Plays from the Northeast and South India account for half of the nominations at the 10th edition of the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards. Jury members tell Shrabasti Mallik that the focus this year will be on unconventional stories that deliver a strong message to society
The play The Straight Proposal narrates the story of two boys in love. They want to live their lives together. Another play Dhou...The Wave depicts how any act, be it of bravery, cowardice or kindness, has rippling effects in the lives of many people. These two unconventional stories are among the plays shortlisted for the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards 2015.
For the last 10 years META has been recognising and encouraging theatre groups all over the country by awarding them in various categories. The invitation for participation starts around November and by the closing date they receive DVDs of more than 200 plays. A panelist of five theatre critics, actors and professionals shortlist the 10 best plays.
They also nominate plays, actors, directors and many others in different categories. “When we began META 10 years ago, we literally had to beg for participation because people did not take us seriously. Now it is humbling to receive such an overwhelming response. It is through these plays that we realise how talented and culturally sound the far-flung areas are. This time after two years, two plays from Delhi have made it to the nominations — A Straight Proposal and Still & Still Moving,” informed creative director Ravi Dubey. The awards will be presented on March 27, the jury of which was announced at a recent event at Taj Mansingh Hotel.
This year META has seen a huge participation from the Northeast and South India. Among the selected 10 plays, three are from the Northeast — Dreams From My Room (Manipuri), Dhou...The Wave (Assamese) and Fall of a King-Burha Manuhar Babe Desh Nai (Assamese) — and two are form the South —Matthi (Malayalam) andChitrapata (Kannada).
The jury members appreciated the fact that despite facing financial obstacles in theatre, youngsters are determined to come up with the best. “Even after being paid so less people are crazy enough to pursue theatre as a profession, such is the passion,” said Amal Allana, one of the jury members. She believes that there is a lot of hope in theatre because unlike yesteryear's when directors and groups selected plays written by famous playwrights, now scripts are written and devised by the members of the theatre group.
“When we used to adapt a play, we could not change a word of it. We could not rearrange and add anything to it but now things have evolved. Not only are theatre groups exploring new subjects, they are also exercising their liberty to write on topics that affect them directly or interest them — from ecology to international issues and from social issues to matters of political importance — they have a diverse range,” she added.
Sanjoy Roy, director of META and managing director, Teamwork Arts, rued the lack of proper infrastructure for theatre. “This is nothing new. We have been talking about this for years. Theatre groups do not get a proper stage to rehearse. Most of the times they end up rehearsing in an open space or in someone’s house because hiring an auditorium for rehearsals is still costly.” He also spoke about the developing countries where communities support every form of art.
“New cities are being built, new models are being designed and nobody even bothers to set up an entertainment centre. People here do not realise that revenues from these add to the economy. The Edinburgh festival last year brought the revenue of over 40,000 Pounds,” he said.
META has been recognising the best of Indian theatre not only to encourage the art but also to motivate the government to do something for theatre. “The Ministry of Art and Culture do not have any provision for the performing arts. This award, therefore, is an attempt to make the government realise that this industry needs their support,” he said.