Badal Sircar (1925-2011), widely acknowledged today as being one of modern India's greatest theatre practitioners, not only innovated the practice of Open Theatre which liberated dramatic performances from the confines of auditoria, but also experimented and evolved new theatrical forms, ideas and themes. An extraordinary man whose whole life was dedicated to theatre praxis, his most influential plays (apart from the celebrated Evam Indrajit (1963) included Ram Shyam Jadu (1961), Ballaupurer Roopkatha (1963), Baki Itihas (1965), Pagla Ghora (1967), Sagina Mahato (1970), Spartacus (1972), Rupkathar Kelenkari (1974), Bhoma (1975), Sukhapathya Bharater Itihas (1976), Padma Nadir Majhi (1978), and Nagini Kanyar Kahini (1981). He was instrumental in inspiring a whole generation of Indian theatre artistes ranging from Heisnam Kanhailal of Manipur, Amol Palekar, Satyadev Dubey and Vijay Tendulkar of Maharashtra, Girish Karnad and B.V. Karanth of Karnataka, Ram Gopal Bajaj and Anis Azmi of Delhi, Vasu Reddy of Tamil Nadu, Baharul Islam of Assam et al. He received Padma Shri, Sangeet Natak Akademi award and Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship.

Tapu Biswas is Associate Professor and former Teacher-in-Charge, Department of English and currently Vice-Principal, Bhasha Bhavana (Institute of Languages, Literature and Culture), Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan. Dr. Biswas is also Hony. Secretary of the Shakespeare Society of Eastern India, and has served as the Coordinator of several International World Shakespeare Conferences held from the year 2000 onwards. His two works, Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot": Indian Interpretations through Critical and Analytical Studies, Translations and Stage Productions and Indian Response to Western "Theatre of the Absurd' (Vols. I & II), have been acclaimed in India and abroad. A recipient of UGC Research Award Post Doctoral Fellowship in 2014-15, Dr. Biswas was awarded the Mother Teresa International Award in 2021.

As a myriad-minded creator, almost the whole of Badal Sircar's (1925-2011) life was dedicated to the art of theatre, its production and its enactment. He was a man who thought, breathed and lived theatre. His contemporaries were full of admiration for him, and many were awed by the versatility of his creativity. A deep-spirited visionary, Sircar virtually single- handedly gave birth to a radically new mode of dramatic expression in his creation of the idea and praxis of "Third Theatre". This concept of a drama without a stage, a proscenium, curtains, lights, stylized costumes and make- up, the idea of plays being performed with equal facticity and effectiveness in small intimate spaces or in large open areas was not only path-breaking when Sircar deployed it first in the 1970s but also continued to influence and inspire several generations of other playwrights who followed him. The life of Badal Sircar came to an end in 2011. He left behind a lasting legacy of almost 60 plays and a host of other writings including a book of short stories, several autobiographical narratives, and a small but powerful body of poetry. He travelled with his drama not only all over India but also abroad and won a number of well-deserved awards. He was in a sense an idealist, and he was always a man deeply concerned about the exploitation and the suffering of ordinary human beings.

It is hoped that this monograph will not only extend and expand the extant critical understanding of Badal Sircar and his times and consequently enable a better appreciation of his genius, but that it will also provide future researchers with material relevant for further studies. This work on Badal Sircar looks at theatre theory and praxis through the lens of culture and history, and culture and history through the lens of theatre. A short and select bibliography has been given at the end to help the readers.

I should like to express my gratitude to the Sahitya Akademi for giving me this opportunity of writing on this dramatist.

For writing this book I would first like to record my heartfelt gratitude to my teachers Professor Subir Dhar, Professor Amitava Roy and Professor M. Mani Metei. Finally, I have to acknowledge a personal debt of immense proportions to my family members, especially to my mother Asha Lata Biswas, to my wife Dr. Indrani Sarkar and my beloved daughters Tapasya and Tejaswini.