By Noor Zaheer
Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA) celebrated its seventy five glorious years which was commemorated in a five day long festival of theatre, music, dance, songs, discussions and deliberations in Patna, from October 27 to October 31. It needs to be elaborated that IPTA was not and is not just a group of artistes, it was and remains a group of political workers using art as a tool or weapon for social awareness and justice. We see here the application of the Gramsci’s concept of hegemony regarding the role intellectuals. He argued that it is necessary for the Communist Party to occupy all intellectual ground from political parties and press to education, gender relations and cultural activity.
A grand opening was scheduled on October 27 where the highlight was the long march and rally that preceded the opening. Five thousand artistes, writers, singers thronged the streets of Patna, singing, dancing and raising slogans of art for the masses and from the masses. The march took a circle of the huge Gandhi Maidan and reaching the destination at the Open Air Auditorium of Bhartiya Nritya Kala Mandir.
The Festival was formally opened by well known film and theatre actor and social activist Shabana Azmi. The inauguration itself was innovative because floral tribute was paid by several leading artistes to a Sitar as a symbol of art. A wooden cut out of the symbol of IPTA was also presented and placed on the dias. Beginning her inaugural speech with ‘Lal Salaam’ Shabana elaborated the persistent and continuous need for theatre and art of the masses that could speak their language and highlight their issues.
She said that she was a woman, an Indian, an actor, a social activist and that being Muslim was only one of her identities. However the present regime with its motive to divide was propagating only the religious identity of people. IPTA has to work towards defeating this intention of the right wing and its supporting parties. Sayeed Akhtar Mirza congratulated the IPTA family for completing 75 years. He pointed out that once IPTA had to fight the imperialist colonizers, today we had to defeat the imperialists within the country. The Jharkhand team presented tribal dances. A book “Syaahi ki ek Boond’ written by Noor Zaheer was released by Shabana Azmi and Sanjana Kapoor and the evening closed with a Kathak Dance ballet, ‘Mohan aur Rambha’ on the early life of Mahatma Gandhi was presented by Shobhna Narain.
From October 28, the morning and early afternoons were dedicated to discussion and deliberations which took place at four different venues. There were 18 teams and more than fifteen hundred artistes present from all over India. Four different venues and sites had been arranged for street plays and two venues for proscenium theatre. The culmination of all the days took place at the open air theatre of Nritya Kala Mandir where folk dances, choirs and pantomimes were staged.
IPTA has always been inclusive and in its platinum jubilee were invited important theatre workers and artistes who might not directly be associated yet they are the torch bearers of the same legacy. One such artiste who performed to a full house in the open air auditorium was Sambha ji Bhagat. He began with the line, “I am not here to entertain you, I am here to disturb you.” His songs that followed were living proof of the fact that purpose of all great art should be to disturb, to question, to stimulate, to motivate and to inspire.
That such art is the need of the hour was elaborated by Sanjana Kapoor who in her address said that though she was not a communist she has realised the need to organise and raise the voice of dissent as the political suppression has grown in the last few years. Sheetal Sathe, a young singer was put in prison for singing songs of social awareness. She was four months pregnant then and was released after four months. He husband however was released after four years. She sang the songs of liberty, of a casteless society and of awakening.
All mass based organizations are inter-dependent and this is proved by the venues selected by IPTA for its performances: slums, factories, striking workers, rallies and protests. In return they also got innumerable artistes and performers from the workers. So IPTA is the founder and the base of ‘Street Theatre.’ In the several corners simultaneous performances of street plays and choirs took place. Plays which pick up social, political and economic issues were surrounded by large gatherings who sat on the floor or stood around clapping, laughing, appreciating and connecting with the subject and the characters. Some of the popular street plays were typically based on farmers suicides, corruption, conditions of hospitals, privatization of education and communal violence.
Each session was dedicated to one of our martyrs or our stalwarts. In remembering the martyrdom of Comrade Pansare or Gauri Lankesh we celebrate their struggle and the desire for a just society and the memory of our stalwarts guide us in the struggles that we undertake in the present times. It is not a glorification of the past, it is a way to derive energy and the will to carry the legacy forward. There were sessions in the memory of Zohra Sehgal, Tripti Mitra, Balraj Sahni, Ram Sharan Sharma, Bhikhaari Thakur.
A much needed and very crowded, interactive session was held on Peoples cultural movements and women. It may be recalled that it was IPTA which legitimized the presence of women on stage as dancers, actors and singers. Comradeship within the organization opened the space and provided the security for women to be performers.
IPTA has always been a path-breaker and it was refreshing to find some themes which have hitherto been sidelined by other theatre directors and groups given central stage here. One issue in particular was that of transgenders and their rightful place in society. While on the one hand there was the innovative and experimental, the traditional has not been forgotten; the folk, semi-classical and classical was represented as also was a play by John Steinbeck by Jaipur IPTA.
The presence of several film makers was a pointer to the movement of drama to films and back, a way that had been shown by one of the founders of IPTA Balraj Sahni. Meghnath, the maker of documentaries that show the apathy of the state towards the tribals and dalits and M.S. Sathyu, a director who was the first to portray the pain of partition of India and the division of families, spoke at length about the need to utilize technology to produce films and documentaries and keep showing them to keep the general publish updated with the truth.
One of the most innovative and remarkable section was the exhibition. Informative, well designed and deeply researched it was a labour of love bringing to the fore the effort, the struggle and the dedication of individuals and groups that had gone into making IPTA the path breaking organization that became an institution of pride and adoration for all its members. The exhibition was curated, designed and put up by Comrade Nasir and aptly dedicated to great painters and photographer Chittoprasad, Zainul Abedin and Sunil Janah. On the lawns of the main venue were book stalls selling books in Hindi and English; journals and magazines, CDs of documentary films and revolutionary songs and music, bulletins and pamphlets. These are products of units of IPTA working in remote regions, feeding the fire of revolution, keeping the desire for social justice alive.
In keeping with the tradition of IPTA carrying the voice of workers and farmers struggles to urban and semi urban areas, a session was organized on the agrarian crisis in India which is said to be predominantly a land of farmers. This session which was held by Jaya Mehta was also addressed by Binoy Viswam, cultural secretary of CPI who elaborated on the manner in which opportunities for improving the farming sector and giving a boost to culture had been frittered away by consecutive regimes in the centre.
One of the most encouraging factors was the large presence of youth in every team. They were not only performers but also speakers and active participants in the interactions. Some developments are a source of hope and encouragement. One is the coming together of fragmented IPTA groups in Bengal. They have united and participated in the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations; it is expected that they remain together in these troubled times.
With more than fifteen hundred delegates staying together and eating at the same place one would expect that it would often lead to confusion and chaos. But each and every member of the huge band of volunteers was caring and concerned, receiving delegations, helping and guiding lost members and escorting the delegates to the venues. Food never ran short and though the staying arrangement was not luxurious it was comfortable. Credit of the arrangements is to the Bihar IPTA team led by dedicated people like Tanvir Akhtar, Daisy Narain and constant advice and monitoring by President IPTA Ranbir Sinh and General Secretary Rakesh Srivastava.
The magic of Kerala songs, dances, the lyricism of Assam, martial arts of Manipur with tribal dances rubbing shoulders with Dhobia dance of Azamgarh and Marathi music mingling with Bengali tunes, it was a cultural bonanza from all over India that gave a call of struggle for a socially, economically and politically just India.
The message was loud and clear: True, the times are tough but there is no other alternative but to keep fighting. (IPA Service)
The writer is the President of Delhi unit of IPTA.
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