Oscar Wilde and Ashta Chamma

 Oscar Wilde and Ashta Chamma

October 16, is the day to remember Oscar Wilde, the dazzling Irish playwright, poet, and wit whose words continue to inspire me and many English teachers and lovers of English literature. Oscar Wilde’s wit and timeless humor, combined with the Telugu film Ashta Chamma, which brought his play The Importance of Being Earnest alive for me in a new cultural context. Experiencing both the original brilliance and the localized adaptation deepened my love for literature, theater, Cinema and storytelling as a teacher.

So here is a small write-up on one of my favourite writers.

🎩 Oscar Wilde: The Master of Wit

Born in 1854 in Dublin, Wilde’s life was a fascinating mix of brilliance, rebellion, and tragedy of being jailed and his death, with a rumoured homosexualality — but his works remain timeless, brimming with humor, insight, and an unshakable belief in beauty and truth.

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🎭 The Importance of Being Earnest — Wit with Wisdom

My first real encounter with Wilde was through his sparkling play, The Importance of Being Earnest, which I had during my undergraduation at Loyola College, Chennai. This comedy of mistaken identity and social satire perfectly captures Wilde’s genius.

Lines like —

“The truth is rarely pure and never simple,”
still echo in my mind, reminding me that humor can be a powerful way to reveal truth.

The play’s lively characters, rapid dialogue, and gentle mockery of Victorian manners fascinated me. Years later, I was delighted to see a Telugu adaptation titled “Ashta Chamma,” directed by Mohana Krishna Indraganti.

Set in a modern Indian context, the film reimagines Wilde’s story with local flavor and warmth: Lavanya insists her future husband’s name must be “Mahesh,” and in the comedic twist, our protagonist pretends to be Mahesh, setting off a chain of confusion. Nani as Mahesh/Rambabu, Swathi as Lavanya, literally brought life to the original play on the Telugu Screen. Watching it felt like rediscovering Wilde’s spirit — witty, relevant, and universal. It reminded me that great literature transcends language and time.

📚 Other Works that Inspired Me

The other works of his that I read while preparing for the NET exam showed his mastery as a playwright. His The Picture of Dorian Gray showed me how art can explore the darker corners of the human soul — the price of vanity and moral compromise.

Plays like An Ideal Husband and Lady Windermere’s Fan reflect his sharp moral vision wrapped in comedy. 

And his essays, and aphorisms — full of paradoxes. Just look at some of them:

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken” 

• "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about" 
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• "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars" 
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• "Men can be analyzed, women ... merely adored" 
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• "I couldn't help it. I can resist everything except temptation"
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• "Whenever people agree with me I always feel I must be wrong"
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• "Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught"
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• "Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go"
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• "Make people laugh when you tell them the truth, or they will kill you"

— These lines from the genius taught me that true wisdom often hides behind laughter.

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On his birth anniversary, I offer heartfelt thanks to Oscar Wilde — the man who taught me and the world that intelligence can sparkle, truth can make us laugh, and language can be as elegant as it is profound.

Happy Birthday, Oscar Wilde — you turned wit into art and taught us that style is the way to tell the truth beautifully

- Ashok's Musings