Few have the patience and the passion required to reach out for the stars and change the world. Theatre director Probir Guha not only reached out for the stars, but also crossed the world hidden somewhere over the rainbow. This man, who stands on the alternative sphere of his time and space, has inspired many people to redefine the meaning of their existence. His group, Alternative Living Theatre, was founded in 1977 and is located at Kharda, an industrial suburb of Kolkata. The group is known for inventing new stage aesthetics.
Diverging from the linear chronological narration and conventional blocking techniques, Guha has developed a new grammar for his creative expression. The pieces of text that he chooses, the actors he works with, and the audience he serves are aligned with his desire to be the voice of the marginalised. His works have consistently targeted social obscurantism, convention, superstition and political apathy, while attempting to build new ideas and sow the seeds of change. “My audience belongs to the economically-weakest strata of the society. Many of them don’t even get two meals a day; few live on streets,’’ reveals Guha. His actors come from the community they perform before, and maintain their theatrical pursuits while struggling for the basic necessities of life alongside other members of the community. Guha finds it necessary to choose his artists from within the community for intense and prolific depiction of their suffering and struggle. He believes that the “feel-factor” is the spirit of art. “Initially, when performers of my team were not able to deliver dialogues, I asked them to grasp the soul of the matter and convey it in their personal ways. The transformation of artists from ‘acting text’ to ‘feeling text’ became an experimental pleasure for me,’’ recalls Guha.
He maintains that his theatre is pro-people, low-cost and easily accessible, with concentration on meaningful content, but is not realistic in craft. “Theatre is not cinema; it can be realistic in approach, but not in presentation. To leave an impact, theatre has to look larger-than-life on stage. The element of drama and the rhythm of body can weave magic,’’ says Guha. He learnt Chhau, a tribal martial dance form, and blended it with theatre, forging a new style of drama altogether, with relatively lesser dialogue and emphasis on abstract body formations. However, this experiment is not merely an extension of the craft, but has a human side. “I learnt this art from the field workers, who would hardly get full meals. After a tiring long day in the field, they would practice Chhau for two reasons — pleasing Lord Shiva to ensure safety of their crops, and going into energetic trance to fight hunger. This factor of fight against hunger still is true for actors who often face similar situation,’’ says Guha, based on his experience of working with landless peasants, juvenile offenders and sex workers.
The Sangeet Natak Akademi Award-winner credits famous theatre personalities, like Badal Sircar and Bibhash Chakraborty, for broadening his creative horizons. “I owe Badal da a lot for his contribution to my intellectual upbringing. His desire to create a new form of theatre helped me recognise endless possibilities with drama. I learnt from him the art of breaking the existing pattern and innovation,’’ he says. While he owes most of his intellectual honing to Sircar, he remembers Chakroborty for enhancing his skills in the discipline.
Guha, who studied economics and political science for his Bachelor’s degree from Calcutta University in 1968, joined theatre after being disillusioned by the political scenario. He formed his first theatre company, Naam Nahin, in 1969. “The story behind the name of Naam Nahi (no name) is funny. We were very young and full of forceful ideas and energy. After the formation of the group, when we were brain-storming to find a name for the group, we decided to call it ‘nothing’, and the name Naam Nahi was coined. The group remained active for two years,’’ says Guha. He has directed more than 60 plays with his company and other groups. His work has been recognised and appreciated by the leading names of the theatre world, including Peter Brook, Jerzy Grotowski and Eugenio Barba. Guha has conducted workshops in Poland, Germany and the United States, and various regions in India and the neighbouring countries.
It does not matter whether one crosses the finishing line and becomes the winner; what matters is what one does after crossing the line; Guha not only crossed over to the other side, but also maintained the grace of the winning line by his determined consistency.