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`Ranga Pratibha' showcases the work of a new generation of theatrepersons in Kerala.

The Kerala Fine Arts Hall is all abuzz with activity. Performances, preparations and heated debates - all integral parts of a theatre festival - are there, right from morning till late in the evening. `Ranga Pratibha,' the Central Sangeet Natak Akademi's new venture to promote the young theatre directors from various parts of the country, is on.

With the Kerala Fine Arts Society acting as local hosts, `Ranga Pratibha' showcases the work of a new generation of theatrepersons in Kerala. "This is actually a kind of stock-taking of theatre in the country," says Kiron Bhatnagar, Deputy Secretary, Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi, who is in Kochi, coordinating the festival programmes. Ten plays are being staged as part of the festival. The most important part of the event is the interaction with the senior theatrepersons who are acting as observers and facilitators. Apart from Ms. Bhatnagar, the senior director Rajinder Nath, of Abhiyan, New Delhi; G.S. Channi, a Chandigarh-based theatre activist and Salim Arif, a Mumbai-based director are interacting with the participating directors. "Though these ten plays cannot be taken to be representative of the whole theatre scene in Kerala, but from what they reveal, we understand that Kerala has a very vital theatre scenario," points out Mr. Nath.

Observations

These theatrepersons from outside the State have some interesting observations about the plays and playmakers they have been watching since last Friday. Mr. Channi observes: "These young directors seem to have disturbed, agitated and restless minds. They are not complacent; and that is a good thing. But, they need to be more thoughtful."

"The acting seems to be loud, most of the times; but we are not sure whether this type of loud acting is necessitated by any particular reason here," they observe. Ms. Bhatnagar feels that the plays are a bit overpowered with technique. For example, using multi-media projections in theatre is all right, but it should be absolutely integrated with the production.

They are also a little bit surprised by the marginal presence of women, both on stage and off stage. "But Kerala is a matriarchal society, isn't it ?" wonders Mr. Nath. "And the place of cent per cent literacy?" Mr. Arif adds, "but, it is literacy meant for jobs, not for cultural activities, isn't it?"

Another aspect that bemuses these theatrepersons about Kerala's theatrescape is the sombreness of the plays. "Why is there not even a light moment in the plays?" wonders Mr. Arif.

He points out that in cities like Mumbai, the situation is in extreme reverse. "There, people want everything to be told in a humorous vein. I would not dare present a play as dark as what I have been seeing here in Prithvi Theatre. In Mumbai, people come to the theatre after six or eight hours of gruelling work and they have no tolerance for gloomy scenes. The situation is so bad that everything is presented humorously."

The `Rang Pratibha' festivals have been held in seven States. The Sangeet Natak Akademi is planning to extend it to more centres. Earlier, the Akademi had a scheme for promoting the young directors. It was active during 1984-94, but later the scheme was stopped. "But, then the scheme had focussed more on folk art forms than contemporary theatre. We decided to revive it, with more stress on new directors working in contemporary theatre."

Later on, the Akademi plans to invite some of the local theatre directors for festivals held in other States, as well as to organise national level events to provide opportunities for more exposure. On Tuesday, a discussion on Sudheer Babu's play `Andhayug' was held in the morning. In the evening, Girish Karnad's `Nagamandala,' directed by P. Vijayakumar for Dhanush Theatre, Ernakulam, was staged.

Renu Ramanath

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