Vikramōrvaśīyam

Vikramōrvaśīyam (Sanskrit: विक्रमोर्वशीयम्, meaning Urvashi Won by Valour) is a five-act Sanskrit play by ancient Indian poet Kalidasa who flourished in the 4th Century CE, on the Vedic love story of king Pururavas and an Apsara, a celestial nymph named Urvashi.

As per the tradition, while the basic plot has taken elements from the sources such as the Samvada Sukta of the Rigveda (ऋग्वेद), Mahabharata and others, Kalidasa has made significant adaptations to make the presentation more appealing while establishing his prowess as a playwright (नाटककार).

Vikramorvashiyam is the second of the three plays written by Kalidasa, the first being Mālavikāgnimitram (मालविकाग्निमित्रम्) and the third being the celebrated Abhijñānaśākuntalam (अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम्).

According to one theory, "Vikram" in the title alludes to Kalidasa's patron king Vikramaditya; however, there is no evidence for this. It simply means "Valour".

The classical theory of Sanskrit drama, known as Natyashastra (नाट्यशास्त्र) makes it a rule that the plot of a Sanskrit drama 'must be famous' (नाटका: ख्यातवृत्ता: स्यात्). Accordingly, authors of Sanskrit plays use the stories from Puranas, Vedic texts and classic epics, namely Mahabharata and Ramayana for developing plays. However, the core objective of a drama is entertainment (मनोरंजन). Since everyone is familiar with the basic plot, if the presentation of the play is not interesting or enchanting in some way, people would be bored. Hence there is emphasis on originality (मौलिकता) of the playwright. In the case of Vikramorvashiyam, here is how Kalidasa has adapted the original subject:

Rigveda (ऋग्वेद): In the 95th section, called Sukta (सूक्त) of the tenth cluster (called Mandala/मण्डळ), there is a dialogue between Pururava and Urvashi. Situation suggests that she has left the king after living for four years with him. The king beseeches her to return, but she refuses (saying, "न वै स्त्रैणानि सन्ति शालावृकानां हृदयान्येता:" - meaning, the hearts of women are not like those of jackals). The story ends at that.

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