Does Bengali theatre now suffer from dynasty rule?

From Marich Sambad to Jagannath to Tista Parer Brittanto and Don — Taake Bhalo Laage, theatre group Chetana has never failed to offer theatrical spectacles to the audience. While the group celebrates its 46th anniversary, we talk to Chetana patriarch Arun Mukhopadhyay and sons Suman and Sujan. The duo join CT as Arun fields a volley of questions. Excerpts.

Sujan: Is the culture of poribartontro (dynasty rule) most prevalent in theatre? Nandikar, Chetana, Bohurupi — we have a series of examples…

Arun: Take our story for example. I was very active when Lal (Suman Mukhopadhyay) emerged as a director. Even before him, quite a few other members of Chetana, including Biplab, Shibshankar and Mihir, directed in our group. However, once I wrote: ‘Jodi ekta dole onno kono jogyo porichalok hoye, she chhelei hok ba je keu hok, tokhon take bola uchit, tumi ebar kete poro (If there is more than one able director in a group, irrespective of the blood relations, it is time to tell the person to take leave)’. In group theatre, there are not enough room and resources for more than one director in one team. Kole boste hobe tahole (one has to sit in the lap) (laughs). So Lal (Suman) came up as a good director.

Suman: Also, Neel (Sujan), how many incompetent theatre workers do we know who have earned fame and is accepted just because of their family? None.

Sujan: But many said that dada was initially accepted because of your fame…

Arun: But people actually accepted Lal’s work. His first work, Daain, was great. Then one of his works was not well-accepted, though I really liked it. This is when many people started making those allegations. Besides giving my opinions and suggestions, and acting in his plays, I never did anything for him. Same with Neel. When he came to direct, Chetana was looking for an able director.

Sujan: Yes, that was the time when baba was not being able to work much. Dada has already been settled outside. I never aspired to be a director. I wanted to be an actor. Since I have seen some great directors working in our group, it was easier for me to adapt. Also, I used to direct during my

Jadavpur University

days.

CT: Suman, did you not feel like coming back during this vacuum?

Suman: All my works, Tista Parer Brittanto, Mephisto — are Chetana productions. I created a new group when I realised that baba’s workspace will shrink if I am in Chetana. I didn’t break the group. Later, I did not feel the urge to return.

Sujan: True.

Suman: Baba, Tista Parer Brittanto was staged in 2000. You were working in full swing as a director then. What was your feeling when I came to the forefront? Did you feel insecure?

Arun: No, not insecure. It was a natural progression. It would not have been a problem if another director (who’s not my son) had come to do the job. Biplab Ketan emerged as a good director and later, created his own group. We have always been friendly. Same happened when Lal took over. I used to go to the rehearsal room and act like any other member. Obviously, my suggestions were taken a bit more seriously than that of others. But I never felt insecure. Besides, I used to take long gaps between two productions. There was a lull in Chetana soon after Lal formed Tritiyo Sutro. There was no director.

Sujan: Being a director involves a different set of reading. It is much more taxing and you have to take an enormous amount of responsibility…

Suman: Yes, you are a director and the administrator. In the Bengal group theatre, you also need to understand the personal lives of your actors — the family and crisis etc. That is not the case elsewhere.

Arun: In fact, this is what we were discussing initially. Not poribartontro, but this family-like bonding is quite prevalent in Bengali theatre. I don’t know if that is good or bad. But it is there.

Suman: We can’t judge the good or bad in it. No one can guarantee that only professional theatre can deliver good work.

Arun: The primary condition of professionalism is efficiency. We often forget this. There is another term, whole-timer — one who doesn’t do anything else but theatre. This makes little sense to me. Despite doing a government job, the amount of time we gave to theatre is still unimaginable for many theatre whole-timers.
CT: Is the concept of company theatre like that in Mumbai replacing the idea of group theatre in Kolkata?

Arun: No.
Suman: What is company theatre anyway (laughs)?
Sujan: I think there will be an investor. Everyone will be paid, maintaining the structure.
Arun: But that used to happen earlier as well. Star Theatre, for example.
Sujan: We used to call it commercial theatre.
Arun: Unlike cinema, sports and other sectors, the investment in theatre is pitifully low.
Suman: When I direct a film, there is a financer. As long as I can work independently, I don’t see a problem.
Arun: But it is very difficult make profit in theatre. That’s why subsidy is important. Each and every show has to be houseful to make even a small profit. That’s the reason we need government grants. Besides, theatre also needs capital investment. But our society is not keen to do so.
Sujan: Despite this, the number of theatre groups is increasing every day?
Arun: There was a time when theatre groups used to be one robust team. Of late, it has been fragmented.
Suman: Also, it is easy to form a group now. A few people get together and ask for a grant. There was a time when theatre groups used to nurture a certain philosophy. There used to be a manifesto. Where has all that gone?
Arun: Hence, quality is falling. There is no training.
Suman: Also, an artiste should have an urge to interact with the audience through his or her medium of expression. Now, that is missing. The ideological perception is missing too. That artistic integrity is gone.
Arun: We chose to work and earn money outside so that we don’t have to compromise in theatre.
Suman: What people want was always our concern. But that has never been confined in any definite model. We experimented.