Theatre persons Rajit Kapur and Shernaz Patel are grooming young playwrights across the country to generate original content with BCl
Comfortably laid back on the couch, Rajit Kapur seemed a tad tired. Shernaz Patel, on the other hand, sat straight on the edge of the same couch. Though they hate the term “veterans;” both have been pursuing theatre with a passion and dedication that have helped their Rage Productions run a course of 25 years with some meaningful shows and new talent. Both were in town for celebrating the 15 years of the Writers’ Bloc, a unique playwright grooming programme started by The British Council in association with Rage and Royal Court Theatre london. As one of their alumni Purva Naresh says, “It restores the credibility of the writer as central to the narrative and makes you believe that you are what matters.” In a conversation that veers from cultural politics to the future of theatre, the actor-producers reflect on their craft and concerns:
You have had the mentorship programme at the Writers’ Bloc from 2001. During all these years, how many have made it to being playwrights or diverted to screenplay writing for filmsIJ Is original writing enough to feed the existing theatre cultureIJ
Rajit: This programme is one of its kind. And all those who participate in it are already playwrights. They write their own plays and learn about allied aspects. Some of the writers write for films as well but that is over and above what they do as part of this programme. The core strength is still getting as many original plays as possible.
Shernaz: Apart from learning about play writing, they also learn how important the writer is. They are taught about how essential their role is by acknowledging what a writer does. We tell them that their work is as it is and they should not accept it in any other way. Their words carry a certain kind of responsibility after all.
What are your views about the role of the National School of Drama (NSD) in revving up the theatre scenario in the countryIJ
Rajit: Honestly, we don’t know because we are not really in touch with NSD. The institution also doesn’t invite writers, who are otherwise performing in the rest of the country and doing quite well. They should invite professionals for interactive workshops and give students a glimpse of the outside world. This is sad.
Shernaz: On the flip side, it is probably the only institution which runs long duration acting programmes in the country. They produce so many directors, actors and designers. But they do not for some reason get together with other actors or groups. Not even for a lecture. This also hampers the development of the students in a way that after completing their course, most of them head towards Mumbai for work. But they don’t know how to get things going in that city. So they should do something about it as they have all what it takes to encourage theatre culture.
Most plays still continue to be adaptations from the Delhi perspective. Should there be an effort to have a pan-India theatre movement with a crossflow of ideasIJ
Rajit: When we talk about Delhi, then yes there are more adaptations than originals. But in the other cities, there are independent theatre groups who are doing their own stuff. However, there is still a need for more original ideas. I believe there are four states which have universities running full-fledged acting courses. So institutions like these should come together and discuss about the future of theatre and how they want to take this art forward. But in our country, we cannot even have a centralised tax system, so let us not discuss about theatre. (laughs)
Shernaz: I think there should be a national curriculum and it should be developed by the people from within the profession. They are the best guides. Otherwise it can become a bunch of academician discussing what a curriculum should be without having the knowledge of what actually is the world out there.
What is the status of regional theatre in the country todayIJ They have varied original content after all.
Rajit: It is not just regional language theatre. We even have original plays in English and Hindi or even Hinglish. There are original scripts in all languages. It is just that more plays are adapted in Hindi and English for a wider reach. But yes it is true that regional plays are mostly original. I think this is because local narratives are mostly cause-based and are reactive to circumstances around them. They are done to impart a message and it can best be done in their own language. Moreover, we are doing our bit with the British Council to promote originality. We are travelling to nine cities to bring out more local flavours.
Shernaz: At least in Mumbai, the NCPA and Prithvi Theatre have boosted theatre development to such an extent that things are looking up. With an increase in the number of performance spaces, I would say there are some good times ahead. Even in Tier II cities, which are yet to develop their own infrastructure, the response has been phenomenal.
For how long will English theatre be considered nascent in the countryIJ
Shernaz: I completely disagree with that. Because English theatre is done from a long long time and still continues to happen. In the metro cities, English theatre is huge.
Rajit: Rather, it is Hindi or regional theatre that are nascent in cities. You could say many perceive English theatre as elitist and confined when in fact the youth involvement is mainstreaming it.
As producers, are you happy with the current level of corporate engagement with the artsIJ Do you think some other alternative structure could be built inIJ
Shernaz: See, what corporates do is a lot. They support theatre in every way possible. They say that we are giving you the money, give us great results. But then why should we always turn to them. I think it is the Government who should support us. Everywhere across the world, the governments support theatre groups. Not only the big ones but also small theatre groups for a minimum period of three years. Arts are important for complete general development of the citizenry. I would say we have been lucky to get good support from corporates.
Rajit: It is due to insufficient funds that many artistes have had to leave theatre in the middle. At the end of the day, they should at least be able to earn something. And if the theatre groups do not have a sufficient amount in their kitty, then we can’t expect good work from artistes who we know are capable of tremendous work.
Do you think the space for protest theatre and urban conflict has shrunk in the country and there are more sitcoms and comedy drowning everything elseIJ
Rajit: You come and watch our performance Mahua and you will find the answer for this we are sure. (laughs)
As performers, how do you keep in touch with reality in between your crazy schedules, as in studying and observing real life charactersIJ
Shernaz: I think this is our job and it is something that has become a part of our system, almost like a second nature.
Rajit: It is something that is a subconscious process. You sensitise yourself to your surroundings and then they become a part of yourself.
What are your challenges in running Rage ProductionsIJ
Rajit: Initially, the challenge was to generate funds and have a backup option to fuel our dreams. Second, there was a problem of rehearsal space in a city like Mumbai. But over the years things became easier or maybe we found a way to deal with all our problems and working around them.
Shernaz: Challenges are still there. like sometimes we struggle for a good script. Sometimes for actors. But like he said, we have found a way to deal with all of them.
How can you retain the purity of performances arts in digital times when there is a profusion of acts available onlineIJ
Shernaz: The growth of digital space I believe has not interfered with any streams of entertainment. It is purely for the purpose of entertainment and it does fulfill the purpose. Even both of us have been a part of a web series and it is absolutely fun thing to do. Plus the job opportunity it creates is also amazing.
Rajit: It is also a great experience working along side the young guns, as they now cover a large part of the digital space. So it is not something that is making the other mediums fade out, it is very much part of it.
How has the increase in performance spaces changed the way you look at content for playsIJ Is it too urbanisedIJ
Shernaz: The content of the plays should not depend on anything else but the message it wants to convey. However there is some content we come across that is not good in terms of language. And it should not happen. So yes, the content at some point gets urbanized. It is unfortunate.