Giddh

by Vijay Tendulkar Translated by Vasant Dev

‘गिद्ध’ ऐसे अभिशप्त इनसानों की कहानी है जो अपनी गिद्ध मनोवृत्ति में आपाद्-मस्तक लिप्त हैं। या यों समझिए इनसानी लिबास पहने वे सब के सब शापभ्रष्ट गिद्ध हैं। गिद्ध-दृष्टि तो मरे हुए, चुके हुए शवों पर होती है, पर ये इनसानी गिद्ध जीवितों पर अपनी लोलुप दृष्टि लगाये इस क़दर अभिशापित हैं कि तमाम मानवीय संवेदनाएँ और रिश्ते उनके लिए शव बन चुके हैं और उनका झपट्टा एक-दूसरे पर जारी है। छल-कपट और अमानवीय दाँव-पेंचों में उसके परिवार के लोग आज की इस उपभोक्ता संस्कृति में असहज और असामान्य नहीं लगते। विजय तेंडुलकर मनुष्य और समाज की इन खोजों को जितनी तीव्रता से अनुभव करते हैं उतनी ही सहजता से उसे उकेरते भी हैं। ऐसे चरित्र भले ही क्षण-भर को असहज और असामान्य लगें, पर ये हमारे आसपास विद्यमान हैं और मंच पर वे खुलकर सामने प्रगट हो जाते हैं।

Genres: Plays, Marathi

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1971

Reviews

[Abhiparna Bhosale · Rating 5 out of 5]

The version of ‘Gidhade’ published in 1971 was solely edited for the purpose of its commercial dramatisation- the one which is available on Amazon kindle. It was edited to fit the time frame of a drama and to satisfy the Censorship requirements.

I still wonder what Tendulkar must have written originally!

[Ravina P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horrible reality, a microcosm of many such human relationships all around.

[Prasanna Joshi · Rating 3 out of 5]

intriguing ..

the end didn’t make sense to me … it leaves the story half complete - no salvation for the soul or the reader …

[Sumitabh · Rating 5 out of 5]

५ स्टार देणे हे देखील कमीच वाटते आहे मला. भन्नाट नाटक. मानवी स्वभावाचे दर्शन, मनुष्य प्राणी हा किती हिंसक होऊ शकतो ह्याचे उत्तम उदाहरण.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This play is principally rooted in the economic and moral deterioration of a family. It describes a very lifelike narrative of sex and fierceness, of voracity and egotism. The core meaning of the play is money – wealth which makes some of the characters vulture-like – hence the name ‘Gidhare’. The debauchery and deterioration of human individuals belonging to a middle-class milieu is exposed through the interactions among the members of a family. Ramakant and Umakant, the two brothers, are very cruel by nature. Their insatiability and sadism, their father's perverted nature, their sister Manik's unpolished sensuousness – everything contributes to the realistic representation of those viler phases of human character that one would like to shut one's eyes to. The physical assaul of the father by his own children, the two brothers' forceful abortion of their sister's child, the reciprocated abhorrence among the members of the family, underscore the necessary malevolence, inherent in human character. Thus, the play is a coldblooded dissection of human nature. Tendulkar reveals the human character’s innate propensities to gluttony, sex, passion and egocentrism. The plot and the very effective employment of dialogues exhibit the meanness concealed in man -- a meanness, embedded in the garb of well-cultured, highly-placed or modest personalities. Tendulkar displays the divergent yearnings secreted in the inner mind of a person. At times the descriptions used by the playwright becomes too unpolished and intense for our taste. Tendulkar has been criticized as well, for writing gruesome, horrendous and vile melodramatic actions. But so did Tennessee Williams. We do not mind really. Art imitates life, afterall. A must-read this one.

[Juhi Patel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the narrative leaves you with a lot of anger and irritation, his expertise at doing so is commendable. He builds strong characters and considers no softness in portraying the reality of the Indian society.