-- *Mar*Absolutely. Below is a *short one-act drama* inspired by the themes in *The Catastrophe* by YM Sarma. It explores the clash between mechanistic education and ecological awareness, set in a university setting. ------------------------------ *Title: The Forgotten Garden*
*Characters:* - *Professor Verma* – A senior economics professor, logical, traditional, respected. - *Arun* – A sensitive, curious student with a deep love for nature. - *Maya* – Arun’s classmate, skeptical but open-minded. - *Dean Rao* – The university administrator, focused on rankings and industry ties. - *Voice of Nature* – A poetic, unseen voice heard only by Arun (can be done via voiceover or spotlight). ------------------------------ *Scene 1: University Lecture Hall* *(A sterile room with whiteboards, screens, and no windows. Professor Verma is giving a lecture. Students sit passively. Arun is restless.)* *Professor Verma:* And so, if the market demand rises, the price follows. Efficiency leads to growth. Remember: natural resources are inputs. We calculate, we extract, we profit. That’s economics. *Arun (quietly):* And what about the cost to the Earth? *Professor Verma (pauses, mildly amused):* The Earth is resilient, Arun. We model sustainability, don’t worry. *Arun:* But we don’t *feel* it. We’ve never even touched the forest we talk about conserving. *Professor Verma (firmly):* Feelings don’t belong in economic models. This is a science, not poetry. *(Class ends. Students leave. Maya approaches Arun.)* *Maya:* You always ask strange questions. Not that I disagree, but… what are you really looking for? *Arun:* I don’t know. Maybe a place where knowledge smells like soil. Where learning is alive. ------------------------------ *Scene 2: The Edge of the Campus – Dusk* *(An abandoned corner with overgrown plants and broken stone benches. Arun sits alone. A soft wind blows. The lights dim. A spotlight hits Arun as the Voice of Nature speaks.)* *Voice of Nature (gentle, echoing):* You seek me… though they’ve forgotten I ever lived here. Once, this was a garden of learning, where students sang with birds, not machines. *Arun (whispering):* Who are you? *Voice of Nature:* I am what your senses remember. I am the hum of the bee, the dance of leaves, the silence before rain. I am the lost classroom of your ancestors. *(Pause. Arun closes his eyes. Sound of distant birds. Lights return to normal. Maya enters.)* *Maya:* There you are. What is this place? *Arun (smiling):* The real university. Come. Let’s bring it back. ------------------------------ *Scene 3: University Boardroom* *(Dean Rao, Professor Verma, and faculty are seated. Tension in the room. Arun and Maya stand at the front, showing photos of their restored garden: trees planted, students gathering, classes outside.)* *Arun:* We’ve started a Nature Park. No tampering, no technology. Just being present with the Earth. We believe this should be part of our curriculum. *Dean Rao (irritated):* This university is built on partnerships with industries. We’re top-ranked for a reason. We can’t indulge in… sentimental gardening. *Professor Verma:* Arun, this is charming. But impractical. *Maya (firmly):* No. What’s impractical is educating future leaders who can’t recognize the sound of a dying forest. If we don't change what we teach, we become the architects of extinction. *(Silence. A pause. Then Dean Rao sighs.)* *Dean Rao:* What exactly do you propose? *Arun:* One subject. Just one: *Ecology as Economics*. Let the students learn from nature itself. Let us read the winds, the waters, the trees. Give us one garden. ------------------------------ *Scene 4: Months Later – The Nature Park* *(A small stage transformed. Real plants, sounds of birds, students sitting under trees. Professor Verma watches quietly as Arun teaches. Maya plays a flute. Nature is alive.)* *Voice of Nature (softly):* And so, the garden breathes again. One seed of awareness… becomes a forest of change. ------------------------------ *Curtain Falls* ------------------------------ *Themes:* - Disconnection vs. Reconnection with Nature - Conflict between Commercial Education and Ecological Wisdom - Power of Sensory Learning - Hope through Youth-Led Change Would you like this adapted into a *longer play*, translated into another language, or formatted for a *school performance*? -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CACDCHCLc95QtDqK_eZSo%3D1YM4zSyonBA3LNvG8Ky%2BFhyM1OfRQ%40mail.gmail.com.
