Raghupati: Politics of Religion or Religion towards Politics?
Anjan Dutt's take on Tagore's celebrated work "Bishorjon" aptly describes the position of religious faith in today's socio-political affairs, exploring several dimensions of the multi-faceted philosophies of Faith and their manipulative powers. Religion is one of the primary pillars of society and humanity, at large. It invokes virtue and benevolence amongst all. But at the same time, it can be a deadly weapon to be used to feed the lust for power, leading to violence and disharmony. The play depicts how the titular character Raghupati balances the dynamics of the two aforesaid shades, within the mind of Joysingha. The protagonist of the play is Joysingha's dilemma. This is the confusion he faces regarding which path to follow, whether the path of peace and love, or the path of violence and bloodshed. He was, since long, only aware of the former philosophy, something that Raghupati had taught him as a part of paternal love. He fails to recognize the Rag...