First staged in 1892, the South Indian play Girls for Sale (Kanyasulkam) is considered the greatest modern work of Telugu literature and the first major drama written in an Indian language that critiqued British colonialism’s effects on Indian society. Filled with humor, biting social commentary, parody, and masquerade, the plot revolves around a clever courtesan, a young widow, and a very old man who wants to buy as his wife a very young girl. Velcheru Narayana Rao has prepared the first idiomatic English translation, with notes and a critical essay. Itself a masterpiece of Indian literature in translation, this edition makes Apparao’s work available to new audiences.
- ISBN10 0253219132
- ISBN13 9780253219138
- Publish Date 20 July 2007 (first published 1 January 2007)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Indiana University Press
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 248
- Language English