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Dak Ghar (The Post Office) is a 1912 Bengali play by Rabindranath Tagore. W. B. Yeats produced an English-language version of the play and also wrote a preface to it. [3] It was also translated into Spanish and French. It was performed in English for the first time in 1913 by the Irish Theatre in London with Tagore himself in attendance.
Aug 12, 2012 · Dak Ghar (1966) This is a very unusual and bittersweet film based on a Rabindranath Tagore story about the last few days of a dying boy named Amal (an unforgettable Sachin). Produced by the Children’s Film Society, I suppose it can be categorized as a children’s film, although as with most good children’s movies it is entertaining for ...
Aug 7, 2020 · Set in the early 20th century of rural Bengal, ‘Dakghar’ tells the story of a lonely orphan boy, Amal. He lives with his aunt and uncle and has been sick for a long time.
Jul 27, 2021 · Dak Ghar 1965 Bollywood fim based on an eponymous 1912 play by Rabindranath Tagore. It was directed by Zul Vellani and starred Sachin, Mukri, AK Hangal, Sudha and Satyen Kappu among others, with cameo...
- Introduction
- Author Biography
- Plot Summary
- Characters
- Themes
- Topics For Further Study
- Style
- Historical Context
- Compare & Contrast
- Critical Overview
Rabindranath Tagore, an Indian writer of all forms of literature (as well as a painter and composer), predominantly wrote in Bengali, though several of his poems and plays have been translated into English. Originally written in Bengali in 1912, Dak Ghar was translated into English as The Post Office and performed in 1913 by the Abbey Theatre Compa...
Rabindranath Tagore was born on May 7, 1861, in Calcutta, India, which was then under British rule. His mother was named Sarada Devi, and his father, Debendranath Tagore, was a scholar, religious reformer, philosopher, and writer. Tagore began writing at an early age, publishing poetry in various magazines and journals by the age of thirteen. By th...
Act 1
The Post Office, a three-act play, begins with Madhav Dutta speaking with the Doctor about a young boy with a fever. The Doctor says the boy cannot go outside or he will get worse. The Doctor quotes scripture and proverbs that support his recommended treatment. After he leaves, Thakurda, a wanderer with whom Madhav is acquainted, comes in. Madhav tells Thakurda that his wife has wanted to adopt a son and now they have finally done so. The boy is an orphan who is distantly related to them, som...
Act 2
Amal sits at the window when the Curdseller passes by, singing out his wares. Amal beckons to him, but then says he has no money. Amal does not want to buy dai(curds); he wants to hear about the Curdseller's village and to be taught the song that the man uses to sell his curds. He wants to learn how to sell curds when he grows up, walking around and singing. The Curdseller tells the boy that he should become a pundit instead. Amal says "I will never become a pundit." Amal talks about how he f...
Act 3
Madhav says that Amal looks weak from spending all day by the window befriending most of the townspeople. Madhav says that the Doctor will no longer allow Amal to sit by the window. Amal protests because the Fakir (a mystical holy man) is coming to see him. As it turns out, the Fakir is really Thakurda in costume. Madhav lets the man in and Thakurda sits on Amal's bed. Thakurda tells the boy stories of the fantastical Parrot Island. He promises to take Amal there when he is well. Amal asks Ma...
Amal
Amal is the protagonist of the The Post Office. A young village orphan adopted by his distant aunt and uncle, Amal is new to town and is excited by all that it has to offer. He is innocent and naive and has a rich imagination. His chief desire is to see the world, which makes being confined to the house even more painful for him. Since Amal is sweet-natured, he does not complain. Instead, he makes the best of his situation by befriending several of the townspeople who pass by his window. Amal...
Auntie
Auntie is the unnamed wife of Madhav Dutta and is also Amal's adoptive mother. She is mentioned just a few times in the play, and only by Madhav and Amal. All that is known of her is that she wanted to adopt a son and that she likes to read. She does not actually appear or speak. It is odd that the adoptive mother of a boy who is clearly dying has no interaction with her son in the days leading up to his death.
Curdseller
The Curdseller is one of the townspeople who befriends Amal. He tells Amal of his village and teaches the boy how to sing the song he uses to sell his dai. He also gives Amal free dai on more than one occasion. He tells the boy that his questions and excitement "have shown me the joy in selling dai."
Death as Release
The main theme of The Post Office is that of death as a release, both physical and spiritual, even though the word death(and all of its variants) never appears in the play. However, death is constantly referenced. Madhav, particularly, talks around the subject. In the opening act, the Doctor tells Madhav that if the boy "is fated for long life, then he shall have it." When the Doctor begins to speak about the alternative, Madhav cuts him off. Even when Amal is clearly dying before everyone's...
Class Structure
The secondary theme in The Post Officeis that of class structure. Madhav is a member of a tenuous middle class. He has done well for himself in business, but he is not rich enough to live a life of leisure. He has enough to provide for an adopted son and for his medical care, albeit not the best care available. This is shown by the Doctor's treatments, which are derived from religious proverbs. Madhav is afraid of the Headman's power to make the Raja displeased with him and his family. He wan...
Imagine that Amal lives long enough to speak with the Raja. What would their conversation be like? Try to mimic the style of the play and write a brief dialogue depicting Amal and the Raja when the...Study Indian society in 1913 and the early twenty-first century. Conduct a class presentation comparing and contrasting the two eras, and be sure to use visual aids.Critics have cited The Post Office as being representative of Tagore's overarching themes and subject matter. Read several of Tagore's other plays and poetry. In an essay, discuss the respective th...In two separate instances during the play, Amal references the tale of the "seven champak-flower brothers." Using the Internetand your local library, research everything you can about the tale and...Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing, or indicating that an event is about to take place, is used throughout the play, especially in reference to Amal's impending death. As the play opens, Madhav voices his fears that Amal will not survive. When Amal interacts with the townspeople, several notice that he does not look well. Shudha says that "to look at you reminds me of the fading morning star." One particularly striking instance of foreshadowing occurs when Amal declares, "I will never become a pundit." Indeed, he...
Allusion
In literary terms, an allusion is an indirect reference to something outside the work in hand, adding a layer of meaning and complexity. Often, allusions refer to other literary works, works of art, or historical events. They imbue the fictional work in which they appear with a more concrete sense of reality, and they enhance the work's theme or tone by association. Allusions can be overt, simply mentioning a work or event, or they can be subtle, mentioning a character in the work or hinting...
Colonial India and the Movement for Independence
Though the The Post Office does not directly address colonial India, it was written while India was under British rule, and its form is very much influenced by this fact. Tagore was educated in England and was the first Bengali author to write in Western forms such as the short story. This sort of cross-cultural interaction is why Indian literatureis inextricably linked to its colonial context. Initially a collection of warring nation-states, India was not unified until it was under British r...
The Hindu Religion
Hinduism is integral to India's national identity, socially and culturally. Tagore was a Hindu and Hindu teachings heavily influenced his work, especially The Post Office. Indeed, one of the core tenets of the Hindu religion is reincarnation, the idea that one's soul lives in many physical bodies during its journey. This tenet coincides with Tagore's exploration of death in the play. The caste system (which posits that enlightened souls are born into higher castes while unenlightened souls ar...
1913: In India, mortality rates from disease are extremely high, and Amal very well could have succumbed to a number of infectious diseases common in India, including typhoid fever, dengue fever, o...1913: India has been under British rule since the mid-1700s, but growing dissatisfaction fuels the movement for independence.Today:Having gained independence in 1947, India is now a federal republic.1913: Medical practice in India largely follows Ayurvedic principles. The philosophy is several thousand years old.Today: Ayurvedic medicineis still utilized in India, though this is often in tande...In the Western world, The Post Office is Tagore's most successful play and his second most successful work overall (after Gitanjali). Written in 1912 and first performed in 1913, the play was an immediate success; it was translated into English, performed internationally, and published in English, all within a few years of its original release in B...
The Post Office (Bengali: Dak Ghar) is a 1912 play by Rabindranath Tagore. It concerns Amal, a child confined to his adoptive uncle's home by an incurable disease. W. Andrew Robinson and Krishna Dutta note that the play "continues to occupy a special place in Tagore's reputation, both within Bengal and in the wider world."
The story revolves around a young child Amal, an orphan adopted by his Uncle Madhav, who suffers from an ailment. On the instruction of the physician treating him, he is restricted within the house and is not allowed to go outside.
