International Journal of Social Science Research (IJSSR)

Performing Myth and Political Memory: An Analysis of Tuponi E Ture Kalatalat Ghar (Complacency Ruins Us!) as Contemporary Assamese Theatre

This paper examines the performance of "Tuponi E Ture Kalatalat Ghar (Complacency Ruins Us!)", a contemporary Assamese play written and directed by Dr. Mrinal Jyoti Goswami, adapted from a story by Samudra Kajal Saikia. Drawing from performance studies, folklore theory, and memory studies, the paper explores how the live staging of the play mobilizes Assamese folk myths, rhymes, and symbolic figures as tools of political commentary and cultural resistance. Through the embodiment of characters like Kankhowa and settings such as the mythical Ratanpur, the performance transforms oral traditions into theatrical expressions of societal decay and moral urgency. Ritualistic structure, choreographed folk movement, and episodic narrative techniques contribute to the play’s Brechtian strategy of estrangement. The analysis positions the performance as a living archive—a lieu de mémoire (Lieu de mémoire is a French term that means “site of memory.” It was introduced by French historian Pierre Nora in his influential essay Between Memory and History (1989).)—where folklore becomes a medium to reactivate political memory, critique complacency, and reconnect younger generations with cultural identity. The study concludes that Goswami’s theatre exemplifies the power of myth in shaping civic consciousness through performance.