The Gujarati Drama Competition, organized by the Bhavan�s Cultural Centre, Andheri (BCCA) and supported by Chitralekha was revived after thirty-five years. The BCCA is a wing of the head institution, the Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan and the competition itself is not to be confused with the long tradition of the annual, inter-collegiate competion of one-act plays in all languages, which Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan continues to hold.
Competitions such as these have long been known to nurture youth talent in the theatre and are still considered as the best stage for indulging in experimentation, which unfortunately is greatly compromised in keeping up with the demands of commercial theatre. More significantly a competition like this is able to showcase theatre not only from Mumbai; in this case entries were invited from the different cities of Gujarat such as Surat, Nadiad and Bhavnagar.
One of the competition�s highlights was an 1871 play called MITYABHIMAN. Written by the well-known 19th century poet and playwright Dalpatram, the play humorously exposes the pitfalls that accompany false pride. In doing so it also becomes an indictment of the Brahmins whose high caste and superior status brooks no opposition but this critique is more or less muted. The play as such ends up being a moralistic tale. It may have caused a flutter for the times in which it was written and produced but its appeal today can only be greatly attributed to the theatrical conventions that the script followed.
Natyavartul�s (Bhavnagar) production proved to be solely interesting on this count for it was revealing of the style in which plays were written then and also of the manner in which they were staged. Apart from the influence of an indigenous folk form like Bhavai, MITYABHIMAN is also telling of the simple and predictable plot structures that are similar to bedtime stories. And so it goes-Jivram Bhatt, the Brahmin on whom the play centres is a man so full of himself that he wouldn�t even acknowledge that he suffers from night blindess. His ego and the denial of his condition make him both a pitiable and a humorous character. He is funny to the point of being caricaturish and actor Kavit Pandya does a reasonably good job of playing him. Owing to his actor�s ability of sustaining the character�s idiosyncrasies, appearance and gait, his is the only character that stands out.
The sutradhar (narrator)- jester relationship is a theatrical element common across folk performative traditions in the country. The jester is commonly known as Ranglo in Bhavai and the name is basically a reference to his colourful personality. So in the play too it is Ranglo who entertains and Ranglo who exposes, comments and teaches Jivram Bhatt a lesson in humility. The stylized performance, which follows conventions such as the symbolic curtain fall after each scene does not however have the confidence or the perfection to recreate the effect of a 19th century staging.
The actors do try but it dosen�t really help when they do things like lip-syncing the live music. On the other hand, the live music designed and sung by Sharad Joshi lends a character to the performance. The theatre company would however have done better by getting its basics right than by recreating the persona of the playwright Dalpatram, who appears at the beginning and at the end of the production.
After having seen Nandi Arts� (Vadodara) production of Bhupen Khakhar�s MOJILA MANILAL, one wonders why did the renowned painter stop at one play? Clearly here was a talent that could have enriched Gujarati theatre but that did not happen. Even today one is likely to find a number of mainstream Gujarati theatre people who don�t want to recognize the importance of a play like MOJILA MANILAL. One obvious reason is the subject of the play and quite connected to it is the self-taught artist himself. Khakar�s paintings may have captured the attention of art connoisseurs across the globe but to the traditional and orthodox mindset, he was an artist out to shock the genteel, bourgeoise sensibility with paintings that were irrreverant and homoerotic in nature.
In this context it was not surprising that his play didn�t fare well. After all would the middle class Gujarati community have the gumption to accept a play which advocates free love and sex after marriage? In a superbly crafted plot with oodles of imagination and big doses of humour and irony, Manilal takes centrestage as the imaginary and yet real enough character who brings bliss to the humdrum lives of two domesticated women.
While one woman�s (Sarita) husband supports her actions in an act of worldly renouncement, the other�s (Sharmishta) is slowly cajoled into acceptance. This is no m�nage-a-trois or a cuckold�s story. Rather everything comes to be settled as a �family arrangement� and the play�s surreal elements lead to a fitting and a convincing end. The two Hindu Gods, Vishnu and Yama see the drama to its proper end where everyone is finally happy, including the young boy who is Sarita�s admirer. The two husbands accept their folly and Manilal makes his rightful exit.
Namrata Pathak�s Sarita was graceful even as she succumbed to a predictable style of performance. In fact none of the actors were able to explore their performances with relation to the surreal style of the script. What was further a pity was Deepak Prajapati�s incipient portrayal of Manilal. His direction of the play also suffers from scenes not being blocked properly to the poorly designed and executed music. Not all music selections for the play are necessarily bad; some actually work but it is all very random. One also gets the feeling that the more bold and audacious aspects of the script are toned down in fear of being caught at the deep end. So finally it is the script that wins hands down for the satirical comedy that it contains.
Inspite of the shortcomings of the two productions, it is only good that outstation groups like these are able to showcase their work. Moreover their choice of plays reveal an urge to do things that are usually ignored by mainstream, commercial theatre. And this attempt should not be underestimated. It can only be praised. But what would help the young people and such committed theatre companies in the long run is a more serious and a sustained initative. Senior theatre person and critic, Jyoti Vyas (one of the judges of the competition) mentioned that the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan must localize the competition in the different cities of Gujarat before making the final selections. It is definitely one credible way to offer not only the opportunity but also the encouragement.
*The writer is Editor of this site, a theatre critic and an academic keenly interested in Theatre and Performance Studies.
