Jayanti Dalai was a Gujarati playwright. He was born virtually `on stage` i.e. in the building of the Desi Natak Samaj Company in Ahmadabad in 1909. He was the son of its manager Ghelabhai. Jayanti Dalai spent his early years observing commercial Gujarati theatre close up. During his teens he joined the students` strikes and nationalist `salt movement` of the 1930s. In later days he helped his political mentor Indulal Yagnik in the Maha Gujarat movement in 1956. This was mainly to divide the then bilingual Bombay state. He was elected to Gujarat`s newly formed legislature. Parallel to this, he acted and directed in the amateur group Rangmandal, wrote one-act plays, stories, and essays, edited Dahyabhai Jhaveri`s complete works, and translated European novels. His most important contribution as a writer of one-act drama can be collected in Javnika or `Curtain` in 1941 and Praves in `Entry` in four volumes in 1950-7. These were done along with C. C. Mehta and Umashankar Joshi. Kaya lakdani, maya lugdani i.e. `Bodies of Wood and Fascination for Clothes` in 1963 was a collection of theatre criticism. In these he expresses his vision and attitude towards the creative processes of theatre. He edited the literary magazine Rekha i.e. `Line` in 1929 and newspaper Nav Gujarat i.e. `New Gujarat` in 1966. He had a very strong voice of dissent against vested interests in theatre and social life; Dalai could cast a spell on the masses both with his writing and speeches. Jayanti Dalai died in the year of 1970.
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