Recently, Andhra Pradesh government has issued an order banning the staging of popular Telugu drama 'Chintamani Padya Natakam'. This play has been staged for a long time at different places in the state.
This play was written by the social reformer, writer and poet 'Kallakuri Narayan Rao' about 100 years ago. Its objective was to spread awareness about the effects of prostitution on families and the Devadasi system.
The play quotes how the victims of social evils neglect their families. The play is named after the protagonist, Chintamani, a woman born into a family involved in prostitution. Subbisetty, Bilvamangaludu, Bhavani Shankaram and Srihari are other characters in this play.
For banning the staging of the play, members of a particular community objected to certain dialogues and portrayal of a character.