Gujarati theatre

Gujarati theatre refers to theatre performed in the Gujarati language, including its dialects. Gujarati theatre is produced mainly in Gujarat and Maharashtra, in cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Baroda, and else where Gujarati diaspora exists, especially North America. Rustam Sohrab, performed by Parsee Natak Mandali on 29 October 1853 in Mumbai, marked the beginning of Gujarati theatre.

The region of Gujarat has a long tradition of folk-theatre, Bhavai, which originated in the 14th-century. Thereafter, in early 16th century, a new element was introduced by Portuguese missionaries, who performed Yesu Mashiha Ka Tamasha, based on the life of Jesus Christ, using the Tamasha folk tradition of Maharashtra, which they imbibed during their work in Goa or Maharashtra.Sanskrit drama was performed in temple and royal courts and temples of Gujarat, it didn't influence the local theatre tradition for the masses. The era of British Raj saw British officials inviting foreign operas and theatre groups to entertain them, this in turn inspired local Parsis to start their own travelling theatre groups, largely performed in Gujarati. The first play published in Gujarati was Laxmi by Dalpatram in 1850, it was inspired by ancient Greek comedy Plutus by Aristophanes.

In the year 1852, a Parsi theatre group had performed a Shakespearean play in Gujarati language in the city of Surat. In 1853, Parsee Natak Mandali the first theatre group of Gujarati theatre was founded by Framjee Gustadjee Dalal, which staged the first Parsi-Gujarati play, Rustam Sohrab based on the tale of Rostam and Sohrab part of the 10th-century Persian epic Shahnameh by Ferdowsi on 29 October 1853, at the Grant Road Theatre in Mumbai, this marked the begin of Gujarati theatre. The group also performed a farce Dhanji Gharak at the same venue. In its early days, Gujarati theatre largely adopted the entertainment-led style and themes of Parsi theatre, and the plays which were presented in a mix of Gujarati with Urdu and English languages. From being performed without a stage as in the case of Bhavai, raised platforms were added, then backgrounds, which gradually led to the proscenium theatre. Dalpatram formed a theatre group to reform the vulgar element in the bhavai performance of the time, and also the faulty Gujarati language used by Parsi theatre across Mumbai theatre circuit.

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