Many Scholars and politicians have talked about Hindu-Muslim unity like Mohd. Ali Jinnah, who was given the title of Ambass ador of Hindu-Muslim unity by Sarojini Naidu. Mahatma Gandhi also preached for Hindu-Muslim unity in his letters. Though Gandhi's love for Muslims has annoyed some people but he responds boldly and says that & Thy name is both Ishwar and Allah & Munsi Premchand has talked a lot in his novels and short stories about the issue. But in modern time very few writers have been talking about the issue. Both Girish Karnad and Mahesh Dattani not only talks about the issues but also gives the solution for the problems so that the harmony between the two communities can be maintained. In Tughlaq Girish Karnad Says that we should treat Hindu and Muslim equal and in Final Solutions Mahesh Dattani conveys the pious idea that both Hindu and Muslim ought to regard each other while removing the confusion to each other. As per the author's knowledge no latest literature was found for this paper.

Indo-Anglian drama does not have a long history, yet it can boast of some great dramatists like Rabindra Nath Tagore, Aurobindo, T.P. Kalisam, Dhan Gopal Mukherji, Nissim Ezekiel, Girish Karnad and Mahesh Dattani. Both Girish Karnad and Mahesh Dattani have made their name and fame in the history of Indo-Anglian drama through the appealing themes in their plays. The present study is to highlight the issue of Hindu-Muslim unity in Karnad Tughlaq and Mahesh Dattani's Final solution in which both the dramatists deal with the same theme. They are of the view that the unity between both the religious groups must be maintained at any cost. The play Tughlaq deals with the theme through the historical character Tughlaq, the Muslim emperor in medieval India history and Final Solution deals with some characters who are the victims of Hindu-Muslim riots in India after the independence of India in 1950. We shall study the theme one after other. Tughlaq is the second play by Girish Karnad published in 1962. It was originally written in Kannad but subsequently translated into English by Karnad himself. In fact the play is sufficient to earn for Girish Karnad an assured place among the Indo-Anglian dramatists.

About this play Girish Karnad has written:

When I came to Tughlaq I said oh! Marvellous! That is what I wanted. In those days existentialism was very much in the air. To be considered mad was very much fashionable. Everything about Tughlaq seemed to fit into what I read was the correct thing to do, which was to be mad and to do impossible things and so on. So I started reading Tughlaq. But as I started reading about Tughlaq I suddenly realized what a fantastic character I had hit upon. I started with Ishwari Prasad and then went on to all the contemporary material and suddenly felt possessed, felt this character was growing up in front of me. Certainly Tughlaq was the most extraordinary character to come on the throne of Delhi, in religion, in philosophy, even in calligraphy, in battle, war field, anything we talk about, he seems to have outshone anyone who came before him. After that writing the play was not difficult at all. [1]

Girish Karnad has only three notable plays to his credit. But these three plays are sufficient to earn for him a prestigious place among the Indo-Anglian dramatists. Yayati and Tughlaq have been translated into English where as Hayavadana has been translated into Hindi. Tughlaq is considered as his most famous work and only this play would have established Karnad as a noted dramatist. The play is in 13 scenes woven around the life and times of Muhammad bin Tughlaq, the 14th century Sultan of Delhi, an authoritarian but idealistic king who disintegrates into failure in a span of 20 years is earily contemporary.

The king wanted to build a secular state, moving his capital from Delhi to Daultabad, a Hindu majority city. His ideas about the economy were new but he turned in a whimsical tyrant who could not control the kingdom any more. When it came out, it reflected the political mood of disillusionment which followed the Nehru era of idealism in the country. But it was relatable during the subsequent moments of crisis in our history as it is to the present.

Muhammad Tughlaq is often charged with mixing religion with politics. The orthodox muslims called him an anti-Islamic emperor but the young man found him the true representative of Islam. Muhammad Tughlaq ruled over India at a time when the Muslims were making every effort to spread Islam in this country. The Muslim invadors fought against the Hindus whom they called and Kafir or Infidel and established their supermacy over the major part of Hindu population. The Hindus cherished feelings of revenge against the Muslims. In such conditions, the Mulsim rulers found it difficult to rule the country peacefully and effectively. Those rulers who were realistic in their diplomacy succeeded in ruling the country without much difficulty. But those who were idealistic and visionary failed. When Muhammad Tughlaq sat on the throne of Delhi, there was much animosity between the Hindus and the Muslims. Religious bigotry prevailed on a large scale and the Hindus lived in constant fear of their lives. But when Tughlaq came to the throne, he began to make efforts to bring about harmony between the two communities. Muhammad Tughlaq was a visionary and idealist. He wanted to build a powerful and united India. He knew that this could not be done without Hindu-Muslim Unity in the country. Therefore he took certain concrete steps in this direction. For example he abolished the Jazia Tax which was imposed on Hindus. He also declared that both Hindus and Muslims would be treated impartially and would be equal before the law. On the otherhand, to show that he was a devout Muslim, he made prayer five times a day compulsory to all Muslims as dictated in the Koran.

As Youngman stressed this points :

Now you have to pray five times a day to confirm to the laws of Islam. If you fail to do so, an officer of court will arrest you. I am sure you can not name a single Sultan who made it compulsory for the common man to read the Karan everyday and to follow the tenets of Islam very strictly. Can you give, a single example?

Now all this is changed. Now people read Islam in the streets.[2] But this approach of Muhammad Tughlaq invited anger and ispleasure of the Mullahs and Maulvis. They called the Hindus infidels one of the old Muslims says : Beware of the Hindus who embraces you. Before you know what, he will turn Islam into another caste and call the prophet an incarnation of his God. [3] The Hindu on the other hand expresses his anguish. We did not want an exemption. Look when a Sultan, kicks me in the teeth and says, pay up, you Hindu dog, I am happy. I know I am safe. But the moment a man comes along and says, 'I know you are a Hindu, but you are also a human being well, that makes me nervous.[4]

This evidently shows the feeling of suspicion and distrust among the Hindus for the Muslims. However, Muhammad Tughlaq did not show that he was biased towards the Hindus or the Muslims. He believed in equal justice to all. This is evident in the play when the case of the Brahmin Vishnu Prasad is considered by the Kazi. Let us see the following lines from the text : "(The public announcer comes out. He carries his drum. There is the complete silence).

The Announcer : Listen and be attentive. In the name of the God. I have to make an announcement that one Vishnu Prasad, a Brahmin from Shiknar, filed legal suit against the Sultan who is Merciful and Generous. Vishnu Prasad accused His Merciful Magesty that his land has been confiscated illegally by the royal officers. In the suit he had prayed for compensation for the loss of the land and for the torture he suffered as a result of this loss. The Chief Justice, Kazi-E-Mumalik has given his judgement. The Judgement says that the claim of the Brahmin is just and His Majesty is guilty of illegally taking over his land. The Kazi has further ruled that in return for the loss of his land and as compensation Vishnu Prasad should be given a grant of five hundred silver dinars from the state treasury. .......... The Sultan has agreed with the judgement of the Kazi. Besides the grant, the Sultan has offered Vishnu Prasad a civil post to provide him with a regular and sufficient income. [5]

Muhammad Tughlaq himself declares it before the crowd:

My Empire at present is large enough and extends to the far South. I therefore need a capital at the centre of the empire. Delhi is very much near the border and is open to the attack of the enemies. Its peace is always in danger. Moreover, for me the most important factor is that Daultabad is a city where Hindus are in majority. Therefore if I make it the capital, it will be a symbol of Hindu-Muslim Unity which I aim to establish and develop in my Kingdom.[6]

This play of Karnad throws light on the mistrust that was emerging amongst the Hindus and the Muslims in the sixties. In the reign of Muhammad Tughlaq the Muslims called the Hindus bloody infidels. The Hindus on their part never trusted the Muslims even when they were prospering and exempted from taxes. This attitude is expressed by a Hindu in the play : The Hindus never desire any exemption in taxes. They always want an honest person. If the Sultan kicks a Hindu calls him a dog and orders him to pay the and Jijiya and it is quite natural and honest and honest in this part. They feel happy at this. But when he treats Hindus as equal with Muslims because they are also human beings. They are afraid of him. The young man on this attitude and he reacts to Hindu in the following words: Young Man. This shows that you are a mean and ungrateful person. You done and it appreciate what Sultan has done for Hindus. And again Old Man. Dear Jamal, such Hindus whom you call wretched are our best friends. When a Hindu shows you an attitude of kindness and embraces you, you should be quite cautious. Such a Hindu is a staunch believer of caste and he an idol-worshipper. Before you understand him fully, he will transform the Islam into a caste and will call Muhammad, the prophet, one of the gods.[7] The situation between the Hindus and the Muslims in the reign of Tughlaq worsened despite all his efforts to bring about the communal harmony.

Such a situation prevailed in the post independence India. Mahatma Gandhi who was an idealist made his efforts to bring Hindus and Muslims together. Pt. Nehru also made such efforts but both failed miserably. Mahatma Gandhi became a victim os this mistrust between the two communities. Girish Karnad highlighted the issue in the play to develop a mutual understanding between both the communities. His attempt is very pious to make bridge for the harmony and peace in modern Indian society. This play of Karnad shows that there is no difference between the period of Muhammad Tughlaq and the period of Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru in Modern India. But the attempt of the writer is to create the harmony between the Hindus and the Muslims which is the need of the hour. He focused on the issue for the understanding and peace. He talks boldly on the topic so that the people can learn from the experiences of bitterness to the healthy relationship. In the play "Final Solutions" Mahesh Dattani also deals with the problem of acrimony between the Hindus and the Muslims which was initially caused by the partition of the country, planned and executed by the Britishers malevolently because they had faced all along a combined struggle of the Hindus and the Muslims for freedom. Britishers sowed the seeds of dissension and brought about the partition in a slovenly manner. Partition was declared without caring to see how an order would be maintained. No government with the name was left in either of the two countries. They and let loose the dogs and as the young girl had heard from her father, who was later beaten and killed in the street. The hoodlums had their day. Daksh and house in Hussainabad in Pakistan was attacked. They had to swift from their ancestral home in Pakistan to Amargao Gujarat in India for a safe and peaceful life. Thousands of families had to migrate and hundreds were robbed and butchered. It was free for all. A train packed with dead bodies came from Pakistan. The infuriated Indians also had to send a train similarly packed with dead bodies to Pakistan with inscription on the engine Gift to Pakistan. Mayhem continued for several months. Everybody was stunned.

The dramatist tries to find solution of this ragging problem. After a peaceful life in Amargao for forty year, riot broke out, reminding Hardika of the horrible scenes she had witnessed during post-partition days, but suggestions are made by the dramatist at several stages that the past should be buried once forever, and people should see life in a new perspective. The Muslim boys are given shelter in a Hindu home, and a Hindu girl is worried about the safety of Muslim girl friend. The dramatist succeeds in his venture- Hardika learns of the misdeeds of her father and changes her attitude towards Muslims makes a complete turn about as she asks if those Muslim boys will come again. The spirit of tolerance and understanding wins in the end.

The dramatist has found solution of the ever nagging problem of the communal disharmony. The characters are symbolic because each of them has his/her own views on the issue. Hardika, the eldest family has fear of Muslims who killed her father dislodged them from their ancestral home at Hussainabad.

The guilt-laden soul can get the Muslim boys again to wash off the sin of her husband. Ramnik and case is also the same. He also gives shelter to the boys at the risk of his own life to remove the weight of the sin his father had committed. Smita is a college going girl, has Muslim friends, and her heart doest not have weight of any sin. Aruna is a house wife, imprisoned within the four walls of customs and rituals; she is terrified when the chorus threatens to enter the house by force. She is worried about the safety of the family. It is due to the fear that she asks her husband not to give shelter to the two boys, nor to keep them in the house against the threats to the family. Thus none of the family is diehard opponent of Hindu-Muslim unity. But the idea that peace dwells in the armpit of the majority remains doubtful. The example of Ramnik and family shows that none stands in the way of peace and amity. The Muslim group hs washed the brain of youths with the idea that Hindus should be curbed with a heavy hand. Why does the Muslim group feel in secure when no attack is made on their religious customs. The question is why a group enrols the youths to attack the rathyatra which has been passing through the same street for forty year. Nevertheless Dattani has sincerely felt concerned with the issue of Hindu-Muslim unity and has presented it successfully in the drama having well-formed plot, powerful diction and convincing characters. The Play opens with Daksha reading what she had written in her diary in the late 1940 when struggle for independence was in most crucial stage. Daksha was a girl of fifteen in 1948, yet she wrote to tell people hundred years down the line about todays life style. Daksha is a very sensitive girl. She writes with emotion. She is married to Hari. She She was married she was fifteen. She celebrates her fifteenth birthday after a week of her arrival in her in-laws home. She expresses what she wrote in her diary: and My father had fought for that hour. And he was happy when it come. He said he was happy we were rid of the Britishers. He also said something. I did not understand then. He said that before leaving, they had let loose the dogs. I hated to think that he was talking about my friend and father… But that night in Hussainabad in our ancestral house - when I heard them outside-I knew that they were thinking the some of us. And I know that I was thinking the same, like my father. And as their voices grew louder, I blamed them more and more for my father and absence. The windows broke one by one. My mother and myself we hid in the puja room. The stones came smashing into our home. I clung to my mother. My mother clung to the family idol of Lord Krishna. I could see the fire they were carrying, reflected in the broken glass lying around us. I looked at my mothers praying, with her eyes tightly shut, clutching the feat of the idol, praying not for us but for the safety of my father, wherever he may be I looked at the idol and suddenly I had the most horrible thought. I feel afraid to repeat it here; but I must. I felt that the idol, I had grown up seeing my mother worship was just a pointed doll. A doll no different from the ones of used to play with and think it was a real person. (Silence.) And then I knew it was Krishna slapping me in the face, punishing me for being a non-believer. A stone hit our gramophone table, breaking it. Krishna chose to destroy what I loved most. My entire collection of records broken. Lying about like pieces of glass. Shamshad Begum, Noor Jahan, Suraiya. The songs of love that I had learnt to sing with. Those beautiful voices. Cracked 8 . In the opening of the play Daksha reads what she has written in her diary forty years again late 1940s. The girl in her diary forty years again late 1940s. The girl in her teen has written in her diary what was important for the society. It was the day when India was to be declared an independent country at the midnight hour. People remained awake to hear the long awaited announcement. Dakshas father had fought for it like thousands of people. But he happiness was not unalloyed. She writes, My father had fought for that hour… he was happy we were rid of the Britishers but before leaving the had let loose the dogs. This simple remark opens up the history of the aftermath of the partition and her mind- A young girls childish scribble. An old womans shaky scrawl. Her bitter experience made her shaky in mind like her scrawl. Having written her experience in her mothers house she writes about the atmosphere in her laws house where she celebrated her fifteenth birthday. She begins writing her new name Hardika married to Hari. She takes a break from recounting her experience in the family to relate her observations about the mohalla residents. Her maid servant told her about a Muslim family having five daughters, five to sixteen years old living in the same colony. Hardika makes friendship with them. She tells her friend Kanta that she has liked the eldest of them named Zarine. She met her in the market. She being a Khoja, has a very beautiful face and figure. On the otherday, when she was returning from the market, she asked her tangawala to pass through her gali, looked inside her house, wherein she saw on old man probably the father of Zarine, sitting on a charpai and smoking hookah in a customary way of old Muslims male fellws. But more interesting it was that a record of Noor Jahans song was being played in the house. Daksha imagined that the they must all be sitting around gramophone" as she would have done. She is fond of music that she could hear the song loud as if I was sitting next to the gramophone. It was playing in my mind. The words I had forgotten came back and I sang out loud. I only stopped when we came to our door-when I saw my father-in-law who did not like the young ones to sing those romantic songs. Daksha recalls that the mob started throwing stones which broke the windows one by one. She describes her mothers fear and so many things. But after the period if forty years young Daksha who has become old Hardika now. She opens the diary again to find the similarity and differences between the two phases of her life. She is the oldest person in the family now but she still nutures the wound caused by the murder of her father committed by Muslims during riots following the partition of India. Now after the riots in free she believes that Muslims are not believable and reasonable. These tragic episodes have changed her life and thinking about Muslim cuture. She has fear that Muslims may cause Mayhem during the present riots. Let us see what Hardika thinks in the following lines: Hardika. After forty years … I opened my diary agan. And I wrote. A dozen pages before. A dozen pages now. A young girl and childish scribble. An old woman and shaky scrawl. Yes things have not changed that much…

CHORUS 1. The procession has passed through these lanes every year, for forty years!

CHORUS 2, 3. How dare they?

CHORUS 1, 2, 3. For forty years our chariot has moved through their mohallas.

CHORUS 4, 5. Why did they? Why did they today?

CHORUS 1. How dare they?

CHORUS 23. The broke our rath. They broke our chariot and felled our Gods!

CHORUS 1, 2, 3. This is our land. How dare they?

CHORUS 1,. It is in their blood.

CHORUS 2, 3. It is in their blood to destroy.

CHORUS 5, It could have been an accident.

CHORUS 2. The stone that hit our God was no accident?[9]

All this turmoil makes Hardika's temperament unstable and creates the feelings of fear towards Muslims community but it is her son Ramnik who not only cares Muslims but handle the tension between two communities at the time of communal riots in college of her daughter Smita. They both (Smita and Ramnik) help Tasneem at the time of trouble as the following lines reveal: Ramnik. Give it to me. I will handle this. (Takes the phone from her) Hello I am calling from Amargao. We dont know each other. You see, my daughter is Tasneem's classmate and… No, she is fine, dont worry about your daughter. In fact, thats why we called-to tell you that. Colleges are closed and curfew has not been lifted, so we assumed you might be worried about… In fact, they were just speaking on the phone… and everything is just fine… oh no trouble at all. Please dont mention it… any time. You must visit us when you are in Amargao.

Yes… Mr. Noor Ahmad, Mr. Noor Ahmad, I am Ramnik Gandhi. I… (enunciates distinctly) Ramnik Gandhi. (Makes a joke of it) No relation, of course. It is a common surname… Why, even in year community… Hello? (No response. Pause.) Er-we cut off, I think. [10] The dramatist is always at pains to keep the young generation free from old fears to enable them to look at life in a new light. He presents an answer to the fear in the mind of the common man. The Muslim chorus thinks that Hindus are afraid of them and even being in majority beat them and the Hindu chorus blame Muslim for abusing the Gods. In the play the rath breaks due to some manufacturing defect but the Hindu chorus thinks that it been intentionally broken by Muslims and it becomes the great cause of communal riots. The dramatist focuses on the confusion between two communites. He presents characters like Ramnik and Smita to make a bridge to cover the differences of two Indian communities. He also settles the old hateful perception of Daksha towards Muslim community. He says just like Hindus, Muslims are also the citizen of India by birth and their choice. They will not go anywhere but live in complete harmony with Hindus. Thats why we find two Muslim boys seeking shelter in a Hindu house where the misconception of the two communities are removed. The chorus accost the two Muslim boys to know whether they mean to do some harm. The two boys (Javed and Bobby) are slightly upset in the beginning. They say that they want to go to bus stand to catch a bus to Jeevnagar. Bobby handle the situation carefully, tells the mob that they do not belong to this place, but Javed asks curtly, Why do you want to know the purpose of our coming to this place. The mob becomes suspicious, searches their pockets, takes out money deals out roughly with them. The mob pushes the two young men since it has become clear that they are Muslims and do not belong to this place. The boys run for the safety, followed by the mob crying kill them. Ramnik and Smita hear the cries of the boys save us, save us! and opens the gate to let them in after some hesitation. It is indeed a great act of courage and humanity, Ramnik has a streak of humanity, as Smita has. Let see the following lines.

Ramnik I will not open the door! Go away!

CHORUS All we shall break then! Ramnik. I stand in front of the door, if you break you will kill me.

CHORUS All. What? You protect them? Then you are a traitor! Traitor!

Ramnik. There is nothing you can take from here without killing me first. [11]

Ramnik not only saves two Muslim boys from the mob but he also changes Javeds stance of scorn to Hindus. He also opens his mothers eyes towards he injustice done to Muslims. He reminds her mother Daksha how his father has cheated the Muslim family in purchasing the shop. He tells her that he cannot go to the shop because he has the sense of guilt for having purchased the shop for half of its value. He says that the Hindus had burnt the shop, and my father, and his father-several post generations have done it. He says that Muslims look upon Hindus not with hatred, pride of arrogance but with anger against the continued suppression of them. Hardikas eyes are opened to the real fact of life. Therefore she regrets for not being told these facts earlier. She wants those boys to come again to her house perhaps to see her changed outlook.