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The Play Amrapali is based on a famous story of the Buddhist period in India. Generally, many stories and characters, as enshrined in the great epics of the Mahabharat and the Ramayan of India, are creatively transferred and have wider acceptability and readership among the public. The incidents of Buddhist and Jain texts scripted in Pali and Prakrit languages strongly impact contemporary life in society and literature. While reviewing the literature of Bauddha Bhikshunis (female mendicants), I came across Ambapali, a Courtesan (Bride of the City) of Vaishali. There was a small state, Vaishali, in North India two thousand and six hundred years ago. It was the Sangha-governed Republic. A vast mango orchard was on the outskirts of this city. One day, while wandering, the mango grove's watchman was startled to see an abandoned newborn girl beneath a mango tree. As per the approval of the state council, the issueless watchman nourished and nurtured the girl. When she found the child under the mango tree, she was named after Amrapali/Ambapali/Amba.Like a celestial nymph, Amrapali became a young nubile girl known for her beauty and charm. She was divinely graced. She was second to none in dancing and singing. Having participated in the Annual Dance Programme, Ambapali was declared the 'Royal Court Dancer' by the State Republic. Because of her extraordinary beauty, the Merchants, the Barons, and the members of the State Council started fighting among themselves to be with her. So, the state Board of Council announced the Courtesan (Bride of the City) for the city's welfare. Every male in the town would have the right to spend time with her.The anecdote of Amrapali's beauty and dance performance of sublime order had been spread worldwide. The insolent Emperor of Magadha, the enemy state of Vaishali Republic, Bimbisara, had disguised himself to enter the palace of Ambapali and received hospitality as a guest for seven days. When the State Council of Vaishali came to know about the matter, it immediately tried to arrest King Bimbisara; Ambapali helped him escape the spot. Then, the love story of Bimbisara and Amrapali was brought to the limelight. The State Council accused Ambapali of developing a love relationship with the King of the enemy state. On the other side, the King of Magadha Bimbisara fought with the Vaishali Republic to marry Ambapali and won the state. However, Ambapali showed hesitation in moving to Magadha and leaving Vaishali. At this time, the most compassionate Lord Buddha reached the city. Ambapali surrendered at the feet of Tathagata Buddha and started to lead the life of a female mendicant with the hope of getting nirvana (Salvation).

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Born in 1947 in Puri district of Odisha State, Dr Archana Nayak is a well-known litterateur in contemporary Odia literature. She served as a Professor of Odia Language and Literature in Government Colleges of the state. She is a revered story writer, novelist, essayist, playwright, lyricist, and translator. Among her notable novels are Satapadmara Deepa, Rani Shyamadevi, Sita; her anthology of stories are Swapna Godhuli, Kuhudipankshi, Anyanayika, Shramanara Pruthivi, Kalpanika Satya, Hansaprahari, Nakshatra Bhasha, Sakshi Thakurani, Gandharvaveena, and Chitralekhara Chitra. Her readers and literary circles admire her for her selection of sensitive humanistic themes, portrayal of characters, forceful language, and lucid style of expression-the themes of her creativity range from real-life experiences to history, mythology and spiritualism. The notable awards she has won are Odisha Sahitya Akademi, Satyabadi Sahitya Puraskara, Jemasamanta Srujani Puraskara, Justice Rajakishore Das Sahitya Puraskara, Kuntala Kumari Sabata Sahitya Samman, Sarala Samman (Cuttack) and Sahitya Bharati Samman. She was the editor of the famous Odia magazine Savitri. She was also the chief editor of the spiritual magazine Aaspruha. She was a good orator and announcer for Lord Jagannatha's Rathajatra (Chariot Festival) programme on different television channels and Akashvani Kendras in Odisha.She is also a recognized dramatist. She has written a series of drama scripts published in reputed literary magazines. Her much acclaimed three-hour duration drama Ambapali was staged several times. Most of her plays were telecasted by T.V. and broadcast by All India Radio. She was also honoured many times for her significant contributions to scriptwriting. She is also an authorized lyricist in All India Radio, Cuttack, Odisha. Born in Kendrapada district of Odisha, Sanjeet Kumar Das is a poet, a translator, and an educationist. His poetry collection Asima Jeevan was published in 2021. His translation works include Dr. Narayan Sahoo's And the Wretched (2023) and Bewildered God (2023), Dr. Niladri Bhusan Harichandan's Salabega and Columbus (2023), Shankar Tripathy's Nabakalebar (2024) Br. Bijoy Kumar Satapathy's Soul of Kansa and Kokua (2023) Dr. Bijay Mishra's play Niranjana (2023) and Dr. Ratnakar Chaini's play That Chanakya Lives (2023), Harihar Mishra's Demeaned Gajapati (2024) and Kunja Ray's Invincible Kharavela (2024). He has published one edited book A Translingual Voyage: Select Indian Writings in English Translation. Currently he works as an Assistant Professor at Department of English Language and Literature, Central University of Odisha, Koraput.

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