His career graph is split apart with producing plays for proscenium stage on the one hand and making short films for television screens on the other. Originally an alumnus of the Sangeet Mahavidyalaya, landing on a job in Doordarshan, working for preservation of rich literary legacy of Swabhav Kabi Gangadhar Meher, taking up teaching screen-play writing as guest faculty in various distinguished institutions like the Central University, Koraput after retirement, it meanders off and on until he settles as a crusader for Odia drama and theatre now. Founder-director of International Theatre (IT), a premier institute of Odisha having more than sixty branches, he has ardently been following up his passion for promotion of Odia drama by organising theatre workshops, conducting seminars and annually giving away International Theatre Awards to young directors and dramatists. Winner of Odisha Sahitya Akademi Award in 2003 for his play Shakuntala and Asiad 82 Award as the best producer, he has all along been adding colourful feathers to his cap by bagging Adi Natyakar Samman, Veer Surendra Sai Samman, Prerana Samman, Golden Jubilee Award of Sageet Mahavidyalaya. He is Mihir Meher, the illustrious great grandson of the illustrious poet Gangadhar Meher. In an interview to The Pioneer, Meher spoke to Sugyan Choudhury about the plight of Odia drama, competition between electronic media and print media, and about legacy of his great grandfather Gangadhar. Excerpts:
What are your contributions to Odia drama and theatre and television productionsIJ
As you know, I have introduced and incorporated new vibes into our otherwise-stereotype Odia drama in order to make it more viable with its richness and novelty. My sole aim is to elevate the status and appeal of Odia drama to the international theatre lovers and aficionados. I have written and produced six dramas to sustain and substantiate my above proposition. My plays are ‘Ahata Prajapati’, ‘Ebam Jeetendriya’, ‘Ajatashatru’, ‘Satee’, ‘Ye Kintu Se Natak Nuhen’ and ‘Shakuntala’. Besides, my tele-serials, tele-plays, documentaries and radio-plays crowd my ensemble. With a view to popularising Odia theatre in a global context, I have established an institution, International Theatre, with its headquarters at Bhubaneswar. You will be glad to know that this institute has sixty branches to its credit by now across Odisha and outside. Under the aegis of this organisation, we have been organising State-level theatre workshops and encouraging young talented and budding artists.
What is your opinion on the nature and quality of dramatic culture in our StateIJ
I call a spade a spade. The present theatre scenario in Odisha is very uncertain and depressing. No one is able to brook constructive criticism and carry on with critical opinions about their productions. I shall single out a recently-enacted play Swetapadma by Pranabandhu Kar. The producer and the troupe were highly intolerant to the critics’ opinion on how to further improvise it. They took it personally and reacted violently which is not artistic. You can well imagine the present sorry state of affairs of the Odia drama from this single instance. How then the mandarins of the Department of Culture and the Odisha Sangeeta Natak Akademi are putting such people in their advisory panelIJ Another very important issue is that after a lot of protest, the Odisha Natyasangha, which was a conglomerate of dubious theatre personalities deciding the quality of plays to be exhibited in the Odisha Natyadhara programme got again reconstituted to weed out corruption, nepotism and manipulation in the selection of troupes. The newly-constituted committee to adjudge and select the plays and troupes are also crowded with the same people who were in the disbanded Natyasangha. How could we expect free and fare opinions from such pseudo theatre maestrosIJ This is how innovative theatre geniuses of our State are destined to die unseen and unlamented. The mediocre have their field days here in this part of the country. The so-called cultural czars of Odisha sitting in their ivory towers at the Secretariat take it for granted that the theatre talents only bloom at Bhubaneswar, and at national selection the genuine artists of Brahmapur, Rourkela, Keonjhar, Baleswar, Sambalpur, Nabarangapur are relegated to the background. They should bear in their mind that the theatre activities are more lively and vibrant at other places of our State than Bhubaneswar. I wonder how time-tested genuine theatre pundits like Dr Ramesh Prasad Panigrahi, Bijay Mishra, Kartik Rath and many other real geniuses are not taken into the panel for final selection of scripts and troupes for any State or national events.
What’s your opinion about the fact that the electronic media will take over the print mediaIJ
I admit that it is heyday for the electronic media not only in our country but for the whole world. But then, the time-tested print media, which is ideal for preservation of precious items, can never be disparaged ultimately. Had it been so, how then the American Time magazine, the liverpool Times, the Manchester Guardian are still as popular today as they were before the advent of the electronic media. I am reminded of Newton who once said to have remarked that if machines dominate all over the world then we will have a race of idiots in our future generations.
What plans are on your agenda and on the agenda of the State Government to preserve the heritage of your great grandfather Gangadhar MeherIJ
The late Gangadhar Meher is one of the major pioneers of Odia language, literature and culture. He belongs to the whole of Odia race and is adored by one and all. But what we are doing for him is a fabulous nothing. Neither the Government of Odisha nor the general public are doing anything substantial to commemorate his hallowed contributions to Odia language and literary tradition. All that the Government could do at the minimum level is to instal a museum in his name where a lot of his memorabilia could be preserved and protected for the yet-unborn generation of Odias. His Odia literary creations, if they arw rendered into its foreign equivalent languages, could certainly be able to carve a niche for our literature at the global level. All that we are doing as his descendants are only observing his birth anniversary annually through the Gangadhar Meher Foundation.