The Merchant of Venice Shakespeare Festival, the play also marked that 500 years had passed since the Venetian Ghetto was instituted. The Merchant of Venice The Merchant of Venice is a 16th-century play written by William Shakespeare in which a merchant in Venice (Antonio) must default on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. It is believed to have been written between 1596 and 1599. Though classified as a comedy in the First Folio and sharing certain aspects with Shakespeare's other romantic comedies, the play is most remembered for its dramatic scenes, and it is best known for Shylock and the famous
K. S. Bhagawan worked as a writer and translator. In 1982, his work "Shankaracharya and Reactionary Philosophy" (original title: "ಶಂಕರಾಚಾರ್ಯ ಮತ್ತು ಪ್ರತಿಗಾಮಿತನ"), a collection of essays, on how Adi Shankara, an 8th-century Hindu theologian, advocated the caste system strongly, destroyed Buddhist viharas and was against education for women, shudras and dalits, was published. It was met with criticism from right-wing Hindu groups who issued threats to his life. His other books in Kannada include "Badalaavane", "Antarya" and "Kuvempu Yuga". As a translator, he translated popular works of William Shakespeare to Kannada. It includes "Merchant of Venice" as "Venisina Vartaka", and others such as