Mahesh Dattani’s “Dance Like a Man” stands as a remarkable exploration of gender expectations, artistic devotion, and family struggle in Indian society. This two-act play, first staged in 1989, has gained recognition for its honest portrayal of a man pursuing classical dance despite societal disapproval. The story follows Jairaj and Ratna, a couple united by their passion for Bharatanatyam, as they navigate through personal ambitions and external pressures.
At the center of the narrative lies a fundamental conflict between artistic passion and traditional gender roles. Jairaj’s father Amritlal opposes his son’s dancing career, believing it undermines masculinity. This tension creates a powerful backdrop for examining how societal norms can restrict individual expression. The play does not simply present this conflict—it unravels its complex impact across three generations of a family.
Dattani crafts multidimensional characters who embody the complexity of human motivation. Ratna emerges as an ambitious dancer willing to make difficult compromises to advance her career. Amritlal represents the rigid patriarchal mindset that assigns strict gender roles. Meanwhile, the younger generation in the story offers glimpses of changing attitudes toward gender and art in Indian society.
The significance of “Dance Like a Man” extends beyond its compelling story. As the work of the first English-language playwright to receive the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award, it marks an important milestone in Indian theater. The play gained wider recognition when its 2004 film adaptation won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in English. Through this masterpiece, Dattani invites readers to question long-held assumptions about gender, art, and personal freedom.
Dance Like a Man by Mahesh Dattani: An Overview
“Dance Like a Man” first came to life at Chowdiah Memorial Hall in Bangalore on September 22, 1989. This powerful play explores the tensions between gender norms, artistic dreams, and family expectations. Its impact was especially strong in places like Chennai, where classical dance forms a vital part of cultural identity.
The play’s historical and cultural setting
The story unfolds in post-independence South India, a time of transition and conflicting values. Mahesh Dattani weaves his narrative through three generations, each representing a different period in Indian social history. At the center of this exploration is Bharatanatyam, a classical dance form traditionally performed by women. When a man pursues this art, it creates deep tension within both family and society.
This setting is not merely decorative but essential to understanding the play’s depth. Mahesh Dattani connects present-day conflicts to ancient religious dance traditions, making both recent and historical Indian experiences personal and immediate. Through this rich backdrop, he examines how traditional beliefs clash with modern aspirations, creating rifts within families that span generations.
Mahesh Dattani’s contribution to Indian English theater
Mahesh Dattani has earned his place as a transformative figure in Indian English drama through several important achievements:
- He became the first playwright in English to win the prestigious Sahitya Akademi award in 1998 for his collection “Final Solutions and Other Plays“
- Based in Bangalore, he founded the theater group “Playpen” in 1984, focusing on creating original Indian plays rather than adapting Western works
- His works give voice to marginalized groups and tackle subjects often considered taboo in contemporary urban India
What distinguishes Dattani’s writing is his blend of social realism with psychological depth. He brings previously invisible issues to the stage—gender discrimination, homosexuality, and the intricate workings of Indian family dynamics. His greatest contribution may be the creation of an authentic Indian theatrical language in English that doesn’t feel borrowed from colonial traditions but speaks “in our own accents, not borrowed or cultivated ones”.
Why the title matters
The title “Dance Like a Man” works on several levels of meaning. At first glance, it challenges gender bias in society, where the phrase suggests conforming to prescribed masculine behavior. In this way, the title becomes “a critique of the social reality of gender bias and subjugation”.
Looking deeper, we find connections to Lord Shiva, the divine dancer. Shiva appears repeatedly throughout the play, his cosmic dance (tandav) symbolizing both destruction and transformation. From this perspective, to “dance like a man” means moving beyond society’s limitations to discover one’s authentic self.
The title perfectly captures Jairaj’s central dilemma: how can he “dance like a man” when society has decided that dance belongs exclusively to women? This question echoes throughout the play, challenging readers to examine their own assumptions about gender and art.
Plot Summary: The Journey of Ambition and Sacrifice
“Dance Like a Man” tells the story of Jairaj and Ratna, whose shared love for Bharatanatyam dance becomes the defining force in their lives. The narrative moves through time periods using flashbacks, revealing how their passion faces resistance from family and society alike. Through their struggles, the play examines how art, gender expectations, and personal ambition intersect in post-independence India.
The Foundation of a Dance Partnership
Jairaj and Ratna’s marriage begins with a mutual dedication to classical dance. For them, Bharatanatyam represents not just an art form but a complete way of life. Ratna chooses Jairaj deliberately, believing he will support her dancing aspirations. Together, they hope to achieve recognition as dancers, with Jairaj challenging the societal view that dance belongs primarily to women. Their shared dream forms the emotional heart of the play.
A Father’s Unyielding Opposition
Amritlal Parekh, Jairaj’s father, stands firmly against his son’s dancing ambitions. Despite his own past as a freedom fighter, he paradoxically becomes the greatest obstacle to his son’s personal freedom:
- He dismisses dance as “a craft to show off wares,” comparing it to prostitution
- He prevents Ratna from learning from an elderly devadasi (temple dancer)
- He firmly declares that “a man’s happiness lies in being a Man”
After a confrontation, the young couple leaves Amritlal’s home in protest. However, they later return when faced with difficulties, including unwanted advances from Ratna’s uncle. Upon their return, Amritlal makes a calculated arrangement with Ratna—she may pursue her dance career if she helps “make Jairaj a man” by subtly undermining his dancing.
A Family Tragedy
As Ratna’s dancing career flourishes while Jairaj’s falters, his frustration leads him to alcohol. During this period, they welcome a son named Shankar. Ratna, focused on performances, leaves the child in the care of an ayah (nanny). Through a terrible misunderstanding, both Ratna and the ayah give the baby opium to keep him quiet, resulting in a fatal overdose. This devastating loss deepens the rift between them, with Jairaj holding Ratna responsible for their son’s death.
The Next Generation
Following their tragedy, Jairaj and Ratna have a daughter named Lata. Ratna pours her energy into developing Lata’s dancing talent, seeing this as a way to fulfill her own compromised dreams. Unlike her treatment of Jairaj’s career, Ratna works tirelessly to advance her daughter’s prospects. The story reaches a crucial point when Lata becomes involved with Vishwas, raising the question of whether she will continue dancing after marriage—a situation that mirrors the conflicts her parents faced in their generation.
Character Sketches: The Central Figures of Mahesh Dattani’s Drama
“Dance Like a Man” presents characters whose personal struggles mirror larger social conflicts. Mahesh Dattani crafts these individuals with psychological depth, showing how they navigate between personal desire and societal pressure. Each character embodies different aspects of the play’s core themes about gender, tradition, and artistic expression.
Jairaj: Trapped Between Passion and Expectation
Jairaj stands at the center of the play’s conflict. As the son of a wealthy, widowed father, his choice to pursue Bharatanatyam instead of conventional male careers puts him at odds with social norms. His resistance to gender stereotypes places him in direct conflict with the patriarchal society surrounding him.
The play traces Jairaj’s transformation from an idealistic young dancer to a frustrated, embittered man. His journey shows how persistent societal pressure can wear down even the strongest individual convictions. After the betrayal by both his wife and father, Jairaj loses not just his dance career but his sense of self-worth.
Despite his initially progressive views, Jairaj shows contradictions in his own character. When tragedy strikes with his son’s death, he reverts to traditional thinking by blaming Ratna’s neglect of motherhood. This moment reveals how deeply ingrained gender expectations remain even in those who consciously reject them.
Ratna: The Complex Dance of Ambition
Ratna emerges as perhaps the most complex character in the play. Her marriage to Jairaj is partly strategic—she chooses him believing he would support her dancing aspirations. Unlike her husband, Ratna displays fierce independence and unwavering confidence in pursuing her goals.
Her character reveals the difficult choices women often face between personal ambition and expected social roles. When offered a chance by Amritlal to advance her own career at the expense of her husband’s, she makes a calculated decision. The staging of their performances, with Jairaj literally dancing in Ratna’s shadow, becomes a powerful visual metaphor for their relationship.
Ratna’s approach to motherhood further complicates her character. Her prioritization of dance performances over childcare leads to the tragic death of her son Shankar. This moment forces readers to consider the harsh judgments often leveled at women who prioritize careers over traditional maternal roles.
Amritlal: The Contradiction of Progressive Tradition
Amritlal represents traditional patriarchal authority with fascinating contradictions:
- He fought for India’s political freedom yet constrains his son’s personal freedom
- He considers himself a social reformer but enforces rigid gender boundaries
- He claims to want his family’s happiness while manipulating their lives
His infamous statement that “A woman in a man’s world is progressive, a man in a woman’s world is pathetic” perfectly captures the double standard at the heart of gender roles. For Amritlal, dance threatens masculinity—he views it as inappropriate for men and associates it with femininity and even prostitution.
Amritlal’s fear centers on his son becoming “effeminate,” revealing deep anxieties about masculinity and social reputation. His character shows how patriarchal systems harm not only women but also men who wish to step outside prescribed roles.
Lata and Vishwas: Hope for Change
Lata, the daughter of Jairaj and Ratna, offers a contrast to her parents’ complicated relationship with dance. She approaches her art without the bitterness or manipulative tendencies that marked her parents’ careers. Her simpler, more straightforward approach suggests the possibility of healing from generational wounds.
Vishwas brings needed lightness to the story with his good-natured personality. His support for Lata’s dancing career indicates evolving attitudes toward gender and art. Together, the young couple represents the potential for progress—the hope that younger generations might break free from the destructive patterns that trapped their elders.
The relationship between Lata and Vishwas raises the central question of whether history will repeat itself or whether new possibilities can emerge from the painful lessons of the past.
Major Themes in Dance Like a Man
Dattani’s “Dance Like a Man” examines several profound themes that continue to resonate with audiences decades after its first staging. The play uses the world of classical dance as a backdrop to explore deeper societal issues through carefully crafted character relationships and symbolic elements. These themes work together to create a rich tapestry of meaning that challenges viewers to reconsider established norms.
Gender Roles and Identity
The play directly confronts traditional gender expectations in Indian society. Amritlal’s telling statement that “A woman in a man’s world is considered progressive, but a man in a woman’s world is pathetic” captures the double standard that forms the play’s central conflict. This gender bias appears throughout the narrative in multiple forms:
- Bharatanatyam being labeled as an inappropriate pursuit for men
- Jairaj facing criticism for growing his hair long for performances
- Amritlal’s persistent efforts to make his son conform to conventional masculinity
Jairaj’s struggle represents more than personal conflict. His character shows how rigid gender norms harm not just women but also men who step outside prescribed roles. The play asks its audience: What truly makes someone “a man,” and who has the right to define these boundaries?
Art as Personal Expression
For Jairaj, dance represents more than artistic pursuit—it becomes his form of resistance against societal pressure. His commitment to Bharatanatyam reflects “a person’s plight, wherein a loss of life, a form of artwork serves as the backdrop”. This creates an interesting paradox, as the dance form’s divine origins connect to Lord Shiva, yet society has converted it into a primarily feminine practice.
Dance throughout the play functions as:
- A vehicle for personal identity beyond social constraints
- A battlefield between tradition and modern values
- A means of self-expression in a restrictive environment
When Jairaj speaks passionately about teaching his son “the dance of Shiva”, calling it “the dance of a man,” he attempts to reclaim his art form within a masculine framework, challenging those who would deny him this aspect of his identity.
Family Dynamics and Betrayal
The Parekh household serves as a microcosm where “the comfort of being passive-aggressive in a family in all its grayness” unfolds through manipulation and control. At the heart of this theme lies the troubling bargain between Amritlal and Ratna—he will support her dance career if she helps “make Jairaj a man” by undermining his passion. This arrangement fundamentally changes family relationships, creating wounds that span generations.
These family interactions reveal important truths about:
- How power operates within family structures
- The ways patriarchal authority uses loyalty as a weapon
- How personal sacrifice often comes at others’ expense
Ambition and Its Consequences
The play carefully examines how ambition shapes and sometimes destroys lives. Ratna’s determined pursuit of dance success carries a heavy price—it damages her husband’s career, strains their marriage, and ultimately contributes to their son’s tragic death. Her character displays both the positive drive toward excellence and the destructive potential of unchecked ambition.
Dattani presents ambition as:
- A necessary force for artistic achievement
- A potential source of manipulation and betrayal
- A trait that can create lasting trauma across generations
These interconnected themes create what critics have called a “cyclic” plot structure, where each generation confronts similar questions about gender, art, and personal fulfillment. This cyclical nature suggests that while circumstances change, the fundamental tensions between individual expression and societal expectation remain unresolved.
Conclusion: The Enduring Impact of “Dance Like a Man”
“Dance Like a Man” stands as an important contribution to Indian theater, examining gender norms and artistic expression with remarkable insight. Dattani’s play captures a crucial tension in Indian society—the pull between tradition and modern ideas about personal freedom. What makes this work particularly valuable is its refusal to provide simple answers to complex questions about gender, family obligation, and artistic integrity.
The play’s central conflict—Jairaj’s determination to pursue dance despite social disapproval—serves as a powerful lens through which we can examine broader cultural questions. His struggle highlights how social expectations can both inspire and damage individuals who challenge conventional roles. When Jairaj faces opposition from his father and eventually betrayal from his wife, we see how patriarchal structures harm not only those who oppose them directly but also those who attempt to work within them.
Dattani’s portrayal of family relationships deserves special attention. The household becomes a space where power dynamics play out in subtle and sometimes devastating ways. Amritlal’s bargain with Ratna—trading her dance career for Jairaj’s diminishment—shows how authority figures can manipulate emotional bonds for control. These family tensions reflect larger social struggles, making the personal deeply political.
The dance itself takes on multiple meanings throughout the play. Initially a source of conflict, it eventually becomes the medium through which characters express their deepest emotions and aspirations. This transformation suggests that art, even when divisive, offers a path toward authentic self-expression and perhaps understanding. The title’s dual meaning—both a command to conform to masculine standards and an invitation to transcend gender limitations through divine dance—encapsulates this complexity.
For contemporary readers, “Dance Like a Man” offers valuable insights into how social expectations shape individual lives and how resistance to these expectations carries both costs and rewards. The play asks us to consider what aspects of tradition deserve preservation and which demand questioning. Through its thoughtful exploration of these issues, Dattani’s work continues to speak to audiences seeking to understand the delicate balance between cultural heritage and personal freedom.
FAQs
Q1. What is the main theme of “Dance Like a Man” by Mahesh Dattani? The main theme of “Dance Like a Man” is the exploration of gender roles and societal expectations in Indian society, particularly focusing on the challenges faced by a male Bharatanatyam dancer in a culture that considers dance a predominantly female profession.
Q2. How does the play “Dance Like a Man” address the conflict between tradition and modernity? The play addresses this conflict through the characters’ struggles with traditional gender norms and artistic expression. It shows how Jairaj’s passion for dance clashes with his father Amritlal’s traditional views, representing the broader tension between modern aspirations and deeply ingrained societal expectations.
Q3. What role does ambition play in the story of “Dance Like a Man”? Ambition is a driving force in the play, particularly for the character of Ratna. Her relentless pursuit of dance success shapes the narrative, leading to both artistic achievements and personal sacrifices, including the strain on her marriage and the tragic loss of her son.
Q4. How does “Dance Like a Man” portray family dynamics? The play portrays family dynamics as complex and often manipulative. It explores how power and control function within the family, particularly through Amritlal’s bargain with Ratna to undermine Jairaj’s dance career, revealing how patriarchal authority can weaponize family loyalty.
Q5. What is the significance of Bharatanatyam in “Dance Like a Man”? Bharatanatyam serves as more than just a dance form in the play. It represents a form of self-expression, rebellion against societal norms, and a means of identity formation. For Jairaj, it becomes a way to challenge traditional gender roles and assert his individuality in a restrictive society.
