Discuss the ending of the play, Silence! The Court is in Session.

It is telling that when Benare gets to respond to the accusations, she is given a mere ten seconds, which is essentially an act of silencing. In their article on the play, Garima quotes Arundhati Benerjee, who writes of how Benare’s “defence of herself against the onslaught of the upholders of social norms in a long soliloquy, has become famous in the history of contemporary Marathi theatre” and “it is important to note here that Tendulkar leaves us in doubt as to whether or not Benare at all delivers the soliloquy, thus, suggesting that in all probability what she has to say for herself is swallowed up by the silence imposed upon her by the authority. In fact, during the court providing on several occasions, her objective and protestation are drowned by the judge’s cry of silence and the banging of the gravel (ix).” Garima concludes that “Benare’s long but unspoken soliloquy symbolize [sic] that women are not allowed to voice out their thoughts, feelings in our male dominated society.”

Benare’s soliloquy is anguished, honest, and powerful. At times halting, and at other times forceful and articulate, she gives voice to the myriad of ways women are subjugated. She is seduced by a much older uncle and then abandoned and chastised. She is made to feel responsible for this abuse and thus tries to take her own life. Later, after surviving her suicide attempt, she once again falls prey to a man—Damle—who tells her he loves her but really only wants her for her body. Her sterling reputation as an educator is in jeopardy due to her illegitimate pregnancy, despite the fact that her private life should not affect her employment. Her “friends” are erstwhile and capricious, happy to judge her with abandon as they ignore the planks in their own eyes. Every single thing she says and does is scrutinized and then used against her not only to disparage her character but also to explain why the nation as a whole is flawed. It is no wonder she collapses on the floor at the end, which makes sense both if she did give the monologue or if she didn’t—giving or not, it is what she thinks and feels, and it is overwhelming.