What do they do?
Four years ago, when Professor Syed Asghar Wajahat’s popular play Jis Lahore nai dekhya o jamyai nai was staged before 300 people from different nationalities at a stadium in Sydney, a woman among the audience was so moved by the intense portrayal of mohaajirs (Muslims who came from India to Pakistan) that she couldn’t stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. And, this was a miracle because she was suffering from a disability wherein the eyes lose moisture and tears don’t flow. Much to her delight, the tear duct surgery she was to undergo was not required any more. Such is the impact of a well written and an intense performance.
The National School of Drama is the incubator of all acting talent. A Delhi- based government-funded autonomous institute, it offers a three-year diploma in dramatic arts. With just 20 seats on offer in a year, all aspiring artistes, unfortunately, can’t study at the NSD. Nor is this necessary, claims Aamir Raza Husain, a veteran theatre director, who directed the famous play The Legend of Ram. “You learn only on the stage. Some people tell me that they are going to London to learn dramatics, but I believe what you can learn on stage cannot be taught in a school,” he says.
Though it’s true that Hindi theatre doesn’t pay well, those who are passionate about the performance arts get drawn to it without any material consideration.
“It’s an addiction. I worked for a few years in Iraq, but couldn’t lead a dual life (of an artiste and an administration manager in a real estate company), so I returned to theatre,” says Husain.
Hindi theatre is not so gloomy. “There is a huge audience in Delhi. We have sold tickets that cost Rs 2,500 each. If the play is good, why wouldn’t the audience come,” asks Husain, who has staged plays even in open-air theatres due to lack of spacious auditoriums in Delhi.
Another upcoming theatre artiste duo of Azam-Akbar was bitten by the theatre bug during childhood. “We make documentaries and music videos. That’s where we earn our money. We devote our Sundays to rehearsals for upcoming plays,” says Akbar, an actor-director, who prefers to be addressed as a theatrist. “If I go out of town and spend a couple of months without theatre, I feel a vacuum inside me,” he says.
“Though he rehearses only on Sundays, it doesn’t mean that he does not earn money out of his performances. If we showcase a popular play at Kamani auditorium, then the public willingly buys tickets worth Rs 100-Rs 500 and we can make Rs 70,000-Rs 80,000 in a day,” he adds.
One of the major advantages theatre offers is an opportunity to enter TV and cinema. Several talented actors — Anupam Kher, Naseeruddin Shah, Irrfan Khan, Ashish Vidyarthi and more recently, Kangana Ranaut -- have all proved their mettle on the big screen, thanks to the platform offered to them by theatre. “In Mumbai, it’s common for film makers to attend popular theatre performances to spot talent,” says Professor Wajahat.
Concurs Akbar, “When an actor performs well on a film set, you would hear someone’s cry in the background -- the fellow belongs to ‘theatre’. Such awe-inspiring performances have earned respect for theatre.”
Despite the fact that Hindi theatre is not popular among the masses, actors continue to perform on stage in the hope of making it to the silver screen in the future. A young actor, Fahad Khan harbours similar ambitions. He joined theatre six years ago while still in school in Bundelkhand. He later moved to Delhi.
“Making money in acting is out of question. But it will happen once I get a break in TV or cinema. Some people also help in production work – lighting, set designing – to make extra bucks. Another source of earning is through theatre workshops in schools or college to sensitise youngsters about this art form,” says the 21-year-old, who has worked as an assistant director in a music video and has organised theatre workshops in schools to make money.
