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List of Plays

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{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Ratan Thiyam
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1948|01|20}}
| birth_place =[[Manipur]]
| death_date = 
| death_place =
| nationality = Indian
| other_names =
| alma_mater = [[National School of Drama]]
| known_for = [[Birbhum Blossom Theatre]]
| occupation = Playwright, Theatre Director<br/>Founder ''Chorus Repertory Theatre'', 1976
| years_active = 1974–present
| employer =
| organization =
|awards= [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]] in Direction, 1987<br/>
[[List of Sangeet Natak Akademi fellows|Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]] 2012}}

'''Ratan Thiyam''' (born 20 January 1948) is an [[Demographics of India|Indian]] playwright and theatre director, and the winner of [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]] in 1987, one of leading figures of the "''theatre of roots''" movement in [[Indian theatre]], which started in the 1970s.<ref name=co>[[#Co|Cody, p. 1348]]</ref> Also known as Thiyam Nemai, Ratan Thiyam is known for writing and staging plays that use ancient [[Theatre in India|Indian theatre]] traditions and forms in a contemporary context.<ref>[http://manipuronline.com/Profiles/thiyam.htm Thiyam Nemai] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070706071507/http://www.manipuronline.com/Profiles/thiyam.htm |date= 6 July 2007 }}</ref> A former painter, and proficient in direction, design, script and music, Thiyam is often considered one of leading contemporary theatre gurus.<ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950CE2DC1130F937A25753C1A9609C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all Theater in Review – 'Nine Hills One Valley'] by Jason Zinoman, [[New York Times]]'', 14 October 2006.</ref>

He worked as Chairperson of the prestigious [[National School of Drama]] from 2013-2017. He had also worked as Vice-Chairman of [[Sangeet Natak Akademi]] before joining NSD. He has also worked as Director of National School of Drama from 1987 to 1989. He is also the founder-director of ''Chorus Repertory Theatre'', formed on the outskirts of [[Imphal]], Manipur in 1976.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20121104012601/http://www.hindu.com/mp/2008/12/30/stories/2008123050210600.htm The world's a stage: Theatredoyen Ratan Thiyam on how he conquers space] ''[[The Hindu]]'', 30 December 2008.</ref> He was awarded the [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]] in Direction in 1987, given by [[Sangeet Natak Akademi]], India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama, and the [[Padma Shri]] given by [[Government of India]] in 1989. He was awarded the 2012 [[List of Sangeet Natak Akademi fellows|Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]], the highest honour in the performing arts conferred by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama. In the year 2013, Ratan Thiyam receives honorary D.lit from Assam University, Silchar.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/art-and-theatre/india-needs-many-more-regional-schools-of-theatre-nsd-chairperson-ratan-thiyam_148181.html|title=India needs many more regional schools of theatre: NSD chairperson Ratan Thiyam|date=2013-12-23|work=Zee News|access-date=2018-01-19|language=en}}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Ratan Thiyam graduated from [[National School of Drama]], New Delhi in 1974.<ref>[http://www.nsd.gov.in/Annual_Report_2005-06.pdf NSD Graduates] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718213711/http://www.nsd.gov.in/Annual_Report_2005-06.pdf |date=18 July 2011 }}</ref>

==Career==
[[File:Chorus Repertory Theater.jpg|thumb|right|''Chorus Repertory Theatre'' founded by Ratan Thiyam in 1976]]

He went on to set up a theatre group called Chorus Repertory Theatre<ref>[http://www.chorusimphal.com/c/a.php chorusimphal]</ref> in [[Imphal]], Manipur in 1976. He was also briefly the director of [[National School of Drama]] (NSD), New Delhi (1987–88).<ref name=co/>

His production of [[Ajneya]]'s ''Uttar Priyadarshi'' in [[Meitei language|Meitei]] was staged at the 1st [[Bharat Rang Mahotsav]] (BRM), the annual theatre festival of [[National School of Drama]] (NSD), Delhi in 1999,<ref>{{cite news |title=All the world's classics, on a stage |url=http://www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/19990318/ile18004.html |newspaper=[[The Indian Express]] |date=18 March 1999}}</ref> his presentation of [[Kalidasa]]'s epic poem ''[[Ritusamhaara|Ritusamharam]]'' was closing production of 4th BRM in 2002,<ref>{{cite web |title=BHARAT RANG MAHOTSAV : A RETROSPECTIVE|author= Kavita Nagpal |url=http://pib.nic.in/feature/feyr2002/fapr2002/f170420021.html |date=16 April 2002 |publisher=Press Information Bureau ([[Govt. of India]]) }}</ref> subsequently the 10th BRM in 2008, which also marked the golden jubilee of NSD, opened at [[Kamani Auditorium]], New Delhi, with a performance was ''Prologue'', the first part of his ''Manipur Trilogy'', when all past alumni has gathered for the festival.<ref>[http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Features/Culture_Cauldron/National_School_of_Drama_celebrates_golden_jubilee_in_style/rssarticleshow/2694072.cms National School of Drama celebrates golden jubilee in style] [[The Economic Times]], 12 January 2008.</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Celebrating 50 years of NSD|author=Manisha Jha|url=http://www.hindu.com/2007/12/27/stories/2007122750620200.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071230102238/http://www.hindu.com/2007/12/27/stories/2007122750620200.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 December 2007 |newspaper=[[The Hindu]] |date=27 December 2007 |location=Chennai, India}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/the-graduates/255144/|title=The Graduates|date=28 December 2007|newspaper=Indian Express|access-date=2 April 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004221012/http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/the-graduates/255144/|archive-date=4 October 2012|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The 12th BRM in January 2010 featured Ratan Thiyam's ''When we Dead Awaken''.<ref>{{cite news |title=Talking theatre|url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/theatre/article74498.ece |newspaper=[[The Hindu]] |date=2 January 2010 |location=Chennai, India |first=P. |last=Anima}}</ref>

==The plays of Ratan Thiyam==
His works profess a deep concern for social welfare and spiritual yearnings in the midst of the political chaos in the modern world. His plays infuse rationalised and multifaceted analysis of myriad perspectives. Using ingenious theatrical stagecraft, his plays are tinged with literary beauty and meaning. Most of Ratan Thiyam's plays are thematically Indianised and are profound plays with universal appeal.

His works are strongly influenced by [[Natya Shastra of Bharata|Natya Sastra]], an Indian theatre style propounded by [[Bharata Muni|Bharata]] during the second century B.C., as also [[Theatre of ancient Greece|ancient Greek drama]], and the [[Noh]] theatre of Japan. His approach to theatre has been shaped by years of study under the tutelage of several major exponents of the traditional Meitei performing arts. Thiyam is also known for his use of traditional martial arts, of [[Thang-Ta]] in his plays, such as in ''[[Urubhangam]]'' (Broken Thigh), of Sanskrit playwright [[Bhāsa]] itself based on an episode from epic, the ''[[Mahabharata]]'', which along with ''Chakravyuh'' (Army Formation) is considered one of his finest works.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=maGU4ziPQJQC&pg=PA146&dq=ratan+thiyam&as_brr=0 India – Ratan Thiyam] ''The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre: Asia/Pacific'', by Don Rubin. Published by Taylor & Francis, 2001. {{ISBN|0-415-26087-6}}. ''Page 146''.</ref> In 1986, he adapted Jean Anouilh's "Antigone" as ''Lengshonnei'', a comment on the personal behaviour of politicians, failing to handle political situation in the state.<ref name=co/> ''Uttar Priyadarshi'' (The Final Beatitude), an adaptation of Hindi verse play by playwright and poet [[Agyeya]] in 1996, based on a story of redemption of King [[Ashoka]], a man's struggle against his own inner dark side and a plea for peace, knowing its impact on future generation. The play has since travelled to many parts of the South Asia, Australia and the US.<ref name=ba/><ref>{{cite news |title=Next Wave Festival Review; In Stirring Ritual Steps, Past and Present Unfold|author=Margo Jefferson|url=http://theater.nytimes.com/mem/theater/treview.html?pagewanted=print&res=990ce6dc1131f934a15753c1a9669c8b63 |newspaper=New York Times |date=27 October 2000 }}</ref>

His play ''[[Andha Yug]]'' (The Blind Age), known for creating an intense and intimate experience, around the epochal theme, was famously staged in an open-air performance, at Tonga, Japan, on 5 August 1994, a day before the forty-ninth anniversary of Atomic Holocaust in [[Hiroshima]].<ref>[[#Da|Dharwadker, p. 196]]</ref>

His major plays include Ritusamharam: The work seeks solace and sanity amidst chaos and violence of today's world.<ref>[http://manipuronline.com/Profiles/thiyam.htm Profile at manipuronline] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070706071507/http://www.manipuronline.com/Profiles/thiyam.htm |date= 6 July 2007 }}</ref>

In 2014, Thiyam opened a Manipuri adaptation of [[Macbeth]], translocated to a historical [[Meitei people|Meitei]] context, with names of characters unchanged. It was the opening act at the 2019 inaugural Bangladesh International Theatre Festival.<ref>{{cite news|author=Vikram Phukan |url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/theatre/desi-drama-subcontinental-style/article28221870.ece |title=Desi drama, subcontinental style |work=‘’The Hindu’’ |date=29 June 2019 |access-date=29 June 2019 |location=Mumbai, India}}</ref>

==List of Plays==
[[File:The Shrine at Chorus.jpg|thumb|'The Shrine', the main theatre of Ratan Thiyam's Chorus Repertory, Imphal]]
* ''Karanabharam'' (1979) (''Karna-bhara'': Karna's burden by Sanskrit playwright [[Bhasa]])<ref name=Da>[[#Da|Dharwadker, p. 105]]</ref>
* ''Imphal Imphal'' (1982)
* ''Chakravyuha'' (1984) (Army Formation)
* ''Lengshonnei'' (1986) (An adaptation of [[Jean Anouilh]]'s ''[[Antigone (Anouilh)|Antigone]]'')
* ''Uttar Priyadarshi'' (The Final Beatitude, by Hindi playwright [[Agyeya]]) (1996)<ref name=ba>[http://www.ballet.co.uk/magazines/yr_00/dec00/rr_rev_crt_1000.htm Review: Uttarpriyadarshi] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205221756/http://www.ballet.co.uk/magazines/yr_00/dec00/rr_rev_crt_1000.htm |date=5 February 2012 }} by Renee Renouf, ''ballet magazine'', December 2000,</ref>
* ''Chinglon Mapan Tampak Ama'' (Nine Hills One Valley)<ref>[http://www.asiasociety.org/arts/chorus/contextDissent.htm Asia society] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926225350/http://www.asiasociety.org/arts/chorus/contextDissent.htm |date=26 September 2007 }}</ref>
* ''Ritusamharam'' (''[[Ritusamhaara|Ritusamharam]]'' by Sanskrit playwright [[Kalidasa]])<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20050204151236/http://www.hindu.com/mag/2005/01/30/stories/2005013000450500.htm "Real art attacks the wrong system" and director-playwright Ratan Thiyam's plays bear testimony to his words] ''[[The Hindu]]'', 30 January 2005</ref>
* ''[[Andha Yug]] ''(The Blind Age, by Hindi playwright [[Dharamvir Bharati]])<ref>[http://www.fordham.edu/campus_resources/public_affairs/inside_fordham/inside_fordham_archi/november_2004/news/renowned_playwright__18831.asp Ratan Thiyam at Fordham University] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609200656/http://www.fordham.edu/campus_resources/public_affairs/inside_fordham/inside_fordham_archi/november_2004/news/renowned_playwright__18831.asp |date= 9 June 2007 }}</ref>
* ''Wahoudok'' (Prologue)<ref>''Bharatrangmohotsav'' (theater Festival) 2008, [[National School of Drama]], New Delhi, India.</ref>
* ''Ashibagee Eshei'' (based on [[When We Dead Awaken]], by Norwegian playwright [[Henrik Ibsen]]) (2008)<ref>[http://www.e-pao.net/epSubPageExtractor.asp?src=reviews.theatre.When_We_Dead_Awaken Delhi Ibsen Festival : When We Dead Awaken – Play]</ref><ref>[http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090306/jsp/northeast/story_10626902.jsp Another play by Ratan Thiyam, another astonishing splash.] ''[[The Telegraph (Kolkata)|The Telegraph]]'', 6 March 2009.</ref>
* ''The King of Dark Chamber'' (''Raja'', 2012), based on a play ''[[Raja (play)|Raja]]'' (1910) by [[Rabindranath Tagore]].<ref>{{cite web | title = The National School of Drama's Bharat Rang Mahotsav... Featuring 96 productions...| url =http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/Articles/12/jan/06-the-national-school-of-dramas-bharat-rang-mahotsav-featuring-96-productions.asp|publisher=MumbaiTheatreGuide.com |date=12 January 2012| access-date = 24 December 2013 }}</ref>

==Awards==
* 1984: Indo-Greek Friendship Award, 1984 (Greece)
* 1987: [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sangeetnatak.org/sna/awardeeslist.htm |title=SNA: List of Akademi Awardees |publisher=[[Sangeet Natak Akademi]] Official website |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727234019/http://www.sangeetnatak.org/sna/awardeeslist.htm |archive-date=27 July 2011 }}</ref>
* 1987: Fringe Firsts Award, from [[Edinburgh International Festival]] [http://www.chorusimphal.com/c/a.php]
* 1989: [[Padma Shri]]<ref>[http://www.rediff.com/news/2001/jul/20mani.htm which he returned in July 2001]</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Padma Awards|publisher=[[Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (India)|Ministry of Communications and Information Technology]]|url=http://india.gov.in/myindia/padmashri_awards_list1.php}}</ref>
* 1990: Diploma of [[Festival Internacional Cervantino|Cervantino International Festival]], (Mexico)
* 2005: [[Kalidas Samman]]
* 2008: [[Asian Cultural Council#John D. Rockefeller 3rd Award|John D. Rockefeller Award]]
* 2011: Bharat Muni Samman<ref>{{cite web |url= http://odisha.360.batoi.com/2011/12/18/ratan-thiyam-received-bharat-muni-samman/ |title=Ratan Thiyam Received Bharat Muni Samman |work=odisha.360.batoi.com |year=2011 |quote=Ratan Thiyam, the doyen of theatre was awarded Bharat Muni Samman for the year 2011 |access-date=28 December 2012}}</ref>
* 2012: [[List of Sangeet Natak Akademi fellows|Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]] (Akademi Ratna)<ref>{{cite web |title=Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and Akademi Awards 2012 |url=http://pib.nic.in/archieve/others/2012/dec/d2012122401.pdf |publisher=Press Information Bureau, Govt. of India |access-date=28 May 2012}}</ref>
* 2013: [[Bhupen Hazarika]] Foundation Award<ref>{{cite web |title=Ratan Thiyam – the doyen of Indian theatre |url=http://www.india-north-east.com/2013/11/ratan-thiyam-doyen-of-indian-theatre.html |publisher=India-north-east.com |access-date=29 November 2013}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
''Some Roots Grow Upwards'' a 2003 documentary by Kavita Joshi and Malati Rao, was based on the life and work of Ratan Thiyam, especially his political ideologies, and his use of theatre as medium of political protest.<ref>[http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/files/13357/10675953141open_frame_report.rtf/open_frame_report.rtf Open Frame 2003– August 21–27 2003] [[India Habitat Centre]], New Delhi.</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|3}}

*{{cite book |title=Theatres of independence: drama, theory, and urban performance in India since 1947 |author=Aparna Bhargava Dharwadker|year=2005 |publisher=University of Iowa Press|isbn=0-87745-961-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mLQaz-12Eo8C&q=ratan+thiyam&pg=PA105 |ref=Dh }}
*{{cite book |title=The Columbia encyclopedia of modern drama, Volume 2 |author=Gabrielle H. Cody |author2=Evert Sprinchorn |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]]|year=2007|isbn=978-0-231-14424-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aQqOKWmjdQUC&q=%22Shyamanand+Jalan%22&pg=PA1117 |ref=Co }}

==External links==
{{commons category|Ratan Thiyam}}
* [http://www.chorusimphal.com Chorus Repertory Theatre Official website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070706071507/http://www.manipuronline.com/Profiles/thiyam.htm Profile at Manipur Online]
{{SangeetNatakAkademiFellowship}}
{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Art}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thiyam, Ratan}}
[[Category:Indian theatre directors]]
[[Category:Indian male dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:1948 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Dramatists and playwrights from Manipur]]
[[Category:Meitei people]]
[[Category:Indian scenic designers]]
[[Category:Indian drama teachers]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]]
[[Category:National School of Drama alumni]]
[[Category:National School of Drama faculty]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts]]
[[Category:Indian arts administrators]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian designers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male writers]]

Ratan Thiyam - Revision history

imported>Tholme: /* List of Plays */