The Sanskrit Drama in its Origin, Development, Theory & Practice c20.s2.1

c20.s2.1

A drama is the imitation or representation of the conditions or situations (*avasthānukṛti*)³ in which the personages who form the subject of treatment are placed from time to time, by means of gesture, speech, costume, and expression, and, one version of the definition adds, the situations must be such as to produce pleasure or pain, that is, they must be tinged with emotion. It is the presence of these ancillaries which distinguishes the drama from an ordinary poem ; a poem appeals to the ear only, a drama is also a spectacle to delight the eyes ; hence the term Rūpa or Rūpaka as applied generically to the drama, for Rūpa primarily denotes the object of vision, though the Indian tradition gives the artificial explanation that Rūpaka denotes a drama because the actors are credited with different parts.