When it comes to the energy of youth theatre, the capital has always been the capital because of its thriving campus theatre; Mumbai has been where people get noticed; Bengaluru has always experimented with dance; and Kolkata with ideas. Pune has never been in the reckoning, in spite of significant contributions like the Film Institute or the brilliant plays of Satish Alekar.
But as Dylan says, “The times they are a-changin’ ”.
The more recent Pune work has been like an adrenalin shot into the larger consciousness of Indian theatre. And what’s more the new practitioners are all pretty young.
My first interaction with a Pune group was when I saw Samanvay’s incredible dramatisation of Vijay Tendulkar articles — Ramprahar. What struck me was the simplicity of the storytelling. This was not the Marathi theatre I was used too. It was quiet, subtle, visually detailed, careful, and mesmerising even for a non-Marathi speaker such as me.
In the last five years, groups like Aasakta have emerged. Large collectives, where everyone is a director/writer/actor/stagehand. Led by Mohit Takalkar, they have introduced impeccable stage craft to their work. It blends the professionalism of commercial Marathi theatre, with the finesse of European staging. Their recent productions of Kashmir Kashmir, Matra Ratra, Garbo and Necropolis made an impact on everyone who has seen them, whether they are liked or not.
Naatak Company, made up primarily of ex-students of BMCC college, have taken a similar leaf. Their first play, Nipun Dharamadhikari’s Lose Control, immediately created waves in the non-commercial theatre circles because of its boldness and uninhibited staging. He then directed Dalan which was an exciting ensemble production. Last year they created the crowd favourite Institute of Pavtalogy, and the nationally and internationally acclaimed Geli Ekvees Varsha; both directed by Alok Rajwade. This year they were invited to create a new piece of work for the NCPA Centrestage Festival. This led to a non-language play called Chakra, set in prehistoric times, written and directed by Abhay Mahajan. Powerful, visceral and visually stunning, the play also performed earlier this week at Thespo 12.
The present students of BMCC college have created an Urdu play called Dil-e-Nadaan which played at the Atelier Festival earlier this month. And just to make the “invasion” of Mumbai complete, Thespo 12 has two other Pune plays coming to town. My Goad Pune, by MCC Arts Circle, is a satire on all things Pune. A young man from a small town comes to the city to seek his fortune. To his surprise he is told that in order to remain in the city he needs to sit for the Pune Entrance Exam. What follows is a hilarious journey as he goes to Limaye’s Coaching classes to be more Pune-kar. Although almost laugh a minute, the play makes some biting insights into “big city” life, and mocks all the things we take for granted.
The other Pune play on stage this week is Tipping Point, performed by GRM productions, a futuristic story of Agent G35’s moral dilemma. He is a call centre employee of the future — who talks to your loved ones on your behalf. But what happens when he is unable to be just a “cold agent”? What happens when he wants to make decisions that are correct for the person — fatherly decisions, or relationship decisions, or parental decisions? Does he have the right? Although in Marathi, the play completely changes the narrative form, using choreography but not dance.
What is amazing about the new Pune groups is their need to push the envelope and their own boundaries. Telling stories that are hard to tell, in unique and interesting ways; thereby creating new grammars for performance. This is truly experimental theatre. Maybe Pune is the new home for it - where they strive to seek, to find but never yield.