Summary of Tuglak by Karnad

 

📘 TUGHLAQ – Act-wise Summary

Author: Girish Karnad
Genre: Historical Tragedy / Political Allegory
Structure: 13 Scenes (Grouped here into 5 Acts for clarity)

🏰 ACT I – The Idealistic Sultan (Scenes 1–2)

Summary:

• The play opens in Delhi, 14th century.
• People gossip about Sultan Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq’s strange but intellectual rule.
• They admire his justice, secularism, and vision, but also fear his cruel punishments.
• The Sultan settles a case in favor of a Hindu Brahmin, Vishnu Prasad, to show religious fairness.
• However, the religious scholar Sheikh Imam-ud-din criticizes Tughlaq for mixing religion and politics.
• Tughlaq pretends to value the Sheikh’s advice, but later secretly plots his murder.
• In his private life, Tughlaq confides in his step-mother.
• He announces a grand reform — shifting the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad to bring Hindus and Muslims together.
• The step-mother warns him that his ideas are too ambitious.
• Tughlaq’s idealism shines, but his naïveté and pride begin to show.

Themes: Idealism, Secularism, Vision vs. Reality, Early Foreshadowing of Tragedy

⚖️ ACT II – The Rise of Chaos (Scenes 3–5)

Summary:

• Two commoners, Aziz and Aazam, appear — witty, greedy, and opportunistic.
• They impersonate holy men and exploit Tughlaq’s reforms for money, showing moral decay among citizens.
• Sheikh Imam-ud-din’s death reveals Tughlaq’s cruelty behind his idealism.
• The Sultan enforces the mass migration from Delhi to Daulatabad.
• The journey becomes a human tragedy — people die on the roads, families are destroyed.
• The step-mother pleads with him to stop, but he believes suffering is necessary for progress.
• Tughlaq’s vision begins to crumble under practical failure.

Themes: Political Manipulation, Corruption, Public Suffering, Disillusionment

🩸 ACT III – The Fall of Order (Scenes 6–8)

Summary:

• The Amirs and nobles grow restless and plot rebellion.
• Tughlaq, ever suspicious, crushes the revolt ruthlessly.
• He introduces another radical policy — copper currency equal to silver — aiming for economic reform.
• The plan backfires as people forge coins, destroying the economy.
• Hunger, crime, and chaos spread.
• Aziz and Aazam reappear, making fun of the Sultan’s failed experiments.
• Tughlaq’s ministers Najib and Barani try to calm him, but he becomes increasingly paranoid and violent.

Themes: Misrule, Betrayal, Economic Collapse, Tyranny, Loss of Faith

💔 ACT IV – The Isolation of the Sultan (Scenes 9–11)

Summary:

• The step-mother poisons Najib, believing he misguides her son.
• When Tughlaq discovers this, he orders her execution, though it breaks his heart.
• This marks the emotional and moral collapse of Tughlaq.
• Delhi becomes empty and lifeless, symbolizing the death of his dream.
• In Daulatabad, Tughlaq is now surrounded by silence, fear, and corpses.
• He confides in Barani, expressing guilt, loneliness, and failure.
• His madness deepens—he begins to speak to himself and suspects everyone.

Themes: Isolation, Madness, Guilt, Tragic Realization

⚰️ ACT V – The Tragic End (Scenes 12–13)

Summary:

• Aziz, the trickster, disguised as a holy messenger from Delhi, comes to Daulatabad.
• He cleverly deceives the Sultan, earning wealth and favour.
• Tughlaq unknowingly rewards the man who represents the corruption of his own rule.
• Ironically, Aziz’s cunning mirrors Tughlaq’s own deceitful politics.
• The final scene takes place in the mosque at night.
• Tughlaq prays alone; the Muezzin’s call to prayer echoes as Barani watches in fear.
• The Sultan is left utterly broken—alone, guilty, and delusional, symbolizing the death of his ideals.
• The visionary king who wanted unity, reason, and justice ends as a mad, isolated tyrant.

 

🧭 Overall Arc of the Play

Act	Phase of Rule	Tughlaq’s Condition	Symbolism
I	Idealistic Beginning	Confident, visionary	Light of reason
II	Political Upheaval	Arrogant, overconfident	Migration = forced unity
III	Revolt & Confusion	Suspicious, violent	Forged coins = false ideals
IV	Emotional Collapse	Lonely, guilty	Empty Delhi = moral vacuum
V	Complete Ruin	Mad, hopeless	Darkness = end of reason

💡 Conclusion

In Tughlaq, Girish Karnad shows how noble dreams fail when mixed with pride, impatience, and moral weakness.
Tughlaq begins as a philosopher-king and ends as a lonely madman, betrayed by his own brilliance.
The play mirrors India’s own political dilemmas—idealism destroyed by corruption and chaos.

 

 

 

 

 

📘 TUGHLAQ – Scene-wise Summary

 

Scene 1 – The Opening in Delhi

• The play begins in front of the Chief Court of Justice in Delhi.
• A crowd has gathered, gossiping about Sultan Muhammad Tughlaq’s strange decisions.
• They admire his idealism (justice, equality, secularism) but criticize his hypocrisy and cruelty.
• The case of Vishnu Prasad, a Hindu Brahmin whose land was unfairly taken, is discussed.
• Tughlaq surprises everyone by punishing his own Muslim officer, who was guilty — showing his supposed fairness.
• However, Sheikh Imam-ud-din, a respected religious leader, arrives and condemns Tughlaq for using religion for political gain.
• The scene establishes Tughlaq’s idealistic but ironic character—a visionary ruler misunderstood by his subjects.

Scene 2 – Tughlaq and His Step-mother

• The scene reveals Tughlaq’s private world.
• He speaks with his step-mother, who loves him but worries about his rash decisions.
• They discuss the assassination of his father and brother, which people suspect Tughlaq himself planned.
• Tughlaq shows signs of inner conflict and guilt.
• He announces his most controversial decision — shifting the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad to promote Hindu-Muslim unity.
• The step-mother senses disaster, but Tughlaq justifies the move as an act of equality and justice.

Scene 3 – Political Opposition

• Aziz and Aazam, two clever and comic characters, are introduced.
• They are small-time thieves who impersonate holy men for money.
• Through their conversation, Karnad adds dark humour and social commentary.
• They expose how Tughlaq’s idealistic reforms are exploited by corrupt people.
• They plan to take advantage of the confusion caused by the shift to Daulatabad.

Scene 4 – The Sheikh’s Confrontation

• Sheikh Imam-ud-din meets Tughlaq for a discussion.
• The Sultan invites him to lead a religious discourse but cleverly uses him as a political pawn.
• When the Sheikh realizes Tughlaq’s manipulative tactics, he confronts him harshly.
• Tughlaq orders his murder, proving that his idealism is tainted with cruelty and deceit.
• This marks the beginning of his moral downfall.

Scene 5 – The Move to Daulatabad

• A royal announcement is made: the entire population of Delhi must move to Daulatabad.
• People suffer immensely — families, traders, and the poor are forced to leave.
• The scene shows chaos, exhaustion, and revolt.
• Tughlaq’s dream of unity turns into a nightmare of oppression.
• The step-mother again warns him, but he refuses to listen.

Scene 6 – The Conspiracy of Nobles

• The Amirs and Sayyids plot against Tughlaq.
• They are tired of his changing laws, cruelty, and unpredictable nature.
• However, Tughlaq already knows about the plot — his intelligence network is strong.
• He cleverly executes the conspirators under the pretext of law and order.
• This shows his shift from idealism to tyranny and paranoia.

Scene 7 – Aazam and Aziz Reappear

• Aziz now impersonates a Muslim saint, gaining followers and money.
• Aazam warns him that pretending to be holy is dangerous, but Aziz enjoys outsmarting the system.
• Their scenes provide comic relief while mirroring the corruption in Tughlaq’s court.
• Aziz becomes a symbol of opportunism, thriving amid political chaos.

Scene 8 – The Treasury and Copper Coins

• Tughlaq introduces another ambitious reform: copper coins of equal value to silver coins.
• His idea is modern and progressive, but counterfeiting spreads rapidly.
• The economy collapses; trade stops; people starve.
• The Amirs rebel again.
• Tughlaq realizes his failure but refuses to admit it.
• His madness deepens.

Scene 9 – The Step-mother’s Crime

• The step-mother, seeing Tughlaq’s suffering, secretly poisons Najib, Tughlaq’s close advisor, whom she blames for corrupting her son.
• When Tughlaq discovers this, he becomes enraged.
• Despite his love for her, he orders her execution.
• This is a turning point—Tughlaq is now completely isolated, surrounded only by fear and guilt.

Scene 10 – The Empty Delhi

• Delhi lies deserted and silent after the migration to Daulatabad.
• Corpses rot in the streets; jackals howl.
• The symbolism is clear: Tughlaq’s utopia has turned into a graveyard.
• His dream of a rational, just state has failed.

Scene 11 – In Daulatabad

• In Daulatabad, Tughlaq rules from a new fort, haunted by the ghosts of his past.
• He talks to Barani, his loyal historian, expressing despair and confusion.
• He confesses he wanted a kingdom built on reason, not faith, but everything has gone wrong.
• He begins to suspect even Barani.
• His mental instability becomes evident — paranoia and self-doubt dominate him.

Scene 12 – The Mock Saint (Aziz)

• Aziz, disguised as a holy man from Delhi, arrives in Daulatabad.
• He demands an audience with the Sultan, claiming to be a messenger of peace.
• Tughlaq, impressed by his wit, grants him a reward — unaware that he is the same trickster who has been deceiving people all along.
• Ironically, Aziz becomes the only person who truly understands Tughlaq’s hypocrisy.
• The meeting is darkly comic yet tragic — showing that corruption now thrives openly under Tughlaq’s rule.

Scene 13 – The Tragic End

• The play ends at night in the prayer hall of Daulatabad.
• Tughlaq prays alone, overwhelmed by guilt, loneliness, and failure.
• Barani stands nearby, frightened and helpless.
• The Muezzin’s call to prayer merges with the Sultan’s broken prayer, symbolizing his complete spiritual and political collapse.
• The dreamer-king who wanted justice, equality, and unity is left defeated by his own idealism and madness.

🎭 Themes Highlighted Scene-wise

Theme	Illustrated In Scenes
Idealism vs. Reality	1–4
Religion and Politics	1, 4, 12
Power and Corruption	5–8
Madness and Isolation	9–13
Irony and Tragic Fall	Throughout

💡 Conclusion

Girish Karnad’s Tughlaq is a tragic study of a brilliant ruler whose visionary ideas outpace his people’s capacity to understand them. Each scene marks his decline—from an idealist philosopher-king to a lonely tyrant lost in his own contradictions.