The Mahabharata (1989 film)
Encyclopedia
The Mahabharata is a 1989
film version of the India
n epic
, Mahabharata
, directed by Peter Brook
. Brook's original 1985 stage play was 9 hours long, and toured around the world for four years. In 1989, it was reduced to under 6 hours for television (TV mini series). Later it was also reduced to about 3 hours for theatrical and DVD release. The screenplay was the result of eight years work by Peter Brook, Jean-Claude Carrière
and Marie-Hélène Estienne. For the casting an international selection of actors was intentionally chosen, to show that the nature of the Indian epic is the story of all humanity.
to live in harmony and abstain from the bloody lust for power. Yet their fights come to threaten the very order of the Universe. The plot is framed as a narrative between the Brahmin sage Vyasa and the Hindu deity Ganesha
, and directed towards an unnamed Indian boy who comes to him inquiring about the story of the human race.
.
1989 in film
-Events:* Batman is released on June 23, and goes on to gross over $410 million worldwide.* Actress Kim Basinger and her brother Mick purchase Braselton, Georgia, for $20 million...
film version of the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n epic
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
, Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, directed by Peter Brook
Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook CH, CBE is an English theatre and film director and innovator, who has been based in France since the early 1970s.-Life:...
. Brook's original 1985 stage play was 9 hours long, and toured around the world for four years. In 1989, it was reduced to under 6 hours for television (TV mini series). Later it was also reduced to about 3 hours for theatrical and DVD release. The screenplay was the result of eight years work by Peter Brook, Jean-Claude Carrière
Jean-Claude Carrière
Jean-Claude Carrière is a screenwriter and actor. Alumnus of the École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud, he was a frequent collaborator with Luis Buñuel...
and Marie-Hélène Estienne. For the casting an international selection of actors was intentionally chosen, to show that the nature of the Indian epic is the story of all humanity.
Plot
In general terms, the story involves epic incidents between two warring families, the Pandavas (representing the good side) and the Kauravas (representing the bad side). Both sides, being the offspring of kings and gods, fight for dominion. They have both been advised by the god KrishnaKrishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
to live in harmony and abstain from the bloody lust for power. Yet their fights come to threaten the very order of the Universe. The plot is framed as a narrative between the Brahmin sage Vyasa and the Hindu deity Ganesha
Ganesha
Ganesha , also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati , Vinayaka , and Pillaiyar , is one of the deities best-known and most widely worshipped in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations...
, and directed towards an unnamed Indian boy who comes to him inquiring about the story of the human race.
Reception
The productions use of an international cast caused heated intercultural debate. Negative criticism came from Indian scholar Pradip Bhattacharya who felt that Brook's interpretation "was not a portrayal of a titanic clash between the forces of good and evil, which is the stuff of the epic... [but] the story of the warring progeny of some rustic landlord".Cast
- Robert Langdon Lloyd as VyasaVyasaVyasa is a central and revered figure in most Hindu traditions. He is also sometimes called Veda Vyasa , or Krishna Dvaipayana...
- Antonin Stahly-Vishwanadan as Boy
- Bruce Myers as GaneshaGaneshaGanesha , also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh, also known as Ganapati , Vinayaka , and Pillaiyar , is one of the deities best-known and most widely worshipped in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations...
/KrishnaKrishnaKrishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu... - Vittorio MezzogiornoVittorio MezzogiornoVittorio Mezzogiorno was an Italian actor.-Biography:Mezzogiorno was born in Cercola, the youngest of seven children. His older brother Vincenzo, who wanted to become a director, introduced him to the theatre....
as ArjunaArjunaArjuna in Indian mythology is the greatest warrior on earth and is one of the Pandavas, the heroes of the Hindu epic Mahābhārata. Arjuna, whose name means 'bright', 'shining', 'white' or 'silver' Arjuna (Devanagari: अर्जुन, Thai: อรชุน, Orachun, Tamil: Arjunan, Indonesian and Javanese: Harjuna,... - Andrzej SewerynAndrzej SewerynAndrzej Seweryn is a Polish and French actor and director. One of the most successful Polish theatre actors, he starred in over 50 films, mostly in Poland, France and Germany. He is also one of only three non-French actors to be hired by the Paris-based Comédie-Française.- Biography :Andrzej...
as Yudhishthira - Georges CorrafaceGeorges CorrafaceGeorges Corraface is a Franco-Greek actor who has had an international career in film and television, following many years in French theatre, notably as a member of the famed Peter Brook Company. His film credits include To Tama, Escape from L.A., La Pasión Turca, Vive La Mariée, Impromptu,...
as DuryodhanaDuryodhanaIn the Hindu epic the Mahābhārata, Duryodhana is the eldest son of the blind king Dhritarashtra by Queen Gandhari, the eldest of the one hundred Kaurava brothers, Emperor of the world at that time which means Emperor of India or Bharatvarsha as it was known at that time, cousin and the chief... - Jean-Paul Denizon as NakulaNakulaNakula, also spelt "Nakul" was one of the five Pandava brothers according to the epic Mahābhārata. Nakula and Sahadeva were fraternal twins born to Madri, who had invoked the Ashvins using a mantra for a son, the mantra shared by Kunti...
- Mahmoud Tabrizi-Zadeh as SahadevaSahadevaSahadeva was one of the five Pandava brothers according to the epic Mahābhārata. He was one of the twin sons of Madri, who invoked Ashvins using a mantra shared by Kunti for a son. His twin brother was named Nakula...
- Mallika SarabhaiMallika SarabhaiMallika Sarabhai is an activist and Indian Classical Dancer from Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. Daughter of Classical Dancer Mrinalini Sarabhai and renowned Space Scientist Vikram Sarabhai, Mallika is an accomplished Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam dancer.-Early life:Mallika Sarabhai was born in...
as DraupadiDraupadiIn the epic Mahābhārata, Draupadi, also known as ' is the "emerged" daughter of King Drupada of Panchāla and the wife of the five Pandavas. When Yudhisthira becomes the king of Hastinapura at the end of the war, Draupadi becomes the queen of Indraprastha... - Miriam Goldschmidt as Kunti
- Ryszard Cieslak as DhritarashtraDhritarashtraIn the Mahābhārata, Dhritarashtra was King of Hastinapur at the time of the Kurukshetra War, the epic's climactic event. He was born the son of Vichitravirya's first wife Ambika, and was fathered by Vyasa. He was blind from birth, and became father to a hundred children by his wife Gandhari...
- Hélène Patarot as GandhariGandhari (character)Gāndhārī is a character in the Hindu epic, the Mahābhārata. In the epic, she was an incarnation of Mati, as the daughter of Subala, the king of Gandhara, or the modern Kandahar, a region spanning northwestern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan, from which her name is derived...
- Myriam Tadesse as Gandhari's servant
- Urs Bihler as DushasanaDushasanaDushasana was the second son of the blind king Dhritarashtra and Gandhari in the epic Mahābhārata, and the younger brother of Duryodhana.-Birth and development:...
- Lou Bihler as Young KarnaKarnaKarna or Radheya is one of the central characters in the epic Mahābhārata, from ancient India. He was the King of Anga...
- Jeffrey KissoonJeffrey KissoonJeffery Kissoon is a Trinidadian actor with credits in British theatre, film and radio. He has performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company at venues such as the Royal National Theatre, under directors including Peter Brook, Peter Hall, Robert Lapage, Janet Suzman, Calixto Bieito and Nicholas Hytner...
as KarnaKarnaKarna or Radheya is one of the central characters in the epic Mahābhārata, from ancient India. He was the King of Anga... - Maurice BénichouMaurice BénichouMaurice Bénichou is a French actor. His best known roles include three collaborations with director Michael Haneke , and a part in Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Amélie...
as Kitchaka - Yoshi Oida as DronaDronaIn the epic Mahābhārata, Drona or Dronacharya was the royal guru to Kauravas and Pandavas. He was a master of advanced military arts, including the Devastras. Arjuna was his favorite student. Dronas love for Arjuna was second only to his love for his son Ashwatthama...
- Sotigui Kouyaté as ParashuramaParashuramaParashurama , is the sixth avatar of Vishnu and belongs to the treta yuga, and is the son of a Brahmin father Jamadagni and mother Renuka. He is considered one of the seven immortal human. He received an axe after undertaking a terrible penance to please Shiva, from whom he learned the methods of...
/ BhishmaBhishmaBhishma or Bheeshma or Devavrata or 'Bhishma Pitamah' was the eighth son of Kuru King Shantanu who was blessed with wish-long life and had sworn to serve the ruling Kuru king. He was one of the most prominent characters of the great Indian epic, the Mahabharata. He was the grand uncle of both the... - Tuncel KurtizTuncel KurtizTuncel Kurtiz is a Turkish theatre, movie and TV series actor, playwright and film director. Since 1964, he has acted in more than 70 movies, including many international productions.- Biography :...
as ShakuniShakuniShakuni , an avatar of Dvapara, the personification of Dvapara Yuga, was the brother of Gandhari in the Mahābhārata. He was portrayed as an extremely intelligent but devious old man, who was very fond of his nephew Duryodhana. He won the kingdom of the Pandavas' for his nephew, as a wager in a... - Ciarán HindsCiarán HindsCiarán Hinds is an Irish film, television and stage actor. He has built up a reputation as a versatile character actor appearing in such high profile films as Road to Perdition, The Phantom of the Opera, Munich, There Will Be Blood and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. His television roles include...
as AshwatthamaAshwatthamaA hero of the Indian epic Mahābhārata, Ashwatthama or Ashwatthaman was the son of guru Drona. He is one of the seven Chiranjeevins. Dronacharya loved him very dearly. The rumours about his death in the Kurukshetra war, led to the death of his father from the hands of Prince Dhrishtadyumna... - Erika AlexanderErika AlexanderErika Alexander is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Pam Tucker on the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show, and as Maxine Shaw on the FOX sitcom Living Single. She has won numerous awards for her work on Living Single, including two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actress in a...
as MadriMadriIn the Mahābhārata epic, Madri was a princess of the Madra kingdom and the second wife of Pandu.On his way to Hastinapur, King Pandu encountered the army of Shalya, King of Madra. Very soon, Pandu and Shalya became friends and Shalya gave his only sister, Madri to Pandu, as a gift of their...
/ HidimbiHidimbiHidimbi or Hidimbā, in the Hindu epic Mahābhārata, is a Rakshasi. She met Bhima while he was travelling in the forest with his Pandava brothers and mother Kunti. After fleeing a burning palace at Varanavat, which was set up by their cousin Duryodhana to burn them alive; the Pandavas were wandering... - Bakary Sangaré as The Sun / RakshasaRakshasaA Rakshasa or alternatively rakshas, is a race of mythological humanoid beings or unrighteous spirit in Hindu and Buddhist religion...
/ GhatotkachaGhatotkachaGhatotkacha , is a character in the Mahabharata, the son of Bhima and the giantess Hidimbi . His maternal parentage made him half-rakshasa and gave him many magical powers that made him an important fighter in the Kurukshetra war, the climax of the epic... - Tapa Sudana as PanduPanduIn the Mahābhārata epic, King Pandu is the son of Ambalika and Rishi Ved Vyasa. He is more popularly known as the father of the Pandavas and ruled Hastinapur.-Birth:...
/ShivaShivaShiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a... - Akram KhanAkram Khan (dancer)Akram Khan, MBE is a dancer whose background is rooted in his classical kathak training and contemporary dance.-Career:Khan was born in London into a family of Bangladeshi origin. He began dancing and trained in the classical Indian dance form of Kathak at the age of seven. He studied with Sri...
as EkalavyaEkalavyaIn the Hindu epic Mahābhārata, Ekalavya is a young prince of the Nishadha tribes, and a member of a low caste, who aspires to study archery in the gurukul of Dronacharya. After being rejected by Drona due to his low caste, Eklavya embarks upon a program of self-study in the presence of a clay... - Nolan HemmingsNolan Hemmings-Early life:Hemmings is the son of actor/director David Hemmings and actress Gayle Hunnicutt. He is named after his father's character, Captain Nolan, in The Charge of the Light Brigade.-Career:...
as AbhimanyuAbhimanyuAbhimanyu is a tragic hero in the Hindu epic, the Mahābhārata. He is the son of Arjuna and Subhadra, who is the half-sister of Lord Krishna... - Hapsari Hardjito as Abhimanyu's wife
- Mas Soegeng as VirataVirataVirata , in the Hindu epic Mahabharata, was a king in whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile. Virata was married to Queen Sudeshna and was the father of Prince Uttara and Princess Uttarā, who married Abhimanyu son of Arjuna. Their son Parikshit succeeded...
- Yumi Nara as Virata's wife
- Amba Bihler as Virata's daughter
- Tamsir Niane as UrvasiUrvasiUrvashi Urvashi Urvashi in Hindu legend. She was a celestial maiden in Indra's court and was considered the most beautiful of all the Apsaras....
- Lutfi Jakfar as UttaraUttara (Mahabharata)In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Uttarā or Anglicized as Uttara was the daughter of King Virata, at whose court the Pandavas spent a year in concealment during their exile...
- Gisèle Hogard as 1st princess
- Julie Romanus as 2nd princess
- Abbi Patricx as Salvi
- Mamadou Dioumé as BhimaBhimaIn the Mahābhārata, Bhima is one of the central characters of Mahabharata and the second of the Pandava brothers...
- Ken Higelin as Deathless boy
- Corinne Jaber as Amba / Sikhandin
- Joseph Kurian as DhristadyumnaDhristadyumnaDhrishtadyumna , also known as Draupada, was the son of Drupada and brother of Draupadi and Shikhandi in the epic Mahābhārata...
- Clément Masdongar as Gazelle
- Leela Mayor as SatyavatiSatyavatiSatyavati was the queen of the Kuru king Shantanu of Hastinapur and the great-grandmother of the Pandava and Kaurava princes . She is also the mother of the seer Vyasa, author of the epic...
- Velu Vishwananan as The hermit
Awards
In 1990, the film won the award for Performing Arts of the International Emmy Awards and the Audience Award for Best Feature at the São Paulo International Film FestivalSão Paulo International Film Festival
The São Paulo International Film Festival is a film festival held annually in São Paulo, Brazil since 1976. In 2004 Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami was a member of the jury.-International Jury Award:*2001: The New Country ...
.