On March 07, 2019, I had a thought-provoking and an unforgettable experience. An electrifying play named 'Mokhsada' was staged in the Shilpee Theater in Kathmandu. I witnessed performance art at its best. This article is for Romisha who could not make it then. (You were greatly missed, Romi!) Here, I shall describe the play's synopsis and hopefully give some glimpses into the experience.

The audience were asked to put their phones in either silenced or switched off mode. Flash photography and video-recording the play were strictly forbidden. I could not take many pictures as I was captivated by the surreal actors.

Hinduism & Woman

Nepalese society is deeply rooted in the Hindutva worldview. The Shrutis & Smritis particularly the mythical tales of Mahabharata and Ramayana, the wisdom of the Vedas, and the legal texts of Manusmriti have all contributed to shaping the Nepalese psyche. It is from the stories of the 33 million deities manifested in the Trimurti Gods that this byzantine society derives its inspirations and the aspirations.

How a woman is perceived in Hinduism is dual-faceted. These facets are contradictory. In one picture, you have this fierce Goddess Kali representing Shakti (power), intimidating & formidable who decapitates demons. On the other hand, you have the stories of Panchakanya whose protagonists confront sexism and objectification. Take for example the episode where Indra the God of the heavens tricks Ahilya into having sexual intercourse. Another instance is the story of Draupadi where she is dehumanized at several occasions, once objectified to a prize of an archery game where she later ends up in polyandry with 5 men. It is the negative facet of woman's projection, that has taken the heavier toll in the Nepalese society be it, early or contemporary.

Manu Smriti, the ancient Hindu text of the laws has largely dictated the typical Nepali way of life. Notions captured in the phrases such as chori ko bihe garne umer (daughter's marriageable age), Kanya Dan (Virgin offering), Pati dewo bhava (My husband is my God), the Varna & Jaat system (class & caste hierarchy) have all set woman into a feeble spot. Hundreds of souls are crushed daily in this context. Girls once considered to reach a marriageable age are rampantly pressurized to get married. Some are put forward by their parents as Tunas for procurement as seen in the Tsukiji's fish market in Japan. That is to entice a well-off husband for the daughter. Love relations are extinguished for reasons of caste or class incompatibility. Women have been confined as permanent housewives and spouse minions. Considered lathangi (fragile), she needs the protection at all phases; in childhood by her father, in youth by her husband, and in old age by her sons. These are but few ramifications in a typical Hindu girl's life in Nepal.

Nepalese have always feared to critique Hinduism. The major reason is the indoctrination of mass, where the idea of critiquing held-beliefs is considered blasphemous and the critic, subject to reprehension. The problem of fear, however, seems secondary. The Sanatana Dharma (literally perpetual order) is axiomatic and not to be questioned.

Aahuti, the noted socio-cultural analyst and a Dalit author observes that the Nepalese populace is deficient of critical analysis when it comes to examining one's faith. Consequently, credulity has been masquerading as reverence towards one's culture. Such is the milieu for a Nepalese woman.

Play Synoposis

'Mokshada' was a musical play which consummately portrayed the angst of Nepalese women, living in gender-oppressive orthodoxy, through the voices of the 5 characters of Panchakanya. Panchakanya is a Sanskrit word which literally means five virgins. It is a band of women extolled in the epics of Hindu mythology. The play through their voices and acts symbolically attempts to break the shackles of the false dogma of male-supremacy and then reveal the once-cloistered beauty of feminity.

The play was designed and directed by Namrata KC, and performed by the Aesthetics Dance Studio. It was staged in Shilpee Theater, Battisputali in Kathmandu. It was organized by the UNDP Nepal, the UN Women Nepal, and the UNFPA Nepal, on the occasion of the international women's day.

The play was laid across 5 acts and myriad scenes which employed mime as the primary vehicle of communication with sporadic poetic lines. A medley of performances ranged from the Indian classical Kathak dance to the Latin American Salsa, and the New Yorker B-Boying (B-Girling rather). An acrobatic of the aerial hoop was also shown. The light effects were phenomenal. And they deftly manoeuvred a host of props such as a pearl pendant, an aerial hoop, a ball of sun, walking poles, a basket with a baby, and fabrics and boxes denotative of shackles.

The play was complemented by a choir of musicians playing live for sound effects and background music. It included the Indian classical vocal - Raga, a Cajón and bar chimes, an acoustic guitar, and a Tabala. The Spanish fingerstyle pieces and chord progressions were beautiful. All these varied art forms of dance, music, drama came into a beautiful coherence to forge a powerful blow against sexism, gender-based violence, and women oppression.

The Mythological Context

Although this play is not retelling the accounts of Panchakanya as read in the Indian epics, Mahabharata and Ramayana. It is still heavily influenced by the ancient stories.

One of the main assumptions that the play has made is that the audience is familiar with Panchakanya's original tales. It does not provide any primer on the Hindu stories. I knew little of these characters. It is only after watching the play that I went home and immediately studied the original Hindu tales.

Therefore, I had to juxtapose the missing context retrospectively to the play experience. Here, I give a brief snippets of Panchakanya's stories pertinent to understand the play. I was aghast to discover the rampant objectification of women in these ancient texts.

Ahilya

The Ramayana has a story where Indra, the Vedic deity; the king of the heavens lured by Ahilya's beauty tricks her into adultery. Later, their bodies are briefly petrified (later liberated by Rama) as a curse by the sage Gautama, her true consort.

Draupadi

Mahabharata details the Swayamvara, the choosing of a spouse by the girl, of one of the Panchakanyas. Drapuada, the father of Draupadi arranges an archery competition. Many monarchs fail the challenge. Arjuna excels the game and gets to marry Drapupadi as his prize. Draupadi is quickly shoved into polyandry, thereafter. Back home Kunti, Arjuna's mother orders him to share his prize among his four siblings.

In another episode, a game of dice unfolds that later becomes the inducers for the Kurukshyatra war, a dynastic war in the Kuru kingdom between two bands of cousins, Pandavas and Kauravas.

The spouse of Yudhishthira, the leader of the Pandavas after loosing everything in the game, stakes forward his own wife Draupadi up for the bet.

Tara

In the Hindu epic, Ramayana there is a story told of a monkey king named Vali who sallies forth with his brother Sugriva. When Vali returned, he was livid and abducted Sugriva’s first wife, Ruma, as revenge. Tara however counsels fervently for her release.

Mandodari

She is the consort of Ravana, the demon-king of Lanka. Forced into the marriage she is portrayed as beautiful, pious, and righteous . When Ravana abducts Sita, Rama's wife, Mandodari asks him to release her immediately. Unmoved by her request, he proceeds soon after ending up in death.

Kunti

A key figure in the Mahabharata, Kunti is the mother of the Pandavas. She abandons her first-born son born out of wedlock, on the fear of shame in the society. She is shown later to guide her remaingin sons amidst treachery, the venal courts of Kuru, and the war itself.

Act I: Unheard voice of Ahilya

The sexual desires pervasive to all humans also subsume Ahilya. Ahilya does not want to be a rock for enjoying the sexual intercourse but she wants to be a flower. Any woman found adulterous in the Nepalese society could be reprimanded and stigmatized. This reaction is parallel to the curse of turning Ahilya to a rock in the ancient account I've mentioned above. The playwright is most probably thinking of this analogy.

"However, here I want to extend the interpretation of the rock and the flower. My first thought was that in the play, Ahilya here wants to dismantle two assumptions of the women-oppressive society. The rock can be a metaphor with two connotations. First, a rock is inanimate. Thus, during a sexual act, women are expected to act docile and static. Second, a rock does not emote. Again, the pleasure is polarised to the male.

Rather, Ahilya considers herself a flower and wants to continue becoming one. The contrast between rock and flower is vivid here. A flower is not to be chafed by the man-handling but ought to be appreciated and loved with delicacy and with care. Thus according to Ahilya, must be the case during a sexual act."

Act II: Draupadi Wishes

Draupadi is owned as a prize by Arjuna and given to be shared with the other 4 brothers. The winning act where, Arjuna's arrow hit the fish's eye has now plunged deep into Draupadi,'s soft heart as she is tossed around in many episodes of objectification including becoming a bet in a gambling game. After the Kauravas demand her to be disrobed, Dhritarashtra intervenes to elicit 3 wishes. Here, she asks her husband (one who put her as betting prize) be freed

Act III: Tara: The Puppet Girl

The duel of Sugriva and Bali unfolds. Tara is reduced to a prize similar to the setting in Draupadi's Swayavara. They have no intimacy for a woman. What is woman to them? Something to own as a possession and to set for display. A pleasure inducing object like a painting or an ivory-box. They do not want her to think or to be real or to live. Tara says she is not an object. She is a person. Tara cries out her feelings and aspirations matter. She says that a Tara must be loved. She must be asked about her wishes. She must be comforted to have her own feelings, her own thoughts, and her own ideas.

Act IV: Mandodary: The Frog and the loyal lover

Mandodary has many choices. However, they need to be validated by the man in-charge of her. From times of the Shastras (Hindu scriptures) to today, she says there is fidelity and love of a woman is neglected. Woman are subordinated by the men. Many times their own husbands. Mandodary, similar to the Cinderella's fairy godmother's curse, is turned into a frog. She says her voice is taken as a frog's croak to our male rules.

Act V: Kudos to Kunti

Kunti says, 'I have the power to bear a child. I have the freedom to choose the path and the time of my marriage. At any cost, I refuse to lose my children. I am Kunti. I celebrate my femininity.'

Conclusion

'Mokshada' is an anti-thesis to the characterization of the 5 women done in the Shastra. The dance-driven play is the outcry of today's Nepalese woman struggling to protect their dignity. A powerful blow against sexism through a magnificent orchestration of light, sound, and action. It captivated me, informed me, intrigued me, and enriched me. Romi, you gotta join-in in the next staging.