Stage savvy

"I had occasion to see the novel performances of the Parsi Theatre which (were) eye-catching, for they had some excellent acting. They were also neater, compact and did not drag on like the others.” Noted poet Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay’s interface with the theater which had been reported in her memoirs, Inner Recesses Outer Spaces was relived at the exhibition curated by Ranesh Ray on the occasion of her birth centenary celebrations at Delhi’s India International Centre from October 22-31, 2001, mentions Naira Ahmadullah. Some other nuggets about the Parsi theater in the last quarter of the 19th century can also be gleaned from her writings:

"The Zoroastrian Natak Mandali went back to the ’80s. Other Parsi companies followed like Elphinstone, Alfred. A repertory was formed in Urdu, Shahanama, that performed colorful shows like Arabian Nights as also Shakespeare. Among actors in my time, Baliwalla is best remembered as the most innovative and daringly adven­turous. He took his troupe abroad, visited England, played before Queen Victoria and was rewarded by her in token of her appreciation, a fact very few seem to know. Some of these Parsis were resourceful in stage­craft besides histrionics. They used for their themes Sanskrit and Persian mythology, medieval legends, historical events from diverse races and peoples, made adaptations to suit local conditions. They brought women on the stage and the artist Gohar attained much fame. They also did pantomimes. I regret that those who never saw these plays constantly malign them contemptu­ously. They were a passing phase by their very nature but nevertheless carried a flavor of their own which made considerable impact even on seasoned theater artists of the time.

"It was the Parsi Theatre that introduced the Hindi drama to the Calcutta audience. Though matured, the audience seemed to have fallen for it. Even a veteran artiste and one of the pioneers of modern Benga­li Theatre, Sisir Bhaduri, joined the Bengali Theatre of the Madans who ran the Parsi Theatre. It is equally interesting that Prithviraj Kapoor, the veteran actor of Bombay, had his first innings in the Calcutta Parsi Theatre.”