse that he has come to possess as a result of Goddess Kali’s intervention. Thus it
would seem that the outward physical form only governs what one is going to be. Head
is considered to be superior and the indicator of the real identity of a person because in it
is seated the intellect, the thinking brain, which is presumably the supreme, and which
determines the real identity of a person. Yet ironically we see that Hayavadana is quite
pleased to lose that real identity, and he achieves a sense of belonging only after he has
shed the traces of intellect. Padmini and Devadatta's son is happy and is seemingly
complete because he is not intellect at present, he is only heart. Thus brain or intellect
does not seem to make one complete. Devadatta and Padmini are never complete,
because their intellect does not let them be so. In the beginning Kapila is complete,
simply because he is not ruled by head. As head tries to overpower him, restlessness and
sense of incompleteness captivates him too. Completeness, thus, emerges as a real myth.
In this regard, one is reminded of Eugene O’Neill's ‘Hairy Ape’4 Yank, who belonged

unless a casual observation by the city-bred Mildred set him thinking about his status in
the society he called his own. Yank is happy in his stoker’s job and he belongs to the
ship, unless he is jolted out of his complacence and he gets a rude shock that he belongs
neither to human beings nor to animals. And thus begins the painful exercise to discover
where he belongs to. In fact whole of the humanity is hankering for a sense of belonging.
Thus Devadatta, Padmini and Kapila are not abnormal human beings who are seeking
their identities. They are representing whole of the humanity. By lifting a story from the
mythological texts Karnad suggests that the quest for one’s identity is as old as the
existence itself. And the modern reader easily identifies with this quest for identity, for in
the modern complex life the human identity is fast getting lost.

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 Human relationships are a delicate thing, the balance in which is to be maintained
with judicious insight along with love. Hayavadana is the story of the complex web of
human relationships. The main plot of Devadatta-Padmini-Kapila comes from the
ancient collection of stories in Sanskrit, Kathasaritsagara. Karnad, however, borrows it
from T homas Mann's rclclling of the story in The Transposed Heads5. The Sanskrit

story poses a moral problem as to who should be considered the real husband of Padmini.
Mann shifts the focus and uses the story to show that body and soul cannot be considered
two separate entities independent of each other. Kirtinath Kurtikoti observes:

“The Human body, Mann argues, is a fit instrument for the fulfilment
of human destiny. Even the transposition of heads will not liberate the
protagonists from the psychological limits imposed by nature. ” 5

(“Introduction to Hayavadanap.69)

Karnad uses Mann's story to comment on the complex web of human

relationships. He is a keen observer and understands the crisis of identity that human
beings face in the modern civilization. In fact, the problem of complexity of human
relationships and identity crisis are interwoven.

Hayavadana is a tale of how human relationships become tangled. When the play
opens Kapila and Devadatta are not only best of friends they are “one mind, one heart. ”
(Hayavadana, p. 74) Then enters Padmini as the wife of Devadatta. Now instead of two
some, they make a three some of Devadatta, Padmini and Kapila. However, after the
transposition of the heads Devadatta and Kapila become “fragmented creatures, while
Padmini torn between the two, is also like a house divided,”6 The relationship is simple

and straight till now'. Padmini is wife of Kapila’s best friend Devadatta, and as such they
should behave like friends only. But now the tangle starts. Devadatta is a wise and
handsome man and Padmini is a very beautiful, quick witted and intelligent woman. Both
love each other very much, but at the same time Padmini and Kapila are attracted towards
each other and the undercurrents of the attraction play havoc with their lives. Quite
interestingly it is because of Kapila’s active efforts that Devadatta and Padmini could get
married. In fact the foundation of this tangle is laid when Kapila went to talk to
Padmini’s father to settle the marriage of Padmini and Devadatta. There he gets to meet

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the sharp and witty Padmini first, and he finds that she is really very beautiful and at the
same time intelligent too. He has perhaps never come in contact with such a sharp
women before and even he is conquered by her charms. As of now Kapila is not aware
of her sexually but an indication of the coming catastrophic events is reflected in Kapila’s
soliloquy:

“Devadatta, my friend, I confess to you I'm feeling uneasy. You are a

gentle soul. You can 7 bear a bitter word or an evil thought. But this
one is fast as lighting - and as sharp. She is not for the likes of you.
What she needs is a man of steel. But what can one do? You ’ll never
listen to me. And I can't withdraw now. I’ll have to talk to her
family.... ” (Hayavadana, p. 90)

It is clear that Kapila realizes that it would be difficult for Devadatta to satisfy and
thus sustain Padmini.

The friendship of Devadatta and Kapila is very strong. Unlike the ordinary
relationships the friendship between Devadatta and Kapila continues even after the
former’s marriage to Padmini. As Bhagvata observed. "The old friendship flourished as
before. Devadatta - Padmini-Kapila! To the admiring citizens of Dharamputra, Rama-
Sita-Lakshman. Only, these three fail to maintain the mythological relationship of Rama-
Sita-Lakshman. ” (Hayavadana, p. 90) Thus in fact. Devadatta’s friendship with Kapila
leads to the tangle which all of them find themselves in. An unsaid and unconscious
bond develops between Kapila and Padmini and often Devadatta feels that he stands
isolated if not physically, then certainly emotionally. However, it is not that Padmini does
not love Devadatta any longer. Both of them love each other. It is only that Kapila
possesses those qualities which Devadatta does not and Padmini wants the master of
those qualities too to be hers. Hence her attraction for Kapila. She unconsciously yearns
to have a complete experience, and logically enough this is not possible through one man.

Padmini is a devoted wife and dutiful daughter-in-law in the beginning. But soon
she feels drawn towards Kapila because of his lithe and well toned physique. She voices
her admiration when out on their journey to Ujjain Kapila goes to get flowers for her:

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 "... How he climbs - like an ape. Before I could even say 'yes', he
had taken off his shirt, pulled his dhoti up and swung up the branch.
And what an ethereal shape! Such a broad back - like an ocean with
muscles rippling across it - and then that small, feminine waist which
looks so helpless. ” (Hayavadana, p. 96)

Naturally this admiration spells havoc for her married life. Devadatta already has an
inkling of her admiration for Kapila, as well as a clear perception of Kapila’s infatuation
with her. But here, among the primeval forces, in the forest on the way to Ujjain this
attraction between the two strikes him in its barest form. The relations between the
friends begin to be enmeshed soon after the marriage of Devadatta and Padmini and there
is a clear indication that they are going to be inextricably tangled out of which they can
come only through fire. Devadatta recognizes Kapila’s feelings for Padmini early:

"Devadatta: (aside) Does she really not see? Or is she deliberately

playing this game with him? Kapila was never the sort to blush. But
now, he only has to see her and he begins to wag his tail. Sits up on
his hind legs as though he were afraid to let her words fall to the
ground. And that pleading in his eyes - can't she really see that?"
(Hayavadana, p. 92)

Kapila’s eyes express a physical desire the presence of which he himself perhaps isn’t
aware of, or at least not admitting it even to himself. In a typically modern outlook,
Karnad recognizes the presence of a physical desire between Kapila and Padmini. Both
Devadatta and Padmini realize it with stabbing intensity, when Kapila goes to fetch
Fortunate Lady's flower for Padmini

"Padmini: (aside) No woman could resist him.

Devadatta: (aside) No woman could resist him - and what does it

matter that she's married? What a fool I've been. All these days. I
only saw that pleading in his eyes stretching out its arms, begging for
a favour. But never looked in her eyes. And when / did - took the
whites o f her eyes for their real depth. Only now - / see the depths -
now I see these flames leaping up from those depths. Now! So late!

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 Don 7 turn away now, Devadatta, look at her. Look at those yellow,
purple flames. Look how she's pouring her soul in his mould. "
(Hayavadana, p. 96)

Kamad here transcends the old traditional unnatural barriers which consciously and
conveniently ignore the presence of any physical aspect in a relationship. In reality,
however, the physical aspect is sometimes more pronounced than the mental or emotional
one. Gill observes:

“The relationship between Padmini and Kapila in Hayavadana

has several connotations, though it remains confined to
attraction only. ”7

Through Padmini Kamad is voicing an effort for fulfilment through body too.
Devadatta and Padmini share a relationship of mental compatibility. Both are learned,
knowledgeable and intelligent and thus complement each other beautifully. They have a
harmonious relationship. But this harmony is disturbed by the presence of Kapila, for his
presence makes Padmini aware of a perfect body, and she subconsciously wants to
experience a perfect body too in addition to a perfect intellect. Padmini is aware of her
hidden desire and she is also aware that these desires cannot be justifiably satisfied
because social norms don’t allow it. She voices this feeling when she says in a telling
‘aside’

"How long can one go on like this? How long? How long? If
Devadatta notices.... ” (Hayavadana, p. 97.)

And as has already been pointed out Devadatta does notice, and the husband and
wife now evade each other’s eyes. Thus there is a palpable tension between the two. in
fact as gill says the “ tension in Hayavadana is between thew idea of completeness. From
human to semi-human characters none is complete and everyone is in search of
completion in one way or the other. ”8

The tangle of this relationship is further complicated because Kapila also realizes
somewhere deep within him that he is strongly attracted towards Padmini. Both Padmini
and Kapila are aware of their mutual attraction, but both are consciously trying to evade

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it, because they are bound by social norms. They don’t voice their feelings even to their
own selves because they honour social norms and values. However, all three of them
know that they cannot continue in this manner for long, and they must find some way out.
Devadatta is first to take a course of action to come out of this limbo. On their way to
Ujjain, he makes Padmini and Kapila go to the Rudra temple, and then visits the temple
of Kali, where he offers his head to her, thus assuming that by this action of his, he is
giving a chance to Padmini and Kapila to be together, and thus is granting happiness to
them. When Padmini and Kapila come back, and don’t find Devadatta there, Kapila gets
worried and hurries off to find him. Kapila has already sensed the tension between the
husband and wife. He had been most unwilling to go alone with Padmini, for clearly he
never wanted any misunderstanding between Devadatta and Padmini because of him.
Also perhaps he too doesn’t trust his own feelings when he is alone with Padmini.

Karnad shows that Padmini is not a woman who can be satisfied with anything
less than perfection. She is the counterpart of a perfect intellect in the shape of
Devadatta. At the same time she also needs “c/ man of steel.” (Hayavadanci, p. 90)
Devadatta is indeed not the man for her, at least not in body. She is quite candid about
her dissatisfaction with his physical limitations. She comments to Kapila:

“...Where will he go? lie has the tenderest feet on earth. They
manage to get blisters, cocus, cuts, boils and wounds without any
effort. ” (Hayavadana, p. 99)

Kapila finds Devadatta’s truncated head and body in the temple of Kali, and is
horrified. He quite rightfully thinks that he is also the cause behind Devadatta’s drastic
step. In remorse, or, as Goddess Kali later comments, because he is afraid that he would
be accused of killing Devadatta for Padmini, he also beheads himself. With both of them
gone Padmini also prepares to kill herself, for she knows that she would be accused of
enticing Kapila and people will assume that the two men fought over her and killed each
other. To escape this infamy she decides to end her life, and thus get out of this tangled

web.

It is when Padmini is trying to take her life that a sleepy Goddess Kali appears
and tells her that she should put their heads back to their bodies and they would come

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alive. In her excitement Padmini puts the wrong heads on the bodies and thus the bodies
and heads are interchanged. Inadvertently Padmini manages to reach a perfect
combination—perfect mind in a perfect body. This is what Padmini had always been
pining for. That is why one also wonders whether this transposing of heads by Padmini is
really unintentional. The telling observation by Goddess Kali after the transposing of
heads give further strength to this feeling that Padmini took the opportunity of possessing
the perfection in both mind and body. The Goddess understands Padmini's feelings but
she warns her when she says

“(in a resigned tone) My dear daughter, there should he a limit even to

honesty. Anyway—So be it!" (Hayavadana, p. 103)

In the forest scenes the feelings of all three principal characters are brought out
clearly. The raw animal emotions are laid bare before the reader in their most honest
naked form. All of them are conscious of what is going on, though none of them is bold
enough to put it in words to others. The inherent ambiguity in any relationship, be it
love, marriage or even the sacred friendship, comes to the fore. Quite revealingly the
reality of artificial human relationships is laid bare in the natural environs of a forest,
away from the artificiality of social norms. Here in the natural surroundings the forced
and the artificial cannot survive, hence Padmini’s putting the wrong head on the wrong
body. The throbbing desires of a woman are laid bare in its entire pristine ness when the
heads or bodies are interchanged. Here we see that Padmini and Devadatta have really
drifted apart even without their knowledge. The complex web of human relationships is
denuded of all its niceties with a frightening intensity here in the forest.

It is here again, after the heads have been transposed that along with the web of
human relationships which has been further complicated; the issue of identity crisis also
gets attached. This action also leads to the quest for perfection. By transposing the heads
Padmini is looking for the perfection that she has subconsciously been hankering for.
Now she has brought the perfect body and the perfect brain together and so the search for
perfection must end here. With Padmini each one of us is looking for perfect body and
perfect intellect together. This quest is eternal. Padmini is hankering after this perfection
and so it is her quest, but along with Padmini this is a quest of the two men also.

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However, the so called perfection of both mind and body can be owned by only one-
either Devadatta or Kapila. Devadatta gets the perfection of both body and mind after the
transposition of heads. But before the issue of perfection can be handled there crops up
the issue of identity crisis. After transposition of heads the question is who indeed should
be considered real Devadatta? And one who is real Devadatta is Padmini’s husband. The
two questions represent two aspects of the problem - psychological and moral. The moral
problem is easily solved and the one with Devadatta’s head is proclaimed the real
Devadatta. But without his body Kapila seems to have lost his real self too. With this
problem of losing one's identify also comes the problem of duality or ambivalence of
human identity. Both Devadatta and Kapila experience it. With them Padmini too.

“As the heavenly Kalpa Vriksha is supreme among trees, so is the

head among human limbs. Therefore, the man with Devadatta's head
is indeed Devadatta and he is the rightful husband of Padmini. ”
(Hayavadana. p. 110)

This solution which comes from a learned Rishi leaves Kapila, i.e. Devadatta’s
body and Kapila’s head a broken hearted man, whereas both Devadatta and Padmini are
overjoyed. Now Padmini is the consort of a perfect body as well as face. For her
Devadatta is now “my celestial bodied Gandharva... My sun-faced Indra..."
(Hayavadana, p.l 11) The body is a new gift to this sun face, which already houses an
intelligent brain. Thus now Padmini’s Devadatta is defined as “Fabulous body - fabulous
brain - fabulous Devadatta". (Hayavadana, p. 113) As of now Devadatta seems to be

perfect.

However, the play tells us that a body has its own personality distinct form head,
though later on in the play this also becomes clear that head does govern the body to an
extent or at least overpowers it. The body has its own memories. While recounting to
Padmini how he defeated a wrestler at the fair in Ujjain, Devadatta very tellingly notes:

“You know, Fd always thought one had to use one's brains while
wrestling or fencing or swimming. But this body just doesn't wait for
thoughts - it acts!” (Hayavadana, p. 113)
 This is Kapila’s body which is the master of all physical exercises. Later on
Kapila tells Padmini when she reaches him in the jungle along with her son:

“...One beats the body into shape, hut one can’t beat away the
memories in it. " (Hayavadana, p. 126)

Thus for an experience to be complete both head and body must have the same
experience. Hence Kapila is indeed an incomplete man till Padmini comes to him in the
forest.

Hayavadana explores the identity crisis that every individual of the modern
society is experiencing. The modern man is in search of his real identity. Devadatta and
Kapila become the representatives of modern man. They are in search of their real
identity. As has already been pointed out. there are two aspects of the problem of identity
crisis - moral and psychological. The moral problem is solved when Devadatta’s head is
considered to be real Devadatta and Padmini goes off with him. But this solution does
not solve the psychological crisis that crops up after the transposing of heads. There is a
conflict between the head and the body. The body wants to lead a life which it is used to
whereas the head wants the body to follow its directions. Gradually head wins and
biological changes take place in both Devadatta and Kapila. Kapila’s body is won over
by Devadatta’s head and it indeed becomes Devadatta’s body. At the same time Kapila
trains Devadatta’s body and models it to the physical rigors that his brain desires and that
his own body was used to. Thus both Devadatta and Kapila reach their former selves.
Now the head and the body act in tandem and on the surface both the men are at peace
now with their warring bodies. However, destruction is their ultimate fate as "the two
men cannot accept each other when it comes to sharing a woman all the three destroy
themselves in the process. ”9

With the change in bodies Padmini is again dissatisfied. She has experienced
Kapila’s body and now she cannot find satisfaction in the transformed body of Devadatta.
She even comments to Devadatta about this change. Devadatta realizes that Padmini still
hankers for Kapila’s body and he tries to make an effort to get back that body. Needless
to say, he doesn’t succeed. Padmini is now obsessed with Kapila’s thoughts. Also she
must now experience Kapila with Devadatta’s original body to make her experience

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complete. Thus she uses the purchase of new dolls for their son from Ujjain fair as an
excuse, and sends Devadatta to the fair so that she can go and meet Kapila in the forest.

Ironically it is Padmini who has been yearning for a perfect body in a perfect
brain and thus is yearning for a change, yet both Devadatta and Kapila change. Both
undergo a rare and unusual experience and in the process evolve. Padmini, who has been
instrumental for this change, and who herself is a participant in the ensuing experience, is
really not sure whether she has changed or not. She wonders:

“Devadatta changes. Kapila changes. And me?" (Hayavadana,

P- H9)

However, she experiences this change and understands it perhaps even better than
both Devadatta and Kapila. Unless she meets Kapila once again after the heads have
been transposed, her experience cannot be complete and thus she has no choice but to go
to the forest to meet Kapila. Only then perhaps she can hope to be a complete woman.
However, Kapila is quite understandably disturbed when Padmini reaches him, and tells
her that he has now trained the body that was once foreign to him in accordance with his
wishes, and now both head and body together constitute Kapila. Of course, he cannot
deny that his body had some memories which his head did not have and thus could not
recognize. Padmini suggests to him that he must accept her to have a complete
experience and he is overtaken by the old attraction. Thus they proceed in their quest for
completion. However, this blissful situation cannot continue for long. On discovering
Padmini’s absence Devadatta guesses very rightly that she must have gone to Kapila in
the forest. Expectedly he comes to the forest so that he could resolve the issue of their
unwanted triangular existence. However, as he reaches Kapila and Padmini there is no
anger in him anymore. Both know that they love Padmini dearly and though there might
not be any bitterness left between the two friends, they cannot stay together "like the
Pandavas and Draupadi. " (Hayavadana. p. 129) They cannot stay together, not because
two men love the same woman, but because if they stay together their identities will be in
conflict with each other. After their heads have been transposed, they share their fives,
which is much more difficult than sharing a woman. Even Padmini’s life is inextricably
coiled with their lives - separate as well as together. Fire is the liberating force for all

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three of them. Thus Devadatta and Kapila kill each other in the duel and Padmini enters
the pyre with them. Thus fire, the purifier, puts an end to the dilemma that they are all
living through. The pyre also signifies that now they are all pure once again because in
the end all three of them stand before one another in all honesty. Their identity crisis can
be resolved only through their liberation by fire.

This crisis of identities, however, has not been in fact, cannot be fully resolved
even with fire. The two men change and then return to their original selves, and thus they
now presumably know what their real self is. But Padmini remains what she was. She
has not changed yet she does not know what her true self is. In fact it is because she has
not changed that she has not also realized her true self. She has experienced both the
men, but she remains where she always was. Both Kapila and Devadatta have
experienced the quest for perfection. They have lived this transformation of bodies after
the transposition of heads; Padmini has remained a mute spectator to this change. She
has tried, though inadvertently, to create perfection, by putting Devadatta’s head on
Kapila’s body, thus achieving a perfect brain in a perfect body. However, we see that
this perfection remains a myth. Not only Kapila but the so-called embodiment of
perfection now, Devadatta, also reverts back to his original self. The question thus arises
what in fact is perfection. If Devadatta had really become perfect or complete after his
getting a new body, why did he not make efforts to retain that body? Karnad is here
completely exposing the myth of perfection or completeness. He seems to be suggesting
that man is always hankering after what he does not have. Hence perfection remains a
myth which is ever elusive.

Thus Hayavadana is a tale of the quest for perfection or completeness. It is a

story of the search for a perfect existence, where human beings are looking for a perfect
body coupled with a perfect mind. All the three chief characters are pawns used in the
quest for perfection. This quest for perfection raises a very pertinent question that
Karnad poses to us all-what in fact is perfection? Does an intellectual brain qualify to
be called perfection or a good physique be called perfection. Can the best of two create
perfection? The play reveals that this is not so. Even what we term a perfect mind and a
perfect body, when brought together too, do not generate satisfaction. And thus
naturally, this combination too cannot be called perfection or completeness. What is

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perfection then remains a big question mark. The quest continues as the change too.
Change is continuous. N. Krishnakutty rightly opines:

."In fact, change appears to he the only constant thing in the lives of the
three people. "!l>

Karnad has also shown that the intellect does have control over body to an extent
and thus may be said to be having some superiority over the body. However, the body is
not an organ devoid of independent feelings. Contrary to common beliel that all the
thinking is done by brain and, therefore, the feelings, emotions and thoughts must also
reside in the brain, Karnad shows that body does have its own feelings and memories.
Karnad has brought this out beautifully, when Kapila tells Padmini:

"...One heats the body into shape, hut one can't heat away the
memories in it. Isn 7 that surprising? That the body should have its
own ghosts - its own memories? Memories of touch - memories of a
body swaying in these arms, of a warm skin against this palm -
memories which one cannot recognize, cannot understand, cannot
even name because this head wasn 7 their when they happened. ”

(Hayavadana, p. 126)

Clearly head is incomplete without the body. In fact it is complete with only a body
that acts in tandem and feels in harmony with it. Both have to complement each
other. This is why perhaps in the ease of I layavadana the human intellect melts away
in the favour of an animal body. After the loss of human intellect Hayavadana’s mind
and body are in perfect harmony and he belongs with the forces of the nature. The
identity crisis in the main plot of Hayavadana arises because of the absence of this
harmony between the transposed heads and their bodies. After the heads have been
transposed both Kapila and Devadatta are continually seeking their true identities
which elude them for ever. Kapila tells Padmini that he has trained the body which
"was like a corpse hanging hv my head', (llayavadana, p. 124) and he now feels that
he has become the whole and complete Kapila ‘■'without a crack between his head and
shoulders'' (Hayavadana, p. 125) But Kapila cannot be complete unless his head too
 lives the same experiences that his body had lived. That is why Padmini goes to him
in the forest to stay with him. N Krishnakutty observes:

"Padmini's living with Kapila for a few days was an attempt to rectify
this incompleteness, but she also knew that they could not live
together, for they had known so much in their twice truncated lives. " 11

However, after the three have tasted completeness they must leave this world.

Karnad has used the ancient story of transposed heads to make a pertinent
commentary on the incomplete and unsatisfactory existence of the modern man. Like
Kapila and Devadatta the modern man is also leading a disjointed and truncated life. The
two friends represent the modern man who is trying to bring together every perfect thing
and make one complete whole and is therefore always searching for the deceptive happy
and contended existence. Padmini is also an extension of the personality of modern
individual who is looking for perfection in everything he owns, and therefore must be
always in a quest.

The identity crisis of the main plot finds further voice in the sub-plot that Girish
Karnad has picked up from the ancient story of Hayagriva from the Mahabharata.
Karnad made use of the sub-plot to complement the tragic identity crisis of Padmini,
Devadatta and Kapila in the main plot. Though Hayavadana’s crisis on the surface
presents a comic identity crisis deep down it seeks to reflect the same crisis that the
protagonists of the main plot are experiencing. The sub-plot also gives Karnad an
opportunity to realize his self-confessed ambition of writing a play containing a double
plot in Shakespearean manner.

Karnad makes a telling revelation about the identity crisis faced by his
protagonists through Lord Ganesha. In Hindu society, it is a tradition to offer pooja to
Lord Ganesha before embarking on any new venture. Thus the image of Lord Ganesha is
brought on stage to offer obeisance before the actual play begins. Bhagvata notices the
inherent contradiction when he worships Ganesha as the “destroyer of incompleteness”
who is ironically enough himself not perfect. Though he is the son of Lord Shiva and
Goddess Parvati he is far from being perfect. Bhagvata describes this beautiful
contradiction such:

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 "...An elephant's head on a human body, a broken tusk and a cracked
belly - whichever way you look at him he seems the embodiment of
imperfection, of incompleteness. How indeed can one fathom the
mystery that this very Vakratunda-Mahakaya, with his crooked face
and distorted body, is the Lord and Master of Success and
Perfection? " (Havavadana. p. SI)

But “Lord and Master of Success and Perfection” Lord Ganesha really is. Thus,
Girish Karnad makes it amply clear that perfection or completeness does not mean
physical perfection only. Perfection is something which comes from inside to. One is as
perfect as one feels, or as others perceive him. Lord Ganesha is complete and perfect for
his devotees perceive him as such because of his capacity to bring the well meaning
efforts of human beings to fruitful completion. Thus Lord Ganesha’s kind of perfection
may be the real perfection though physically he is far from being perfect or even
complete. One must bear in mind that he is single-tusked. Obviously, perfection
remains an illusion, an enigma because even Gods are not found to be perfect or
complete.

Hayavadana is seeking completeness. He has a horse’s head and a human body.

As such he faces an identity crisis, for he does not fall in any category. He wants to
become complete, so that he can also belong to a class or type. This is a telling comment
on the human psyche. We only accept types. Individuality is always frowned upon and
rejected. Therefore ironically enough the play begins with an invocation to Lord Ganesha
who is himself imperfect as fai as physical appearance is concerned. He has an elephant
head and a human body. The irony is only too clear. Karnad is pointedly questioning the
idea of perfection. If an imperfect god can be worshipped, why can’t Hayavadana, who
also seems to be intelligent and civilized, be at least accepted. Hayavadana is incomplete
in the physical sense as he has a horse’s head on a human body. Right from his
appearance in the play Hayavadana is looking for completeness of his personality. He has
a human body and also a human voice despite having the head of a horse. In this sense
he is incomplete if not distorted. Lord Ganesha has an elephant’s head and a human body.
He “who has an elephant's head on a human body, a broken tusk and cracked belly” -
Lord Ganesha - is revered and it is considered auspicious to worship him before

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embarking on any new venture. Thus, he is brought to the stage right at the beginning of
the play and Bhagvata sings song in his praise. Ganesha is worshipped first, and only
then Bhagvata seeks to introduce the main story. As contrasted to the Lord,
Hayavadana’s presence strikes terror and disbelief in the hearts of those who come across
him. The Actor is fear stricken whereas the appearance of Hayavadana arouses disbelief
in Bhagvata. His appearance at the site of the show is an unwelcome intrusion, whereas
Lord Ganesha is brought in specially, with reverence. Karnad is making a telling
commentary on the inherent ironies of life itself. Something or someone which/who may
not be real and who we have never come across is an object of our respect and reverence,
whereas one who/which is real is most of the time rejected Further Karnad is presumably
suggesting that perfection or completeness must not and cannot be limited to body. Lord
Ganesha is perfect and complete. That means physical attributes must never ensure
perfection. Thus Karnad is making a pointed observation on the modern society where
only physical appearance ascertains perfection.

The sub-plot of Hayavuduna also poses certain questions. Hayavadana's

incongruity in the society is so well marked that he is clearly not acceptable to any
section. He does not belong anywhere. He is neither a horse nor a human being and,
therefore, though he is reasonably intelligent he is shunned by all. Hayavadana thus
emerges as a razor-sharp social satire. Clearly to be acceptable to the society, one has to
be ordinary like others. Any variance from what the society terms normal results in
rejection. Human beings are too much given to accepting only those things or people who
are ordinary or routine.

Conformity to society and its norms is the qualification to be acceptable. Thus a

Hayavadana will always be an outsider - an object of ridicule and curiosity. If he has to
be accepted by the society he has to become, so called complete - complete in the sense
in which society sees completion — either a complete human being or a complete animal.
Thus, there is a crisis for Hayavadana — the crisis of identity. His crisis comes to an end
only when his humanness is taken away from him and he becomes a complete animal.
Hayavadana’s identity crisis emanates from the fact that he does not belong to any group.
He is an intelligent being, who can be useful to society. But he suffers from a sense of
alienation due to his physical identity crisis. I layavadana represents the incompleteness

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of modern man. Modern man is looking for his roots. There is a restlessness, because the
inner being of man in modern materialistic society is increasingly becoming devoid of
any worthwhile emotions. Hayavadana too is experiencing the same hollowness though
for different reasons. His physical alienation makes him restless, and thus he tries to
immerse himself in several social causes in order to become a part of the main stream.
While in conversation with Bhagvata he expresses his anguish:

...So I took interest in the social life of the Nation - Civics, Politics,
Patriotism, Nationalism, Indianizalion, the Socialist Pattern of
Society.. / have tried everything. Blit where is my society? Where?
You must help me to become a complete man. Bhagvata .. But how?
What can I do? . {Hayavadana, p.81).

Hayavadana's physical identity crisis is indicative of the modern man’s

psychological crisis of identity.

Because of the physical alienation from the society, Hayavadana finds it difficult
to be one with his own self or the environment around. Girish Karnad seems to be of the
view that being one with one’s milieu means one belongs. Dhanavel opines that
"Karnad has plainly suggested that reconciliation with one's self and one’s environment
is the best course of action for the incomplete and insatiable human beings for the
attempts ofpersons to achieve completeness and perfection usually end. tragically and/or
comically"12. The search for perfection in the case of the protagonists of the main plot

ends tragically, whereas for Hayavadana too in the sub plot it seemingly ends tragically
for he fails to become a complete human being. And therefore can he be really happy?
Nevertheless, the reader does get a feeling that Hayavadana’s neigh at the end of the play
is one of contentment and he is at peace with himself. One also gets a feeling that like his
mother who runs away ‘happily' after being turned into a horse, Hayavadana too was
meant only to be a horse, and his human body was only an accident. However, it is
indeed ironical that the offspring of a human princess and a celestial gandharva (in the
form of a horse) should find completion in animality. In Hayavadana atone we find the
coming together of the three worlds that has been talked of— the divine, the human and
the animal.
 Karnad has very beautifully demystified the role of divine powers in the life of
earthly beings. Indian society is a very complex one. in both its structural and
psychological make-up. The relationships of individuals within the society are
dependent, to a large extent, on the caste and religion. Karnad explores the working of
caste and religion in the society in all his plays. The influences that caste and religion
have on all the actions of an individual are very strong and cannot be wished away for as
P. Dhanavel observes "a Hindu is born in a caste, and in an occupation. Karnad, then,
re-creates the Indian society in his plays to uncover the layers of false beliefs and
practices one after another rigorously and relentlessly. ” In Hayavadana, Karnad is at
his scathiest best as far as the demystification of religious beliefs in gods and goddesses
is concerned. The play highlights the ironies of life through them.

In our country faith has ruled. Gods and goddesses have been revered and they
have enjoyed blind following. People have traditionally asked for favours from gods
many a time even without making sincere efforts. Hayavadana too asks for his
completeness from gods. Hayavadana has visited almost every pilgrimage and religious
place in the country in search of his identity, but he fails, for no god grants him his wish.
Perhaps Karnad seems to suggest that the modern man is seeking only favours without
having deep faith. Thus gods have become indifferent. This indifference is visible in the
Goddess Kali of Chitrakoot who is sleepy and grants wishes which only complicate
things. The goddess grants him completeness when she makes him a horse, but his human
voice and brain/intellect remain with him. This pushes him into a more problematic
situation. Gods too, in our modern world, have lost a discerning eye. 1'he intervention
of supernatural elements in the lives of the principal characters brings only added
problem and disasters. Here Karnad also seeks to demystify the gods. Hayavadana
undergoes several wasteful experiences in search of completion. Eventually after he gets
completeness from an indifferent and sleepy Goddess Kali, it is not made clear whether
Hayavadana is really happy with this completeness. It does appear that Hayavadana
would have preferred to be a man. Narrating how he became a complete horse he says:

“ ....Ifell at her feet and said. ‘Mother, make me complete. '

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 She said, ‘So be it ’ and disappeared__even before I could say ‘Make me a complete
man ’ I became a horse. ” (Hayavadana, p. 136.)

Thus there is a big question mark on the inherent wisdom of gods and goddesses.
P. Dhanavel observes:

"Tughlaq, Hayavadana, Saga- Mandalci. Tale-danda and The Fire

and the Rain debunk the false structure of certain dominant beliefs and
practices but affirm the reality of human life in its real motives. " 11

The intervention of gods and goddesses does not lead human beings anywhere.
Goddess Kali's intervention with the lives of Devadatta, Padmini and Kapila puts them
through a series of confusing experiences and because the confusion cannot be resolved,
all three of them have to embrace death. One feels like agreeing with Gill that “the role of
Kali in the play just substantiates the view that nothing superhuman can help human
beings. They should realise their limitations imposed by nature and reconcile with
them. ”15

Finally Hayavadana is a complete being when he becomes a complete horse with

horse’s neigh. Hayavadana thus achieves completion, but whether this is really
perfection also is not ascertainable. Hayavadana has grained both the horse’s body and
voice in the end, but we do not know about the brain and intellect. Initially his
completeness as a horse has been thrust upon him and Sangeeta Das rightly opines that
Goddess Kali “instead of mollifying the precariousness of the human miseries, augments
it by facilitating identity crisis on her level.......................................................................The
supernatural beings in their attempts to mitigate the problems of the earthlings aggravate
these towards tragic or comic ends. " 16

However, after becoming a complete horse Hayavadana admits that his existence
as a complete horse has its own advantages over a human existence. His only grudge is
his human voice, which he must shed to become a complete being. He himself has no
clue how to achieve that completeness. Fven Bhngvata does not know how to help him.
Hayavadana achieves his completeness as a horse when he sheds his intellect and
becomes one with his body. Hayavadana’s identity crisis deepens for he first finds it
difficult to become one with his animal body. After he has accepted his body whole-

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heartedly he achieves a perfect existence. He now learns to derive happiness lrom the
innocent happiness of a child. And when Hayavadana becomes complete with the perfect
neigh of a horse Devadatta and Padmini's son gains his childhood and learns how to
laugh. Thus the child also becomes a complete being. I layavadana’s search for his
identity is over. He becomes a complete being. However, Padmini, Devadatta and Kapila
cannot be complete beings, thus they have to be one with the all pervading presence to be
complete beings. In Hayavadana's case the animal in the body posts its victory over an
intelligent intellect which is housed in an animal head. Thus a being is what the head is,
but here the head is only physically that of an animal. During the course of the play the
reader gets the feeling again and again that Hayavadana is more human than many other
so called complete human beings, yet he will be a horse for he has a horse-head.

The issue of perfection as a myth is also heightened through the imperfection of

gods as is evident from the experiences of the major characters of the play with the
heavenly beings. This imperfection is not limited to only physical appearance, as is the
case with Lord Ganesha. The most powerful goddess, the ultimate 'Shakti' Goddess Kali
has been presented in an ironical light. The world is run by gods and goddesses and thus
they must be ever awake. Yet when Devadatta and Kapila offer their heads to the
Goddess Kali, she is caught unawares, as she was sleeping. Her intervention places the
trio in dire difficulties and redemption comes to them in the shape of their death. Further
Hayavadana gets a horse’s body when he in fact wanted to become a complete man.
Thus, the goddess’s intervention in the mortal life does not bring perfection, in the search
of which human beings invoke gods and goddesses. Karnad is thus further emphasising
his point that perfection lies within one’s being, and there is no need for any divine
guidance in this respect. Another corollary of this could be that in this imperfect world
even gods and goddesses have ceased to be perfect. Because modern civilization is sadly
wanting in so many things, the gods are also imperfect. Or may be because gods are now
imperfect, they cannot create or run a perfect or complete world. The identity crisis will
thus always remain.

India is by and large a patriarchal society where women remain on the periphery
with quite an insignificant role to play in the matters of family and society. With
changing social scenario and better education women are seeking empowerment though

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unfortunately in our patriarchal society they fail to be meaningfully empowered. Kamad
is a feminist who seeks to create women characters that are strong and show an
independent personality. Karnad has never created passive female characters. Padmini
o{'Hayavadana is the most emancipated of all the women characters of Karnad's plays.
She knows her mind and strives to achieve what she wants. The greatest strength of
Hayavadana lies in Padmini. It is because of her presence that the play becomes so alive
and complex in a natural way. Because women have remained on the periphery of social
set up, they have been depicted in the literature also as such. However, Padmini of
Hayavadana makes life happen. Karnad has also created other strong women characters,
but as Dhanavel says:

"Of all women characters in Karnad, Padmini in Hayavadana is the

most enchanting woman who wages a war against the patriarchal
order of command and contentment. By her pungent honesty, she is
able to achieve the impossible dream of a perfect man, though for a
briefperiod. " 17

Padmini is a rare woman, who knows her heart and even owns it. She does not
believe in living a life of half-truths. Though she has to succumb to the pressures of
societal do's and don'ls, she makes her point boldly before she takes refuge in the
burning intensity of fire to liberate her. Because she shows a disregard for the social
rules, where her heart is concerned, she cannot hope to lead a contented earthly life.
Therefore, she has to leave this world, just as Nittilai in The Fire and the Rain has to.
She is a dutiful wife to Devadatta, though in her heart of hearts she hankers for Kapila’s
body. Circumstances are so built up that she becomes instrumental in the mix-up of
heads, and for a short while she gets both the fabulous brain and the body, though she is
soon disillusioned. She rebels against the social norms and the patriarchal order of
command. She is painfully honest and it is because of this honesty that she is able to
achieve the impossible dream, which she hankers after, of a perfect man, though only for
a short while. When the heads are transposed she gets a perfect body in the shape of
Kapila’s in addition to the perfect head of Devadatta, which is already hers. For a while
she is having the best of both the worlds and she is happy. But the head i.e., brain does
dominate the body and Kapila’s body is gradually subjugated to Devadatta’s head and

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becomes Devadatta’s body. Padmini hankers after Kapila. B.T.Seetha is of the view that
“the urge in her, to find a complete being us a partner, motivates her actions. In the
framework of these emotions related to artha and kamu, the playwright raises questions
about dharma and moksha. ” . It would be convenient to believe that it is only Kapila’s
body that Padmini is interested in. However, to my mind it has to be something more
than this. Kapila thinks and acts from heart. Padmini also is a person of heart. At the
same time she is a very intelligent and quick woman. She is very w'ell-read and is an
intellectual, but she responds to situations not by mind but by heart. She realizes that she
wants Kapila’s head too after experiencing his body, and she moves out of her house with
her son and goes to the forest to seek Kapila. Her stay with Kapila makes her experience
complete, but after this she has to leave this world, for there is now nothing left for her to
strive for. By coming to Kapila she is not only seeking the completeness of her
experience she is also striving to make Kapila complete whose body, which was
originally Devadatta’s knew her, bus his head didn’t. She tells Kapila:

"... Your body bathed in a river, swam and danced in it. Shouldn't
your head know what river it was, what swim? Your head loo must
submerge in that river - the flow must rumple your hair, run its tongue
in your ears and press your head to its bosom. Until that's done, you 'll
continue to be incomplete. " (Hayavadana, pp. 126-127.)

Thus both Padmini and Kapila also reach a completeness of experience which
Devadatta with Kapila’s body has already had, and as the three lives are inextricably
coiled together they must leave this world together.

Padmini has very normal and natural human failings. She recognizes her physical
desires and makes an attempt to satisfy them. Like Vishakha of The Fire and the Rain she
succumbs to her body but it is not a man who plans it. She is honest enough to recognize
this need and because she does not suppress it and goes against the established social
norms she has to enter fire. Padmini’s story, of course, makes it clear that an individual
cannot fight social order, but at least she does not live a suppressed life. She is a truly
emancipated woman, and naturally, she is not a representative of Indian women. Her
honesty and courage make her unique, who can never belong to a type. Padmini’s

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character has a direct social relevance. Every woman has desires, however, they are
suppressed, and many a time hidden from even their own selves, because of societal
pressures. Padmini is the manifestation of those hidden and suppressed desires.

Karnad shows a rare sensitivity towards the issues of feminine sensibilities.

Hayavadana along with Naga-Mandala deals with the issue of women’s freedom.
Though Hayavadana is generally considered a play of identity crisis of the modern times,
this is equally a play of right to have a choice for women too. The Hindu mythology has
instances of men having more than one wife, and this is considered to be their right.
Even in the modern society the behaviour of a man is not looked upon censoriously if he
has more than one wife or keeps mistresses. Going by this logic a woman also could be
having desire for the same rights, but she is certainly not allowed this right. Through
Hayavadana, Karnad acknowledges this desire, which is becoming more and more
pronounced with women becoming educated and venturing out of their homes. However,
he also makes it clear that social pressures do not allow, at least at present, a woman to
fulfil her desires. A woman is still judged by the standards of a patriarchal society. Like
Nittilai of The Fire and the Rain Padmini too has to lose her life, for she also takes the
path of heart. She goes to the forest with her son to meet Kapila in Devadatta’s absence,
knowing pretty well, that the end now lies in fire. She is a woman capable of taking bold
decisions. She is truly a modern emancipated woman who would like to lead a life
according to her own convictions. However. Karnad does show in Padmini’s end that
even modern woman is not able to live her own convictions. Even today women cannot
love two men and survive in this world.

In all his plays Karnad is drawing inspiration from myth, folk tales or history,
meaning thereby he visits the past. And through this lens of the past Karnad comments on
the modern age and society. All his plays voice very contemporary concerns. In
Hayavadana apart from the problem of identity crisis and women’s rights he fleetingly
touches upon the fate of children abandoned by their parents. It is a play which draws
attention to the parents' responsibility towards their offspring. Hayavadana. and
Devadatta and Padmini's son are left to the vagaries of fate, for parents do not look
beyond themselves. Should the parents not be responsible towards the fate of their
children? This is a very pertinent question which the society has to find solution to? Both

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Hayavadana and Devadatla and Padmini's son arc abandoned by their parents, who fail to
look beyond themselves. The identity crisis and personality problems that these two are
facing could have been reduced to a great extent had their parents shared their life with
their children. But it must be admitted that one of the strengths of the play lies in the hope
that it generates for the ‘nowhere’ children like Hayavadana and Devadatta and
Padmini’s son. In Hayavadana’s happy neigh and the child’s full-throated laugh, there is
hope for life to come. Hayavadana becomes a complete play though it is seeking
completeness for its incomplete characters.

The crisis of human identity is an external problem. People in all times and of all
ages have experienced it. In Hayavadana Girish Karnad has explored the psycho-social
dimensions of the problem. Dhanavel feels that, "The play reveals the essential
'ambiguity of human personality w>hich is apparently shaped or shattered by the human
environment. Fundamentally incomplete and imperfect, the human beings search and
strive for attaining the unattainable ideal of completeness and perfection. " 10 This is the

reason that the protagonists of the play fail. They are hankering after something which
cannot be humanly attained. The psychological and biological limitations imposed by
nature must be respected. Any attempt to improve upon the nature is bound to result in
failure, as Padmini in Hayavadana realizes.

Hayavadana is an offspring of history too in the sense that here Girish Karnad is
drawing inspiration from Shakespearean plays in using two distinct plots. In many of his
well-known plays viz., King Lear, As you Like It, The Twelfth Night20 etc. Shakespeare

has used two or sometimes more than two plots and has also quite successfully
interwoven them together. Karnad draws on this rich dramatic heritage and creates a
play with two plots. Karnad quite candidly admits that he (Karnad) had "always felt
tremendous fascination for Shakespeare's sub-plot - how he tells the same story twice
from two different points of view"21 Thus he "always aspired to write a sub-plot
successfully. ”22 That is why Girish Karnad invented the story of Hayavadana from the

little known myth of Hayagriva. He interprets the story of transposed heads and the
ensuing identity crisis through the identity crisis that Hayavadana is experiencing. Both
the plots are apart yet touch each other. Reeta Sondhi finds interesting parallels between
the two stories. In reference to Padmini she comments:

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 "Her subconscious is as agile as her conscious. As her total
personality her earthiness is alluring, her desire of perfection is
compelling and her waywardness in wanting to shape her own destiny
is as overwhelming as the parallel tale of the princess who chooses a
horse for a mate. " 23

In addition to the identity crisis experienced by all the chief characters of the play,
the play also presents a tale of psychological tension and conflicts arising out of divided
love. This divided love, at a deeper level, means incompleteness, which emerges as the
main theme of the play. The sub-plot of Hayavadana is a reflection of the theme of
incompleteness of the man plot, though at the animal level. The world that Karnad
creates in Hayavadana seems to be a strange one but this world is certainly not unreal.
This is a story of everyone’s dreams which cannot be realized. We are all searching
completeness. Following another stream of thought Hayavadana may be termed an
amalgamation of human and animal world. But as we see in the play, this amalgamation
does not bring any peace to Hayavadana. Rainer he wants to shed it, so that he may also
belong. This amalgamation of intellect and body also takes place when the heads of
Kapila and Devadatta are transposed, and the resultant Devadatta’s head with Kapila’s
body is a perfect amalgamation of perfect intellect and perfect physique. However, this
amalgamation which is the result of an interchange is unnatural and thus is short-lived.
However, another interchange which does result in completeness and happiness to all
concerned lives. This is the interchange of silence and voice between the child and
Hayavadana. Karnad has cleverly used his knowledge of ancient myths to achieve this
subtle transposition.

The tale of Padmini explores social problem too in addition to the psychological
one which arises due to the unusual situation in which the three principal characters are
placed. The psychological problem is that of the conflict between brain and body and
personality crisis. After the heads have been accidentally transposed Padmini is
mortified but both Devadatta and Kapila are happy beyond words. They dance and sing

in joy.

"Devadatta: How fantastic! All these years we were only friends.

146
 Kapila: Now ive are blood relations! Body relations [laughing] What

a gift!" (Hayavadana, pp. 104-105.)

Clearly, it has been the wish of both the friends, though unsaid and perhaps
unconscious too, that they should be one in body also, as they are one in their hearts.
Also, both of them are also hankering after a perfect combination of head and heart along
with Padmini. Thus all three of them stand for whole of the humanity, which has for ages
been striving to attain this well nigh impossible combination. The modern man, with
innumerable scientific achievements feels that this combination can be achieved through
artificial means and tries to improve upon the Mother Nature too. Karnad’s play is
indicative of the frustration and dissatisfaction which will be the outcome, if we meddle
with nature.

Though both the friends might be unconsciously washing for the better attribute of
the other, it is Padmini whose desire, which she recognizes unlike Devadatta and Kapila,
results in the transposition of heads. This gives rise to a social problem too, that of one
woman having more than one man as her mate. There seems to be no solution in sight,
which can be socially acceptable, and thus all three have to end their life to come out of
this inextricable situation.

The play is also making a subtle comment on the present social and political
scenario. Hayavadana becomes Karnad's mouthpiece when he is sceptical about the
theory of child’s pure laughter. He says:

"It’s this sort of sentimentality which has been the bane of our
literature and national life. It has kept us from accepting reality and
encouraged escapism. ” (Hayavadana, p. 138)

It is just after this utterance that Hayavadana loses his power of human speech,
and becomes a complete horse. This could also be indicative of the fact that frank
opinion will be stifled by the society.

In Hayavadana, Karnad has also touched another very pertinent social problem,
that of incompatibility in marriages. The marriage of Devadatta and Padmini is
solemnized with the blessings of their elders. The families are equal in status, and the

147
bride and the groom are very well matched. Yet there does not turn out to be a contented
togetherness. Kapila realizes it quite early in the play, when he observes that Padmini
needs a man of steel to control her. Padmini is a fiercely independent woman who has a
streak of wildness in her. She needs a man of similar temperament, who will accept her
as she is, which unfortunately Devadatta is not. He is a serious scholar, she, a
powerhouse of quick wit and ready intelligence. Both of them do love each other and try
to make their marriage a success, but in addition to their own temperaments, Kapila’s
constant presence in their life acts as a hindrance to this success. Karnad seems to be
asking, “Should marriages he decided only on the strength of the compatibility of
families?" It is because of the incompatibility between husband and wife, that marital
bond is broken. In fact Padmini and Kapila share a physical compatibility. Perhaps
Padmini needs both the men together in her life. That is why they have to die.

Another thing that strikes the reader is that head does dominate and body
gradually falls in line with head. And strangely it may not always have something to do
with intellect, though both Devadatta’s and Kapila’s bodies follow their respective
intellects to a great extent. But in the case of Hayavadana, the horse-head dominates over
the human intellect that resides in that horse-head and Hayavadana becomes a complete
horse with a proper neigh. The modern man is most certainly like Hayavadana whose
human intellect is suppressed by the circumstances.

Hayavadana presents before us a world which is seeking completion. A.K. Sinha

aptly observes that Karnad, in Hayavadana "deftly uses the conventions and motifs offolk
tales and folk theatre - masks, curtain, dolls, the story within a story to create a bizarre
world of incomplete individuals, indifferent gods, dolls that speak and children who
cannot - a world which appears to be indifferent to the desires andfrustrations, joys and
sorrows of human beings. " 21

Karnad’s Hayavadana seeks to explore much more complex and topical issues
than its predecessors - that is the Sanskrit tale from Vetalpanchvimsati and Thomas
Mann’s interpretation in The Transposed Heads. The Sanskrit tale poses a moral
problem, and it also resolves the problem by asserting that the head leads the body and
thus it is the real identity. Mann differs to an extent, and considers human body to be an

148
instrument towards the fulfilment of human destiny. Karnad's Huyavaduna goes deep
into the analysis of the dichotomy of mind and body. Both mind and body must act in
tandem. Though head does dominate over the body, the body has its own natural
psychological demands, which when tamed, bring pain.

The theme of this play is a complex one and Karnad deftly explores the complex
web of tangled relationships. By transposing the heads Karnad brings before the
audience a clash of personalities. By presenting the clash between the bodies and the
transposed heads Karnad is laying bare the inherent clashes and conflicts of a human
personality. Hayavadana makes a skilful use of myths and legends to create a world of
contemporary consciousness. The play depicts Padmini’s yearning for completeness or
perfection. But at the same time the play also deals with the desires of Devadatta and
Kapila at the subconscious level to achieve perfection - a perfect body accompanied by a
perfect mind, which proves to be a chimera. As Suman Bala opines, "The perfect
combination of the spirit and the flesh in human life is next to impossible.

The sub-plot of Hayavadana highlights the theme of incompleteness or

imperfection of the main plot. At the same time it also performs the function of the
prologue and epilogue of a Shakespearean play. Hayavadana thus is a very complex play,
which encompasses several themes, and all the themes are beautifully interwoven The
incompleteness of Devadatta, Kapila, Padmini, Hayavadana and even Lord Ganesha has a
cathartic effect on the audience and makes them analyse and accept their own
incompleteness.

Devadatta is a man of intellect while Kapila is that of body. Though Kapila is

plain to look at, his physique is much more attractive and captivates because of its raw
animal charm. After the transposition of the heads, Padmini is very happy because now
she gets what she had been hankering for, a perfect mind in a perfect body. It is because
of an extraordinary turn of events that this situation could be possible, otherwise a
woman cannot find all the qualities in one man, and if she wants to experience, all the
qualities, she must look for them in more than one man. However, society does not
permit this, and forces a woman to look for perfection in one man only. Hayavadana
brings to the fore the unexpressed desires of the modern educated and intellectually alive

149
woman. However, perfection is not the quality of human beings, that is, to be human one
must be imperfect. Thus Devadatta loses his perfection when his body, which he has got
from Kapila, shows the signs of loosening. And Padmini's search begins again. Thus
the search for perfection is never ending.

Karnad’s play makes a commentary on the modern man’s predicament. The child,
who does not speak nor laugh, is representative of the modern humanity. Actor I
comments:

“Children of his age should be out-talking a dictionary, but this one

doesn 7 cry, doesn 7 even smile. The same long face all the twenty-four
hours. There’s obviously something wrong with him. ” (Hayavadana,
p. 134)

The child is incomplete, and so is the modern man - all of us. But Karnad
rekindles the hope in the child’s full throated laughter in response to Hayavadana’s
laughter. M.K. Naik rightly advises:

“Modern man must recover his sense of childlike curiosity, wonder

and amusement at the sheer incongruity of life in order to achieve
integration."21'

Hayavadana impresses the reader as a thought-provoking analysis of the external

existential dilemma of the fundamental and inherent ambiguity, that human existence or
life per se is beset with. Karnad was deeply influenced by the existentialist thinkers
Sartre and Camus, and existentialist elements became natural features of Karnad’s
thought process. Like Sartre and Camus, thus Karnad too feels alienated in this world and
this gets translated in his works too. This alienation results in the feeling of being
incomplete which leads to tension and which in turn leads to dilemma. L.S.Gill points
out:

“Tension in Hayavadana is between the idea of completeness and

incompleteness. From human to semi-human character, none is
complete and everyone is in search of completion in one way or the

150
 other. But none reaches the desired end and his pursuit of completion
• ^8
leads them nowhere

Incompleteness is the central concern of the play and this is brought out clearly by
such phrases as "This mad dance of incompleteness. " (Hayavadana, p. 134)This
sense of incompleteness has ever been the bane of human existence. The playwright
himself emphasises this when he says to Krishna Gandhi:

"The theme of the play is an old one... man's yearning for

completeness, for perfection. It's this yearning which makes people
restless in their ordinary existence and makes them reach out for
extraordinary things - art in the case of a love affair and science and
metaphysics in the case of others. But the ideal of perfection itself is
ambiguous. The character of Hayavadana is invented as an example
of this ambiguity." ‘y

Hayavadana’s quest for wholeness underscores the play's exploration of identity

and reality. The ambiguity of human existence is further enhanced when mind is forcibly
conjoined to an alien body, due to Padmini's mistake. This mistake gives Karnad an
opportunity to delve into the dilemma, arising out of the ambiguity, rather duality of
human existence. The human body emerges as a separate independent entity. Contrary to
the conventional belief that body is only a tool, it emerges that body has its own
memories, its own experiences, and therefore its own personality. It has to be subjugated,
but it does remain a force. Thus both mind and body, though reside together are two
entities. Arundhati Roy in a review observes:

“The symbolic core of Hayavadana comprises the philosophic crisis

ofestrangement between mind and body. ”30

Along with this central premise of the duality of mind and body, the imperfection
as a result and the ensuing search for completeness or perfection, Karnad has also
handled another concern of humanity; namely, the society determined moral codes.
Society inflicts certain rules on the free individuals, thus binding them. Codes
established by society curb the individuality of persons. One such code is the concept of
purity of the body. Since times immemorial mankind has wished to break this code.
Padmini of Hayavadana is not the representative of the modern emancipated woman
%

only; she is reflective of whole mankind. Social beliefs make physical purity such a big
issue that human emotions are suppressed everywhere. Padmini makes an effort to break
the moral code and seek satisfaction from two different men. Padmini epitomises the
eternal human wish of ruling both mind and body, or at least having them as
companions. However, in her failure, as well as of Devadatta and Kapila too; Karnad
indicates that mankind cannot live with perfection. The play transcends the physical and
becomes metaphysical in its treatment of concerns that are beyond the precincts of the
worldly and societal norms. Just like Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot3', Hayavadana

too is a tale of an endless wait. When Padmini makes an effort to end that wait, society
overpower her and the basic problem does not reach any conclusion. Natural human
aspirations and wishes have to be sacrificed at the altar of social codes of artificial
morality. A woman can live with only that man in society whom she weds. Any other
relationship, howsoever, fruitful that may be, has to be snatched stealthily. That is
exactly why Padmini has to go to forest to be with Kapila, for in the forest there is no
society.

Hayavadana is a very rich play thematically. Structurally also the play is

complex. The play is multi-layered and operates at many levels. What adds to the
richness of the play is that technically too the play lives upto its eternal yet modem
themes. Veena Noble Dass opines:

"In addition to its thematic richness, Hayavadana is a hold experiment

in dramatic technique. The modernity of its theme is admirably
matched by the ambiguity of its dramatic model. The entire play is
cast in the form of traditional Indian folk drama which took several
features of ancient Sanskrit drama, but adapted them to its own
‘special' needs as a popular form of art. " 32

Kamad’s indebtedness to tradition and folk culture is not confined to thematic

concerns only. In technique too his plays show an influence of traditional tools and folk
theatre. Thus Sutradhar. masks, dolls, chorus, curtains, mimes, dance etc. form an
intrinsic part of the play. Karnad employs the traditional tools of folk theatre to explore
the complex themes of identity crisis, sense of completion or perfection and tangled
relationships. The old conventions and motifs of traditional folk theatre are all beautifully
used to further the story and bring the crisis in front of the reader with added intensity. In
the play Kamad has used the folk art form of Yakshagana to examine the modern
problem of the body-intellect divide. The performance style is heavily influenced by the
conventions and theatrical devices of Yakshagana, a traditional form of Kannada theatre.
Apart from the explicit debt to Yaksagana dance-drama, there is an unmistakable
Brechtian influence too. The opening of the play also follows more or less exactly the
rituals of Yakshagana theatre.

Thus at the beginning of the play a mask of Ganesha is brought into the stage and
following the tradition the God is worshipped. The Bhagavata sings verses in praise of
Ganesha, accompanied by his musicians. HayavaJana derives its being from myths; it is
also structured on the line of dramatic myths. The play opens with an invocation of Lord
Ganesha and also ends with thanks to him, keeping in agreement with the dramatic
traditions. Bharata in his Natyashaslra has prescribed Purvcmga, which was a longer
religious ceremony. The Purvcmga preceded the production of every play and invoked
the deities with music, song and dance. Here in Hayavackma the invocation of Ganesha
serves another purpose too, that of intensifying the central theme— the quest for
completeness— of the play. The play also uses the devices of the traditional folk theatre.
In folk culture stories are interwoven. Here in Hayavackma too this is the case. There
are two rather three separate plots which run together and also cross each other’s paths
occasionally. The main plot of Devadatta, Padmini and Kapila is, as is already known, a
story from Kathasaritasagara. This is being presented as a stage play by some modern
day actors. Hayavadana, with his tragic predicament, intrudes in this play. Hayavadana's
story runs separately from that of Devadatta and Padmini, though both the stories talk of
identity crisis. However, towards the end both the stories touch each other when
Hayavadana and the child meet. Bhagvata, the Sutradhar, who has remained a
sympathetic onlooker of the two stories till now, becomes a participant. Thus all the
three plots interconnect and the distinction between the reality and the fiction blurs.
Another tool of folk theatre that Kamad uses is that of Sutradhar, who is
traditionally used to introduce a play to its audience. Most important in Hayavackma is

153
the use of the Bhagavata. a narrator figure, who functions as an intermediary between the
fictional characters and the audience. Generally a Sutradhar, after introducing the play,
appears only at the conclusion of the play. In Hayavadana, however, the Sutradhar, also
performs the function of connecting the two stories, and amalgamating them to form a
complete whole The folk theatre's Sutradhar has been cleverly given multiple roles in
Hayavadana. Bhagvata presents the main plot to the audience and thus is a detached
observer. He is the intermediator in Hayavadana’s case and he also becomes Padmini's
confidant in the end. Christopher Baime observes:

"The presence of Ganesha. a mask of a one-tusked elephant and the

protective deity of actors, serves not only to establish links with
traditional theatre but also to anticipate the use of masks in the play
and to underline the key thematic complex - the search for
completeness. "y'

In Kathakali and Yakshagana. the entry of the figure is accompanied by dancing

and the gradual lowering of the curtain which culminates in the revelation of gods or
demons to the audience in all their costumed and masked splendour. While Karnad
follows the mechanics of the device, the theatrical effect is precisely the opposite.
Hayavadana keeps ducking out of sight until finally 'the curtain is lowered right down to
the floor. Hayavadana. who has a man’s body but a horse's head, is sitting on the floor
hiding his head between his knees.' The device is repeated in the same ironic, anti-
climactic way for the appearance of Kali before the beheading scene.

Stage directions such as 'Kapila goes round the stage one' allude to parikramana, a
pattern of conventional movement described in the Natyasastra, which literally means
'walking around.' and is used to suggest a journey from one locale to another. Karnad also
calls for devices such as miming 'a cart-ride.' 'knocking.' and 'picking up an axe,' which
clearly belong to the code repertoire of mime, a Western convention which is not known
in traditional Indian folk theatre. The climactic duel between Devadatta and Kapila is
stylized like a dance.

Hayavadana is an innovation in the fusion of modern and traditional theatrical

device of using the spectacular to jolt the audience into an alert attention to the play.

154
Nothing can perhaps be more spectacular than the scene at the Kali temple where the
heads of both the friends roll on the ground and then both of them come back to life in
the twilight. This twilight also makes the cloudiness of existence that will accompany
them for the rest of their lives.

Another theatrical device "Chorus’ is used by Karnad to present the unsaid and
sometimes those thoughts which even the characters themselves are not aware of. Female
chorus voices Padmini’s deep embedded thoughts thus:

"Why should love stick to the sap of a single body? When the stem is
drunk with the thick yearning of the many petalled, many flowered
lantana, why should it be tied down to the relation of a single flower. "
{Hayavadana, p. 82).

The traditional theatrical tools are thus used to further the action of the play. The
dramatic tools are also used to convey the playwright's views and thoughts. The
appearance of Devadatta and Kapila on the stage wearing masks conveys to the audience
that the world itself is a theatre and we are all playing some or the other role. Also that
human beings are hiding their true identity, perhaps even from their own selves.
Hayavadana like Karnad’s other plays is very modern in its spirit. Duality of character is
the trait of modern man. We are all sporting many faces. The masks worn by Kapila and
Devadatta indicate this duality of modern character. The modern man hides his real self
beneath the faces, that he wants to project to the world and wears at various given times.
Masks are traditional theatrical devices which have always been used in ancient Sanskrit
drama. However, modern literature in its bid to be realistic, has not employed the use of
masks to a great extent, and by using them in Hayavadana Karnad too was
“unconsciously overcoming my own resistance to the use of masks.”34

The dolls, the toys for Devadatta and Padmini’s son perform the function of
bringing the feelings hidden somewhere in deep crevices of human psyche to the fore.
They tell the audience that in her reveries Padmini is dreaming of some man other than
her husband. Thus they unmask the masked identities.

The eye of the past interprets the actions, trials, travails and tribulations of the
present. In fact, in all his plays Karnad examines a myth or a folk tale from the

155
standpoint of the contemporary world and tries to find contemporary solutions to it.
These devices also help in furthering the action of the play. The dolls come to life and
inform the audience what goes on in Padmini's mind and thus they too perform the
function of Sutradhar. Further, Padmini sends Devadatta away to Ujjain to get new dolls;
and sneaks away to forest to meet Kapila, in the hope of perfecting her experience.

By establishing that mankind cannot live with perfection, Karnad ends the play on
an optimistic note; for only in the wake of imperfection there resides a possibility of any
movement towards improvement. In this context, R.S. Sharma avers:

"That completeness is a humanly impossible ideal is suggested first in

the story of Hayavadana and later in the transposition of heads. By
showing the absurdity of the ideal of completeness the play finally
achieves its aesthetic goal. It implicitly asserts the value and
significance of human imperfection which makes any upward
movement possible. ”35

Hayavadana is a story of imperfection and incompleteness; caused, as M. Sarat

Babu rightly perceives, "by the alienation of the mind (head) and the body. ”36 It is
because of this alienation within them that Devadatta and Kapila become complementary
to each other. Devadatta is the mind and Kapila, the body. However, Devadatta’s mind
and Kapila's body when brought together do not produce a perfect man. If nature has
willed the alienation of mind and body, it will always remain so. Thus Devadatta’s mind
takes control of Kapila's body when the two are brought together and in the course of
time, Kapila’s body becomes soft and delicate. Similarly, Devadatta’s body becomes
strong and rugged to suit the head of Kapila. Thus if nature has willed the alienation of
mind and body, it will always remain so. Obviously, if one seeks to bridge the alienation
between mind and body, it must be done within the limits prescribed by nature. Mind and
body are two separate entities and the perfection of both might not reside in one being.

The mind and body are two separate entities, and the two-headed bird on the front
door of Padmini’s house symbolises this duality. It also gives an indication that this
conflict because of the duality of mind and body is going to be the main concern of the
play. Like his other plays Hayavadana, though rooted in ancient folklore, addresses

156
contemporary issues. This search for identity and completeness is eternal. The quest
was, is, and will always be Girish Karnad himself says,

“Do Hayavadana and Nagamandala have nothing to say to oui-

audiences about themselves? When has man ceased to he interested in
the relationship between mind and body, in man's quest jot-
completeness? "3J

157
 NOTES
'P. Dhanavel., “The Humanistic Vision of Girish Karnad,” in The Indian Imagination
oJ'Uirish Karnad (New Delhi: Prestige Books, 2000), p. 12.
2Vanashrec Tripathi, "Hayavadana: Towards Forging an Indian Theatre,” in Three
Plays of Girish Karnad: A Study in Poetics and Culture (New Delhi: Prestige Books,
2004), p. 46.
3Girish Karnad. "Note to ffayavadana." in Three Plays (1994; rpt. New Delhi:
Oxford University Press, 2002 (8lh impression), p.68. (Subsequent citations to the text
of the play are from the same edition and the page numbers have been given in the
parentheses immediately following the reference.)
4Eugene O’Neill, The Plays of Eugene 0 'Neill, (New Delhi: East West Press, 1989).
5Thomas Mann, The Transposed Heads, trans.Lowe-Porter ( London: Martin Seeker ,
1955)& Warbung Ltd.
6M.K.Naik, “A Study of' Hayavadana " in Girish Karnad's Plays: Performances and
Critical Perspectives ed. Tutun Mukherjee (Delhi: Pencraft International, 2006), p.
139.
7L.S.Gill, “Hayavadana : A Critical Assessment” in Girish Karnad's Hayavadana: A
Critical Study, ed. L.S.Gill (New Delhi: Asia Book Club, 2005), p. 87.
8Ibid„ p. 97.
9Suman Bala, “Search for Completeness in Hayavadana" , Gill, p. 135.
IUN. Krishnakutty, " And Did They Live Happilt Ever After : An Enquiry into
Hayavadana", Gill, p. 139.
"ibid., p. 141
,2P. Dhanavel., “Identity Crisis in Hayavadana,'' in The Indian Imagination of Girish
Karnad (New Delhi: Prestige Books, 2000), p. 41.
"Dhanavel., “The Humanistic Vision of Girish Karnad,” p. 22.
l4Ibid., p. 25-26.
"Gill, “Hayavadana : A Critical Assessment” . p. 94.
!6Sangeeta Das, “Identity CiIsis in Hayavadana.” in Girish Karnad's Hayavadana" A
Critical Study, ed. L.S.Gill (New Delhi: Asia Book Club, 2005), p. 150-151.
"Dhanavel, p. 28-29.
lfiB.T.Seetha, “Quest for Completeness in Hayavadana and Naga-Mandala," in
Girish Karnad’s Plays: Performances and Critical Perspectives, ed. Tutun
Mukherjee (Delhi: Pencraft International, 2006 ), p. 194.
|l) Dhanavel.. p. 47.
20William Shakespeare. Complete Works ( New York : Modern Library, 2007)

158
2‘Meenakshi Rayakar, “An Interview with Girish Karnad,” New Quest, 36
(November-December 1982), p. 34.
22Ibid.
23Reeta Sondhi, “ Hayavadana a Continuing Search," Enact, (January-February
1984), pp. 205-6.
24A.K.Sinha, “Karnad: Thematic Concerns and Technical Features,” in New
Directions in Indian Drama. ed. Sudhakar Pandey. and Freya Barua (New
DelhiiPrestige Books, 19940, p.l 14.
25Suman Bala, “This Mad Dance of Incompleteness: Search for Completeness in
Girish Kamad’s Hayavadana,” in New Directions in Indian Drama, ed. Sudhakar
Pandey, and Freya Barua (New Delhi:Prestige Books, 19940, p.l66.
9A
M.K.Naik, “From the Piorse’s Mouth: A Study of Hayavadana,” in Dimensions of
Indian English Literature (New Delhi: Sterling, 1984), p. 196.
97
Hazel E Barnes, , Sartre and Flaubert, (Chicago: University of Chicago
Press 1981).
98
.Gill, “Hayavadana:A Critical Assessment,” p. 97.
29Krishna Gandhi, “Hayavadana," Enact, (August-September,1972) pp. 68-69.
30Arundhati Roy, “Transposing Realities,” The Hindu (Magazine): Online Edition of
India’s National Newspaper, Sunday, 14 April 2002.
31Samuel Beckett, Wailing for Godot (New York Grove Press, 1954)
T9
Veena Noble Dass, “Search for Tradition in Kannada Drama: The Plays of Girish
Karnad,” in Modern Indian Drama in English Tradition (Hyderabad: Tarun Printers,
1988), pp. 160-161
33Christopher Balme, "Indian Drama in English: Transcreation and the Indigenous
Performance Tradition," in Post Colonial Stages: Critical & Creative Views on
Drama, Theatre & Performance, ed. Flelen Gilbert (West Yorkshire: Dangaroo,
1999), p. 156.
34Rajinder Paul, “Girish Karnad Interviewed," Enact54, (June-July, 1971) p. 4
TS
R.S.Sharma quoted by Shubhangi S. Rayakar, " The Development of Girish Karnad
as a Dramatist: Hayavadana,” in Studies in Contemporary Indian Drama, ed.
Sudhakar Pandey and Freya Taraporewala (New Delhi: Prestige Books, 1990),p. 49.
TA
M. Sarat Babu, “Physical Deformity: Karnad’s Hayavadana, Tendulkar's Sakharam
Binder and Sircar’s Evam Indrajit,” in Indian Drama Today-A Study in the Theme of
Cultural Deformity (New Delhi: Prestige Books. 1997). p. 84.
17
■ Chaman Ahuja, “Building a Great Tradition,” (An Interview with Girish Karnad) in
Contemporary Indian Drama Astride twoTraditions, ed. Urmil Talwar & Bandana
Chakraborty (Rawat Publications: Jaipur, 2005) p.i?7

159