Quick Facts
Biography
Dr. Deerghasi Vizai Bhaskar is a Telugu playwright, poet, short story writer, and translator. He published a thesis on Telugu theater and several columns on the development of Telugu theater.
Birth, early life
Vizai Bhaskar, born in 1958, in Ampolu village of Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh. His interest in theater made him pursue academics in the field of theater, and he studied Bertolt Brecht's influence on Telugu drama.
Literature
Vizai Bhaskar emphasised socio-political themes in his plays and used metaphors from the Vedas, Upanishads, and Puranas. Kinchit Bhogam, Gandhi Jayanti, Jeevannatakam, Rtvik, Kurchi, and Bommalu Cheppina Bhajagovindam are some of his popular plays. These have been translated to English, Hindi, Kannada, and Malayalam.
Recognition
Vizai Bhaskar's dramas have been adopted by the Karnataka Nataka Akademi in the year 2010 to be played on stage as part of a Kannada-Telugu theater collaboration. Vizia Bhaskar mentions in an interview with The Hindu that the play Gandhi Jayanthi was translated into seven languages in addition to English and that his drama Puli Swari was staged 150 times.
Awards
- Nandi Award : Best writer award for the years 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2011.
- Sri Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University award in 2004
- Sangeeta Natak Kala Academy award for the year 2010 for best playwright.
- Delhi Telugu Akademi award for excellence in Telugu literature for the year 2011
- Gurajada Sahitee Puraskaram for the year 2012 conferred by Government of Andhra Pradesh.
