Struggle tale

shahar yaar by ganakrishti is not a new production on the kolkata stage. yet, each show is different from the previous one since bratya basu, playwright and director of the play, always makes subtle changes in the background scores. the performance on april 4 at girish mancha was no exception. the play explores the typical problem of a creative artiste that babu, played by basu himself, faces. the futility of creation — that is what plagues the protagonist of the play. in his search, babu is abandoned by his fellow musicians, monty, tublu and hiya. “globalisation has turned the world into a large village and every economically unsuccessful art form is marginalised,� basu said. that makes the traditionally marginalised art forms, in short folk art, as conceived by the urban intelligentsia, survive in a saleable way. “if i’m ignorant of others’ hunger, it is not a fault. but when i know and want to make a living out of it, it is a sin,� he said. but isn’t he trying to make a living out of babu’s perturbed state? basu was quick to reply. “small scale theatre groups isn’t about feeding one’s stomach,� he said, adding, “it’s the marginalised art of the city.� and why disbelieve him? jyotirmoy pal, who played the role of sanjeeb, left troupe to pursue his job and has been replaced by prantik chowdhury. so the director of the play was also left alone like his lead character. if life can be so similar, does basu also undergo the same search which leaves babu friendless. “i don’t know,� basu said, echoing babu’s dialogue. won’t you call that success?