Although the author and publication date of the Sanskrit drama The Little Clay Pot have been obscured by time, academics generally attribute it to the fifth-century Indian playwright Sudraka. The play is as captivating as it is absurd, following the unpredictable turns of a violent love triangle interwoven into a complex succession drama. Originally, the Sanskrit play was written in both verse and prose and lacked a rhyme structure. The play’s original metrical organization most closely resembles the lyrical quality of the Greek chorus but does not equate well with many of the standard conventions of rhyme and meter. As such, it is difficult to adequately translate the intention and meaning of each stanza into English. English translations generally render the manuscript into clearly delineated stanzas of rhyming verse in an attempt to resolve the issue. 

Another aspect of the original text that is lost in translation is the multi-dialectal aspect of Sudraka’s version. While much of the play is written in Sanskrit, the dialogue of certain characters—specifically those of lower castes or status—is written in Prākrit, a derivative dialect of Sanskrit. By translating both dialects into English, the reader loses the nuance of these subtle but deeply meaningful class differences and fails to understand the entrenched cultural ramifications that even the simplest moment of dialogue reveals. However, this unfortunate fact is little more than the reality of translation and cannot be readily resolved. 

Turning back to the play itself, The Little Clay Cart is an interesting divergence from the conventional subject matter with which Sanskrit plays often dealt. Although the play briefly dabbles in the succession drama between the false King Palaka and the rightful Prince Aryka, much of the plot is focused not on nobility or royalty but on common men and women. The protagonist, Chārudatta, is from a higher caste, yet he struggles with poverty because he spends the vast majority of his wealth bettering the circumstances of others. The play follows the difficulty he faces when attempting to navigate the complex socioeconomic system of which he is a part, as he does not neatly align with his peers. Moreover, the play highlights other characters whose circumstances and struggles were not commonly addressed. Sudraka focuses on the actions of servants and lower-class citizens, granting them not only a narrative presence but also importance. 

The Little Clay Cart is something of a comedy of errors, as the plot turns on the unrealistic, comical actions which lead the plot to its inevitable conclusion. However, the play is also a didactic representation of Indian life, teaching readers about virtue and values through a lens of poverty and an unexpected perspective. Sudraka’s play is a lesson on how to live a moral life, but it does not shy from fallibility. Although the protagonist is intended to be a bastion of goodness and virtue, he does falter. He cheats on his wife not once but regularly, and he seems to feel little guilt about his infidelity. Sudraka does not pass judgment on this failure; instead, he paints a portrait of authentic lives spent in the pursuit of morality. The effort, he explains, is what is important. Those who strive to live virtuous lives in the service of others are rewarded; those who live only for themselves and their momentary desires are punished. In ten acts, Sudraka reveals the complexity of fifth-century India’s caste and socioeconomic systems while indicating the path readers might take to live good and honest lives.