MYSURU: Well-known theatre director Prasanna’s Hamlet contains lines translated by Ramachandra Deva, according to A Shashikala, divorced wife of the late writer.
The play was staged at the Bahuroopi national theatre festival here on Wednesday. “Prasanna has taken passages from Deva’s Kannada translation of the Shakespearean classic Hamlet, and I am contemplating legal action,” Shashikala said on Thursday.
In 2006, Deva had made a similar charge, prompting Prasanna to stop staging the play. In a letter to Deva, Prasanna had then explained his actors had found Deva’s dialogues difficult to deliver, and so he had translated the play all over again.
Prasanna had admitted some lines from Deva’s work might have crept into the revised version, and offered to stop shows if Deva so desired.
Shashikala told Express Prasanna had stopped staging the play accordingly, but resumed shows after Deva’s death a year ago.
The play was staged in Bengaluru last year, a few months ago at Rangayana here, and again at the Bahuroopi festival on Wednesday.
Deva’s dentist-daughter Dr Roshni, who lives in Hyderabad, holds the copyright for all his works.
Shashikala, who lives with Roshni, said her intention was neither to spoil the Bahuroopi national theatre festival nor to claim royalties. “I am pained Deva is not given credit for his works. A writer works for years to come up to do a translation and it is really sad if credit is denied,” she said.