Title in English: Hastabhinaya. Hand Gestures in Traditional Theatre Art of India
The book entitled deals with traditional Indian acting style, particularly with hand gestures. Its focus lies in a specific form of actor-spectator communication – the communication carried out with by means of mudras, or symbolic hand positions. The aim of the book consists in defining of the principles of this mode of communication within performance activities of India. The book also verifies the proposition that mudras create autonomous language system by which every single thought or emotion can be expressed. The research is based on ancient and also contemporary theatre literature in Sanskrit, English or French, most of all on poetics and acting manuals, and on contemporary practice of traditional theatre or dance in India. The most important sources of the research were the kootiyattam and kathakali theatre.
