Essay Communications’ LAKEEREIN- a collage of stories and poems written by Gulzar and directed by Salim Arif, could not have had a more obvious title. But this one word alone is definitive of a shared sentiment and an entire ethos found in the artistic works that are based on the Partition. In terms of popular viewing, the Partition might even supersede the family sagas of Indian television today. History and Politics have ensured its enduring success to such an extent that it has almost become like a genetic blueprint in the collective consciousness of the Indian psyche.
In films like ‘Border’ and ‘Mission Kashmir’, Pakistan is the jaani dushman and we might damn these films for their jingoism. Popular Hindi films are known for their black and white worldview; one can almost be blasé about them but of what plays like LAKEEREIN? The Partition in the mindscape of these plays represents the great danger of being the other extreme of simplistic Hindi film plots. As nostalgia and romanticization take over, this kind of theatre is so overwhelmed by its subject that it has become outdated and with no connection to contemporary reality as it is.
Gulzar’s turn of metaphors and his poetic prose are undoubtedly the highlights of the play. One can be eloquent about the writing, the actors and the production design as a whole. This is simple theatre played out against the strong, narrative tradition of dramatized stories and actors like Yashpal Sharma are indeed very capable of turning in nuanced performances. But when all is said and done this is also theatre that has regressed into its own comfort zone. There is a sentimentality of its own kind at work here. Emotions once again are subtly manipulated and there is virtually no provocation of any kind. Surely theatre can be more exciting than this.
Once upon a time this kind of theatre mattered. It flourished under the wings of organizations like the IPTA (Indian People’s Theatre Association) and the PWA (Progressive Writers’ Association), which were known for their radicalism. But today in terms of both content and form this theatre needs to ask itself some hard questions. Its greatest challenge is to be able to re-invent itself in order to make it truly meaningful and relevant to our times today.
*The writer is Editor of this site, a theatre critic and an academic keenly interested in Theatre & Performance Studies.
Essay Communications’ LAKEEREIN- a collage of stories and poems written by Gulzar and directed by Salim Arif, could not have had a more obvious title. But this one word alone is definitive of a shared sentiment and an entire ethos found in the artistic works that are based on the Partition. In terms of popular viewing, the Partition might even supersede the family sagas of Indian television today. History and Politics have ensured its enduring success to such an extent that it has almost become like a genetic blueprint in the collective consciousness of the Indian psyche. 
