She has been there and done that for over three decades now. Founder-director of the nationally acclaimed play troupe Rangakarmee, Usha Ganguli has pushed the boundaries across global frontiers too. From the 2004 Karachi Peace Theatre Fete in Pakistan, followed by Theatre der Welt 2005 festival in Stuttgart (Germany) to the recently concluded Rabindra Utsav in Bangladesh, she has tasted international fame with her message-driven stage creations.
Born in Jodhpur and brought up in Kolkata, Ganguli’s interests varied from academics to performing arts. When she floated her troupe way back in 1976, Ganguli was already lauded as a trained classical Bharatnatyam dancer. Rangakarmee’s dramas have always raised pertinent questions against the flawed system, social malpractices and women’s exploitation.
Having straddled both theatre and teaching as parallel pursuits, Ganguli recently retired from the Kolkata-based Bhowanipur Education Society College after serving as a senior lecturer in Hindi language and literature.
Looking back in retrospect, she reflects, “It’s been a great sojourn for me on stage. I kept flowing with the tide and whatever little twisters and tempests came my way, I braved them with poise and patience,” she says confidently.
And at 65, she thinks her contribution as a conscious citizen is not yet over. “We all have a lot more to offer to the society,” she says. Though she is pretty content with her journey of life, she maintains that a woman has to always struggle while juggling different roles all along. “We have to fit diverse avatars, be it as a daughter, sister, wife, mother or as mother-in-law. And at every single point, we must be caring and sharing with no ifs and buts on our lips. I had the misfortune of making my mother cry at the time of my birth. I was the fourth girl-child in my family and ruing the absence of a son, my mom couldn’t check her tears when I was born. Our nation is still dealing with the foeticide issue rampant in several states,” she laments.
She recalls, “I always stood my ground on matters of higher-education and insisted on pursuing an MA degree after completing my graduation. In the process, I had to put up a brave front against familial pressures.”
Having been married into a Bengali community, Ganguli as a Hindi-speaking lady found comfort in a progressive social-activist husband Kamal Ganguli. She adds, “It’s been five years now that he left us and that vacuum can never be filled for sure. But my son is a great pillar of support. He’s been a wonderful friend, philosopher and guide to fall back on in the hour of crisis. Also, I love mingling with youngsters and absorbing their fresh ideas and thoughts.”
Having been thoroughly involved in the world of theatre, caught up in shows and rigorous rehearsals, Ganguli agrees that her passion has eaten into her personal life. “Creatively, I am extremely satisfied. But I do miss my me-time, especially those fun-filled and spirited childhood days alongwith my playmates,” she says.
And what about her last wish? “To create a studio-theatre in the name of two distinguished women theatre-actresses from Bengal, Nati Binodini and Keya Chakrabortyin South Kolkata. Also young play-practitioners and dramatists can use the space to shape up their subjects with out-of-the-box themes,” she says.