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Vijay TendulkarsSilence! The Court is in Session exemplifies the male-bigoted monopoly that passes off in the name of verdict. The court here is just a metaphor of the patriarchal society we live in .The monologic verdict is the final decree, that the woman has to abide by. The only thing she has to protest with is her Silence, as that is the only aspect attributed to her. This is the case with Benare and with Mrs.Kashikar who are ordered to be silent by Mr.Kashikar at regular intervals. Benare, the heroine of the play is akin to the speaker in Kamala Dass My Grandmothers House who in her quest for love has now become wayward. The speaker in Dass poem asserts that the pursuit of love has driven her to the doors of strangers to receive love at least in the form of 'a tip' Kamala Das asserts how she has to move in the maze of male monopolistic chauvinism, and beg for love in the form of change. Similar is the case with Benare who has been thwarted by the doctrines of morality and the dictates of tradition. The play utilizes metatheatrical elements such as the playwithin-a-play to objectively contemplate upon the predicament of Leela Benare. Vijay Tendulkar asserts:The coexistence of the observer and the happening makes the reality. Reality becomes reality only when it is seen. The court in any civil construct or system of living has the final say and imposes the final judgment, like the typical male in the Indian society. Just as the court persistently orders:Silence! The Court is in Session, likewise Mr.Kashikar in a male-controlled society doggedly silences his wife. Silence must be observed while the court is in session. Cant shut up at home, cant shut up here! In the Indian establishment, the woman is a source of embellishment as emblematized by the garland of flowers, and is restricted to the prototype. She is not supposed to possess intellect and voice her opinion on relevant issues. In such a consideration, the dialectical pair man/woman is reduced to the dialectical pair head/body where the head reigns supreme according to Western and Eastern ideology. This is the hierarchical pair that Girish Karnad attempts to subvert in hisHayavadana.Benare reiterates the same when she claims that for men the woman was only about body. She worshipped that mans intellect. But all he understood was her body.(108) He was a man. For whom everything was of the body, for the body! Thats all! Again, the body!(118) She is imprisoned in this age-old construct that is represented by the lock-and-key held by Samant. The man holds the lock and is also in possession of the key. This is evident as Ponkshe calls her later a different prisoner.(72) Further, Miss Benare who is on the offensive at the beginning found herself trapped at the close of the play. (Dass 10) She is domesticated in this set-up symbolized by the parrot that is ironically in Samants hands, the most innocent of the lot. What's more, this parrot is not even real. It is

just a puppet in the mans hands. The parrot is an apt symbol, as it can only repeat what is uttered to it by the others. Never does it possess a voice of its own. Another object held by him is a book-that lays down the rules. There is a persistent reference to this book later as Rokde tries to educate himself on the underlying rules of masculinity. Sukhatme declares:No allowance must be made because the accused is a woman. (115) There is also the conflict between philosophy and practice. The woman in Indian philosophy and ideology is always placed in a heavenly paradigm as she is referred to as the Rani/Devi/Laksmi. However, when it comes to practice, she is always treated as a doormat. When it comes to metting out justice to the accused, Sukhatme shuttles: Na stri swatantryamarhati. Woman is not for independence.(115) However, during the course of arguments, there are rationalizations: Motherhood is pure. Sukhatme utters mechanically, says the text: Motherhood is a sacred thing. Their swearing on the English Oxford dictionary underlines the fact that whatever they utter hold only superficial meaning and no depth. Mother and The Motherland, Both are even Higher than heaven(79) Nevertheless, these are just theories that are never translated into practice as towards the end, she is commanded to kill the baby in her womb. What the court forgets is that the Mother is not only the one who gives birth to the baby. Gwendolyn Brooks in her poem The Mother establishes that the Mother is also the one who conceives the baby in the womb. The court, the conveyor of justice, insults the Mother in spite of preaching perpetual worship of her, by denying her, her very basic identity, the state of being a mother. They hail the concept of motherliness asserting: She weaves a magic circle with her whole existence in order to protect and preserve her little one-(79)Nevertheless, the other characters in this play transform this magic circle into a vicious circle in which Benare is entangled and has no escape. For Benare, her attempts at seduction is a temporary mode of winning over the opposite sex- targeting the males weakness with regard to women. For her, this is her sweet revenge as she has continuously been taken advantage of, in the guise of love At an immature age, she had been attracted to her maternal uncle, where her uncle took full advantage of her innocence. She had no knowledge of right and wrong. Nevertheless, she is held responsible even at a tender age. She fell in love, yet again, with the intellectual Damle whom she

adored. It is obvious from the professors age that for her, it is no mere physical attraction. Yet for him, she was only a physical entity. She was an object to be experimented upon. She refers to this approach of adults as she opines: They scratch you till you bleed, then run away like cowards.(57) Her primary reason for luring the other male characters in the play is that she desperately fishes for a father for the baby in her womb. She not only loved Damle but worshipped the intellectual placing her body at the altar of love. Professor Damle, however, callously disregards her when she gets pregnant and even attempts to silence her. Benares attempts at silencing Rokde is an effort at subverting this practice. Her experience of getting hurt each time by the emotion of love is signified by the finger getting hurt by the bolt. Towards the end of the play Samant tells her: If you dont pull the bolt properly to one side when you come ,and then you close the door from inside ,youve had it.(95) His implication is that women do not adopt a strong stand with reference to love-the bolt is not fully pushed to one side. Further, if they shut off their feelings from the outside world and internalized their woes, then theyve had it. The crux of the theory of the bolt is that-the one who is wronged should not shut the door from the inside fearing ostracism, neither should she adopt a neutral stand as symbolized by the bolt. Benare should have fought for her rights, according to Samants theory reprsented by the bolt. Madam, when you pulled the bolt you did in the wrong way .You should have pulled it back fully.(95) Right in the beginning it says: These old bolts are all the same. They just wont slide straight. And if the bolt stays out just a little bit, and you dont pull it clean to one side, then what happens? Shut the door-and youve had it! Locked yourself in !(56) Rather then getting to see a courtroom drama, the voyeuristic tendencies of the social order are exhibited in a brazen candour. The people around her treat her as a specimen about to be dissected. Mrs.Kashikar. Well be able to see what the trial of a woman is like.(73)Sometimes womanhood has a negative reciprocal, as with Mrs.Kashikar who encourages the others. The voice of Intellect, Professor Damle is missing here, for when it comes to a real problem his intellect comes to naught. But when theres a real-life problem, always he runs! Ironically, the mock-trail is for the Progressive Associations Mock Law (59).It says: Spreading enlightenment is also one of the Prime Objectives behind our programme.(59)The court is regressive in its approach as the accused is placed in a

claustrophobic atmosphere where she is shunned by the voice of Law(Sukhatme),the voice of Science (Ponkshe),the voice of Art(Samant,Karnik),the voice of Society (Kashikar)and the voice of Tradition(Mrs.Kashikar).The court that accuses Benare of a crime Infanticide in the beginning of the play, towards the end pronounces the verdict of killing the baby in her womb. The charge transforms into the verdict! In such a situation, the system makes a mockery of itself. The hypocrisy of this court of the social order is foregrounded here. The double standards are prevalent in nobody questioning the ethics of the maternal uncle and Professor Damle. Besides, a womans personal life has percussions on her professional life too. Benare has done her duty to the best of her ability, and is sincere in her endeavour to educate the children. Damles stand is not questioned his being a Professor of repute. By doing so ,they deny Benare her very basic source of living. It is an illegitimate intrusion into her private life: Nevertheless, these are just theories that are never translated into practice as towards the end, she is commanded to kill the baby in her womb. What the court forgets is that the Mother is not only the one who gives birth to the baby. Gwendolyn Brooks in her poem The Mother establishes that the Mother is also the one who conceives the baby in the womb. The court, the conveyor of justice, insults the Mother in spite of preaching perpetual worship of her, by denying her, her very basic identity, the state of being a mother. They hail the concept of motherliness asserting: She weaves a magic circle with her whole existence in order to protect and preserve her little one-(79)Nevertheless, the other characters in this play transform this magic circle into a vicious circle in which Benare is entangled and has no escape. For Benare, her attempts at seduction is a temporary mode of winning over the opposite sex- targeting the males weakness with regard to women. For her, this is her sweet revenge as she has continuously been taken advantage of, in the guise of love At an immature age, she had been attracted to her maternal uncle, where her uncle took full advantage of her innocence. She had no knowledge of right and wrong. Nevertheless, she is held responsible even at a tender age. She fell in love, yet again, with the intellectual Damle whom she adored. It is obvious from the professors age that for her, it is no mere physical attraction. Yet for him, she was only a physical entity. She was an object to be experimented upon. She refers to this approach of adults as she opines: They scratch you till you bleed, then run away like cowards.(57) Her primary reason for luring the other male characters in the play is that she desperately fishes for a father for the baby in her womb. She not only loved Damle but worshipped the intellectual placing her body at the altar of love. Professor Damle, however, callously disregards her when she gets pregnant and even attempts to silence her. Benares attempts at silencing Rokde is an effort at subverting this

practice. Her experience of getting hurt each time by the emotion of love is signified by the finger getting hurt by the bolt. Towards the end of the play Samant tells her: If you dont pull the bolt properly to one side when you come ,and then you close the door from inside ,youve had it.(95) His implication is that women do not adopt a strong stand with reference to love-the bolt is not fully pushed to one side. Further, if they shut off their feelings from the outside world and internalized their woes, then theyve had it. The crux of the theory of the bolt is that-the one who is wronged should not shut the door from the inside fearing ostracism, neither should she adopt a neutral stand as symbolized by the bolt. Benare should have fought for her rights, according to Samants theory reprsented by the bolt. Madam, when you pulled the bolt you did in the wrong way .You should have pulled it back fully.(95) Right in the beginning it says: These old bolts are all the same. They just wont slide straight. And if the bolt stays out just a little bit, and you dont pull it clean to one side, then what happens? Shut the door-and youve had it! Locked yourself in !(56) Rather then getting to see a courtroom drama, the voyeuristic tendencies of the social order are exhibited in a brazen candour. The people around her treat her as a specimen about to be dissected. Mrs.Kashikar. Well be able to see what the trial of a woman is like.(73)Sometimes womanhood has a negative reciprocal, as with Mrs.Kashikar who encourages the others. The voice of Intellect, Professor Damle is missing here, for when it comes to a real problem his intellect comes to naught. But when theres a real-life problem, always he runs! Ironically, the mock-trail is for the Progressive Associations Mock Law (59).It says: Spreading enlightenment is also one of the Prime Objectives behind our programme.(59)The court is regressive in its approach as the accused is placed in a claustrophobic atmosphere where she is shunned by the voice of Law(Sukhatme),the voice of Science (Ponkshe),the voice of Art(Samant,Karnik),the voice of Society (Kashikar)and the voice of Tradition(Mrs.Kashikar).The court that accuses Benare of a crime Infanticide in the beginning of the play, towards the end pronounces the verdict of killing the baby in her womb. The charge transforms into the verdict! In such a situation, the system makes a mockery of itself. The hypocrisy of this court of the social order is foregrounded here. The double standards are prevalent in nobody questioning the ethics of the maternal uncle and Professor Damle. Besides, a womans personal life has percussions on her professional life too. Benare has done her duty to the best of her ability, and is sincere in her endeavour to

educate the children. Damles stand is not questioned his being a Professor of repute. By doing so ,they deny Benare her very basic source of living. It is an illegitimate intrusion into her private life: If Ive hurt anybody, its been myself. But is that any kind of reason for throwing me out? Who are these people to say what I can or cant do? My life is my own .My wishes are my own. No one can kill those-no one! Ill do what I like with myself and my life! Ill decide.(58) Benares over-zealous behaviour is a curtain to shield the depression that represses her. In her childhood, she was more expressive in emoting:When I was small, I was very, very quiet. I just used to sit and make plans-all by myself. I wouldnt tell anyone. And at the slightest excuse, I used to cry loudly. Her only possession is her silence; and various attempts are made to break her Silence in Act Three. Samik Bandyopadhyay states: The actors playing a mock courtroom drama play with silence, straining to tear through into the silence that Benare clings to, forcing her to go deeper and deeper into the silence...(xlvi) Nora in Henrik IbsensA Dolls Houseat least possesses the liberty to close the door behind her to all the atrocities. Benare does not even have a choice. As she rushes towards the door from this oppressive environment, the way is barred .Her weapon is her silence. In fact, silence is one of the major characters in the play, as the word silence is uttered 34 times in the play. The man/woman pair in such a context is translated into sound/silence. Benare attempts to protest with silence. She utilizes it as a symbol of womanhood, as it will not be perceived by any of the senses to relegate. It is devoid of any boundaries, and cannot be, therefore, marginalized. Moreover, it is a construct they cannot deconstruct. And, silence does exist as and eloquently makes its presence felt. Here unabashed efforts are made by others to deconstruct even a dignified silence. Sukhatme.The accused ,by her silence, has as good answered me.(98) Kashikar.This is intolerable rudeness.(98) Mrs.Kashkar.Lets say shes taken the oath.(97) Ponkshe.Exactly this is contempt of court!(98) Mrs.Kashikar.It seems shes decided not to behave herself and answer properly!(99) Her marginalization is echoed also in expressionistic terms. On Ponkshes instructions, Rokde places her purse from the dais on to a stool in the corner.(73)Towards the end, even the Judge becomes judgmental as he enters the witness box. Far from sounding objective, he assumes a gossip-like manner. Though, we get to hear the Sound of the males, they

come across as echoes without any seity. In contrast, the voice of Benares silence possesses an individuality of its own. There is a monologue by Benare at the end of the play. However, the truth remains that the playwright wanted the play to end in Benares silence. He was later forced or threatened to add it. It says in the Introduction to the collected plays of Vijay Tendulkar that the the Benare speech was added to the play as an afterthought when the entire play was ready to be staged in the competition [the annual Maharashtra State Competition ], and it was discovered that it fell short by ten minutes of the stipulated time limit and thus was likely to be rejected by the examining panel.(xlv)Vijay Tendulkar speaking to Arun Sadhu says: I was of the opinion that Benare would not open before the others in the play. That was not in her character. I refused. Arvind and his people then almost locked me in a room and threatened to keep me there till I wrote a monologue at a point which Arvind had suggested. I was compelled to write .So I made Benare fly into fantasy and made her recite a prolonged monologue Therefore, the monologue was never intended to be there. The Benare that Tendulkar conceived chose to a maintain a venerable, yet imposing silence. Though silence is imposed by the male on the female, the intriguing silence backfires here frustrating the others. She is denied any sort of control over her life as a bottle of tik-20 is pushed away by the others. They prefer torturing her alive, than awarding her with a euthanasia. That her thoughts and the mind-set of the society cannot co-exist is obvious. For, when she talks, only she is kinetic, the others around become static. When the others talk, she freezes into silence. Just as man and woman cannot exist on an equal footing in reality; the whole theory of gender equality is reduced to a hypothesis. The time is out of joint in this set up as showcased by the clock that is out of order. The mock-trial gives us a sense of things occurring in the present; and yet, they do not occur as the characters return to their normal situations in the end. The persecution of Benare exists, yet the others force her to believe that it is a game, a mock-trial. Like in reality how a woman is subject to subjugation and relegation in a mirage of make-believe. Like for instance, women are allotted reservations in various establishments by men in the form of extended favours. But they lack a place in the enterprise, in the first place, owing to the dominant stance of male chauvinism. It has so entered into our lives, that now, we fail to perceive, the borderline between illusion and reality. The same applies to the mock-trial that though real, puts on the garb of virtual reality. Karnik says: In Drama Theory we call this a Visual Enactment.(71) Man may be the head of the family, but who guarantees his just decision?

The court may be the highest order of the law but who guarantees its highest precision.