Valiant 'Mamata' spells magic on yatra audience

KOLKATA: It's difficult to emulate Mamata Banerjee. In case someone manages to emulate her convincingly, the situation becomes far more difficult to handle. And these women realized this the hard way.
The likes of Ruma Chakraborty, Sita Ghosh and Krishna Chakraborty who are portraying Mamata in several plays like "Banglar Khomotaye Ebar Mamata", "Banglar Masnade Mamata", "Bangla amar Mamatamoyee" or "Ma Maatir Lorai", find it impossible to console people who mistake them for the real chief minister.While some fall to their feet for favour, others threaten them with consequences. Overall, the situation turns complex in either case. It then takes tiring persuasion to make them believe they are only "portraying" the leader onstage.
Ruma Chakraborty, who essays Mamata's role in "Banglar Khomotaye Ebar Mamata", feels this is indeed a lifetime opportunity and that the sheer experience she has been gathering through the play has enriched her as an actor. "I got shocked when elderly people came to the green room to touch my feet thinking I am their chief minister. People come to me with their problems and ask for solutions," she said.
But doing a Didi doesn't come easy. In Purulia, a group tried to attack her mistaking her as Mamata. She feels there is tremendous pressure when she goes on stage to act because comparisons are bound to be drawn. And if she does a mistake, audiences will leave no stone unturned to criticize her.
"Enacting a living character is the real challenge. From her mannerism to her image, everything has to be perfect," Ruma said. "Mamata Banerjee is so popular now that controlling the crowd becomes extremely difficult as everyone wants to meet her thinking she is the real Didi. At a particular show, I had to explain to a villager for around 10 minutes that Ruma is just an actor. But we are very happy with the response," said Haradhan Roy, manager of Anandabina.
How does Sita Ghosh, the protagonist in "Banglar Masnade Mamata", feel to be in Didi's shoes? "We mainly perform for the rural masses who have not seen her. It is through me they get to come close to their favorite leader. People are overwhelmed by the performance and they come to me with their problems," she said. Ghosh goes onto add that farmers came to her with their troubles after a particular performance in Burdwan but she was helpless as she couldn't do anything to help their cause.
Some jatra organisers are using the name 'Mamata' though there is no direct reference to her in the plays. "Bangla amar Mamatamoyee" is a play by Bratya Basu that upholds the ideologies of Mamata Banerjee.
Krishna Chakraborty, who is in the lead role, said people get so overwhelmed during the play that they move to tears. "Bangla Amar Mamatamoyee" is not about feisty Mamata Banerjee but about a rebellious woman who fights against the evils of society. Mahua Bhattacharya, the Didi in this play, had a unique experience when she went for a show in Bhatar, Burdwan.
"People came to me asking to reduce the price of rice and fuel. I repeatedly told them that I am not the chief minister and can't help them much," she added.
Digbijoyi Opera did portray Didi in 2009 with their production, "Ma Maatir Lorai". They have come up with "Maha Sangrame Joyee Mamata" again in 2011, directed by Kartik Samanta and has Jayashree Ray as the chief minister. "The response is awesome. All shows have become successful with ticket prices ranging between Rs 25-100," added Samanta.