Kannada theatre artistes protest to save Kala Soudha

BENGALURU: Last week, more than 100 artistes landed at the BBMP joint commissioner's office in Jayanagar to submit letters seeking reopening of KH Kala Soudha, a south Bengaluru auditorium favoured by amateur theatre groups. “It was heart-warming to see so many youngsters there and not many elders,” says KS Raghunandan, senior theatre personality.
PD Satish Chandra of Prakasam Trust, which ran Kala Soudha till BBMP shut it down in February after the Trust refused to a rental hike, has a similar story.It was last Saturday that he tweeted about giving up on Kala Soudha as there is no way the Trust could pay BBMP Rs 40,000 a month and not charge theatre groups more. A quick meeting was planned for the next day. “The maximum we can pay is Rs 25,000 as rent. I was expecting to see 20-30 of the regulars to discuss this. I was surprised to see around 300 people at the venue; they wanted not to let go of Kala Soudha without a fight,” says Chandra.Soon, the #SaveKalaSoudha campaign was launched and, online and offline petitions too filed. Mayor Padmavathi visited the venue and has called Trust people and BBMP officials for a meeting on Monday.
At the forefront of this latest struggle over a performance venue are several aspiring actors and directors in their 20s and 30s, who have been nurturing their creative sides, either as a full-time career or a weekend passion project. The affordable 300-seater venue with AC, acoustics and lighting, has become a rallying point for Kannada theatre persons who say they could sustain their creative forays only because there was a venue to perform.
“When I started out in 2008, there were very few opportunities and theatre groups. That situation changed mainly because of Kala Soudha,” says Hanu Ramasanjeeva, a 28-year-old software developer. For one, performing at Kala Soudha was easy on the struggling theatre person’s pocket –– Rs 3,000 during weekdays and Rs 5,000 during weekends. “We could easily stage a play during the week and amateur groups made use of it,” says Ramasanjeeva, who was then part of Wemove theatre group.
By then Sanket Trust’s Ranga Shankara was also up and running. Theatre, which didn’t attract new talent in the 1990s due to the arrival of cable television, began to attract the hobbyist and those seeking a toe-hold in movies. Both venues were affordable compared to the prohibitive rates of Bangalore Town Hall and the privately-run Chowdiah Memorial Hall, says Raghunandan. ADA Ranga Mandira gave preference to theatre groups from PSUs while Ravindra Kalakshetra, the traditional haunt of theatre folks, had access issues. “You never know whether your programme was going to be pulled out at the last moment because there of a government function,” says Rohini Raghunandan, who started her theatre career in the 1980s. Four years ago, she remembers having to do a last-minute hunt for a venue to hold her music school’s annual show that was slated to be held at Ravindra Kalakshetra.
There are other halls and auditoriums in and around south Bengaluru but nothing fits the bill for staging plays like Kala Soudha, says Raghunandan. “The stage, wings and acoustics are good. It is well-equipped for plays. There is no need to have additional lighting unless you are doing something special,” says Rohini. The revival of interest in theatre led to the formation of many new groups, who could easily stage their rookie attempts at Kala Soudha. Ramasanjeeva, who quit his Infosys job to set up Pravara Art Studio in 2013, says it was easier to find a slot at Kala Soudha when compared to Ranga Shankara, which gave preference to experienced theatre groups. The best part? “By now people in the area know about Kala Soudha and we don’t have to struggle to fill the auditorium,” he says. Out of the 44 shows his group has done in the last four years, 60% of them were at Kala Soudha.
On Friday, artistes started the #SaveKalaSoudha protests by singing songs from plays outside the venue. The protests are slated to continue while many pin their hopes on the Monday meeting. “There is no profit in theatre if you are doing public shows as we spend a minimum of Rs 20,000 per production. Even if it is a full house, if the auditorium costs Rs 15,000, then there wouldn’t be anything left to put back into the next production. It is tough to survive,” says Ramasanjeeva.
For 25-year-old GV Shree Hari, the theatre stint gave him his first film role in award-winning Amaravathi. Kala Soudha is like a second home where he meets other artistes and discusses how to come up with innovative shorts and other projects. “It has helped me a lot – honed acting, taught about how to make films, produce show. It is painful that it is shut,” he says.