Women in Asif Currimbhoy’s Plays

HUMANITIES

Among the most creative playwrights of the post-colonial era, Asif Currimbhoy is one of the known personalities with his creative pen. He has written and published more than thirty plays. He reveals variety of themes with intelligent characterization in his plays. Social and political issues are the major themes represented by Currimbhoy in most of his plays. His plays are necessarily “Emotional Reaction” of what he feels and sees around him. His plays deal not only with wide ranging of thematic concerns but are also peopled with different characters. Asif Currimbhoy gives more importance to his women characters than the men characters. He shows his different perspective from the usual characterization of women. Women play a central role in Currimbhoy’s plays. His female characters are mainly from the lower and middle classes: housewives, teachers, mistresses, daughters, slaves, and servants. Meserves comments thus: “In Asif’s best plays the power of his women characters dominate the action… in retrospect one finds Asif Currimbhoy’s women character, whether minor or major, stronger and more memorable than his men”. (X-XI) His women characters are more courageous and powerful than men characters. Women in his plays protest against male chauvinism and colonized male minds. However, in some of his plays the protest confines to the home with a silent protest.

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