A Relevant, New Age Mahabharata: Peter Brook’s Battlefield

Peter Brook’s new play, based on the Mahabharat, speaks of the aftermath of the Kurukshetra War.

A still from Peter Brook’s Mahabharata (Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

Most of us are no strangers to the stories in the Mahabharata. To say that the epic is an intricate and awe-inspiring collection of mythologies and histories, would be a bland and boring understatement.

The epic is an encyclopaedia of some of civilization’s greatest stories and Peter Brook, an English actor and film director, recognised that. With multiple Tonys and Emmys in his kitty, Brook is no stranger to the stage.

Peter Brook’s magnum opus is an 11 hour long stage adaptation of the Mahabharata. (Photo: Reuters)

In 1985, the Mahabharata received a facelift. One of antiquity’s greatest epics was now a nine hour long (11, with breaks!) play. Peter Brook’s magnum opus toured the world for four years and has been recognised as one of the greatest, most memorable productions of all time. The play is an interesting watch; the cast is multi racial. Bhim is African American, and Arjun is white. Mahabharata has been adapted for television as a mini series.

Bhim, in a still from the Mahabharata (Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

At 90, Brook isn’t done yet. His tryst with the Mahabharata continues, and from it has emerged Battlefield. This play tells the timeless story of the aftermath and the horror of war. Ostensibly, the focus is on the Kurukshetra War and the Pandavas and Kauravas’ dawning realisation that the price they have paid is very heavy indeed. At the time of Battlefield, the dust has settled and blood has stopped flowing, but the terrible knowledge that the impact of war is eternal and unchangeable must be confronted. The story of Battlefield is universal, almost. The Greeks have told the same stories, from the time of the Olympian gods and Achilles.

Draupadi, in a still from Peter Brook’s Mahabharata. (Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

Battlefield is especially relevant today; we are no strangers to horror and carnage. We live in the age of televised war and are numbed by death. Prolonged and relentless exposure has dulled our ability to feel horrified. It is precisely in these circumstances that we must rethink war.

The play will be staged next year from 3-27 February in London.

Battlefield will open at the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord in Paris – Brook’s spiritual home – where the Mahabharata ran for more than 30 years. It will then go on an international tour. Among numerous other places, the troupe will perform in India.