ARTICLE
Prahlad Natak
The first written Prahlad Natak text was composed in the late nineteenth century by the poet and dramatist Gopinath Pariccha using Sanskritised Odia. It was collected in 1938 and is housed in the Madras Oriental Manuscript Library. Pariccha was patronised by the zamindar Ramakrishna Chhotaraya of Jalantar (in present-day Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh), who is credited with conceiving the first performance. Prahlad Nataks soon began to be conducted in neighbouring areas, following the same play but with some performative variations. This proliferation soon transformed Prahlad Natak into a theatrical genre based on a single play. The form lost royal patronage in the twentieth century and is today supported by rural audiences.
Prahlad Nataks are still performed in the Ganjam district of southern Odisha by some travelling troupes, but its popularity has declined significantly in recent years.
Bibliography
Mohapatra, Sitakant. “Prahlada Nataka – a Window on a Syncretic Performative Tradition.” National Centre for the Performing Arts 14, no. 1 (1981): 15-25. Archived on Sahapedia, accessed November 10, 2021.
Pani, Jiwan. “Prahlada Nataka.” The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre ed. Ananda Lal. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2003: 358-360.
Patnaik, D N. “Prahlad Natak.” Sangeet Natak no. 102 (1992): 24-33.
Patnaik, Sunil. “Rare art form finds few takers – 150-year-old traditional dance languishes in neglect”. The Telegraph Online, December 2010, accessed October 12, 2021. https://www.telegraphindia.com/odisha/rare-art-form-finds-few-takers-150-year-old-traditional-dance-languishes-in-neglect/cid/455439
Rath, Sura Prasad. “Prahlad Natak.” South Asian Folklore: An Encyclopedia eds., Margaret A Mills, Peter J Claus and Sarah Diamond. New York: Routledge, 2003: 486-487.