“More than a natak”

In the article "More than a natak” (Parsiana, June 21, 2014), as well as the talk at the K. R. Cama Oriental Institute about Parsi theater, a very important personality has been missed out, namely Dr Jehangir Wadia. As the one-time resident medical officer of the J. J. Hospital, his versatility and genius included writing, acting in and directing Parsi nataks such as Raja Harishchandra, Bewafa Bairu, Mati ke Margho and Homlaji Hamlet, to name but a few.
In his esteemed plays, most of the actors were medical doctors. Wadia staged his plays to raise funds for the B. D. Petit Parsee General Hospital (PGH), and in those times — the early 1930s until the mid-1950s — he must have collected lakhs of rupees. The chief doctor of the PGH, Dr Homi Mehta, once said, "Jehangirji, tamé jo nahi hoté, to aajé Parsee General Hospital jévu nahi hoté (if it wasn’t for your efforts, there would have been no such thing as the PGH)” because it was lacking in funds.
If a person gives a lecture or writes an article on any given subject, thorough research work should be done.
ABAN BANA
abanbana123@rediffmail.com

The editors reply:
The article and talk focused on the origins of Parsi theater, not the later period.