Mahabharata

by Miriam Fernandes, Ravi Jain

A contemporary dramatic take on a 4,000-year-old Sanskrit epic that is foundational to Indian culture.  Why Not Theatre’s large-scale, once-in-a-generation retelling of  Mahabharata  brings together a cast of performers entirely from the South Asian diaspora, blending cultures and art forms in a spectacular production at the Shaw Festival and the Barbican Theatre in London. Over two parts ( Karma  and  Dharma ) and a communal meal ( Khana ), this translation and adaptation of  Mahabharata  spans generations and takes audiences into the hearts and minds of some of the most complex and enduring characters ever created.  With warring families and devious revenge plots,  Mahabharata  tells the story of an ancient feud with philosophical and spiritual questions that are no less urgent today. In times of division, how do we find wholeness? Are we destined to repeat the mistakes of our ancestors? And how can we build a new world when we have nearly destroyed this one?  Contains the full text of the play along with materials opening up the behind-the-scenes world of the production, including interviews with the creators, background and context about the source material, production photographs, a  Mahabharata  family tree, and glossary. "Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes’s contemporary take on the Mahabharata is one of the most beautiful emotional journeys I have had the privilege to witness. It is inspiring, mind broadening, and speaks to all the senses. It even brings you back to the origins of theatre itself, when people would gather in the quarries around a bonfire to tell stories. With their tasteful use of technology, dance, and opera, the 4,000-year-old Sanskrit poem comes to life and feels more universal than ever. A captivating theatre experience, from the first flame to the last pixel." – Robert Lepage "In their stunning rendition of the great Indian epic M ahabharata , Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes brilliantly reverse the whole concept of what Bertolt Brecht famously advised theatre to make the familiar, unfamiliar. Jain and Fernandes have turned the unfamiliar into the familiar. The 4,000-year-old saga most Indians grew up with is made accessible to a contemporary audience the world over. No mean feat. ‘The play, true to its source, crosses all boundaries of culture, class, and geography. Its timeless storytelling and evocative stage design is transformed into a saga for the world, with its fundamental emotions of human nature – power, hate, jealousy, greed, and lust. To be gob-smacked by this innovation would be an understatement. Immerse yourself in this take on the Mahabharata and travel with it in time into the past, present, and future of humanity." – Deepa Mehta

200 pages, Paperback

Published September 19, 2023

Reviews

[Alan (the Lone Librarian rides again) Teder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Karma and Dharma
A review of the Coach House Books 🍁 paperback edition (September 19, 2023).

I saw the often stunning Toronto production of Fernandes/Jain's 🍁 adaptation of Mahabharata last month in April, 2025. The 4,000 year-old epic 100,000 verse poem is compressed into a 2 part theatrical production lasting a combined 4 and 1/2 hours. You could see both parts in one day if you chose a combined matinee and evening performance.

This playscript publication is an expanded effort that includes not only the play text but also several pages of production photographs, and then a further several dozen pages of interviews with the playwrights, Mahabharata scholars, and several of the actors, dancers and musicians involved. It completely enhances your understanding and appreciation of the play and the several year effort that went into its making.

I had prepared for my viewing of the play by reading R.K. Narayan's The Mahabharata: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic (1987/2016) which I reviewed as Pandavas vs Kauravas Highlights. In their playscript book interview co-playwrights Fernandes & Jain reveal that their go-to source was Carole Satyamurti's Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling (2015). At 928 pages, I wouldn't have been able to manage that one in the time I had available, but some things can always be held in reserve for any upcoming Long Books Challenge™ 😉.

One thing that immediately struck you when seeing the production on stage was the gender-fluid casting with many female actors performing in the otherwise male-dominant original text roles. You quickly accepted this though as things proceeded, especially with the level of acting and physicality involved. Also you remember that many of the characters are demi-gods. There was a rather neat comment on this in the performer interviews:

I also really pushed to highlight the queerness in the work. That was really important to me, because in India it's so rare that you see it. ... The whole production is actually incredibly queer. There are no boundaries. There's no trying to define what a man or a woman is - or their sexuality even. When you look really closely into the production, inside each character, you'll find queerness. You can't do Mahabharata if you're stuck in binary ways of thinking.

Programme booklet for the Why Not Theatre/Canadian Stage production of Mahabharata in Toronto, Canada April 2025. The cover image shows soprano Meher Pavri as the divine incarnation of Krishna in the operatic segment of The Baghavad Gita. Image from own photo.


Curtain call at the conclusion of "Mahabharata Part 1: Karma: The Life We Inherit" with the actors acknowledging the musicians. Image from own photo.

Trivia and Links
You can read a review of the 2025 Toronto production at The Slotkin Letter by Lynn Slotkin, April 17, 2025.

You can read further background on the Mahabharata and singer Meher Pavri's performance of the Gita at Opera meets Epic by Arpita Ghosal, April 9, 2025.

[SM · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal writing and storytelling. My professor and I love this and cannot wait to see it live.