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Today, I will tell you about a form of theatre that is not performed within the four walls but under the open sky and with no fencing to serve as a wing. The audience gathers around the stage on all sides and consists of people of all ages - children, youngsters and the old. They are not of a specific religion, nor of a particular caste or creed. The rich, the poor, the middle class people - all are the audience of this form of theatre.
With the changes in society, the subject matter of this theatre has changed. Events described in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata have frequently been used as themes for the plays, especially in the early days of this theatre. Sometimes the stories were based on Krishna, sometimes on Shiva and sometimes on the life of Rama.
Though this form of theatre originally was based on religious themes, a great variety of themes have later been taken up. Human relationships, love and affection have been depicted in the stories. Also various social and political issues has for a long time entered the themes in the Jatra plays as a response to problems in the society and for the welfare of the people. This theatre has, for example, militated against the practice, once prevalent among the Hindus, of burning the widow on the chita (pyre) with her dead husband and also against the prejudice that a widow could not get married again. Furthermore, it has served as a platform of agitation against colonization of the Indian sub-continent and to create awareness about the political situation. Many plays have focused on the oppressions of the Zamindars on their subjects and on the sufferings of the distressed and famine-hit people of Bengal. During World War II, playwrights wrote anti-war plays depicting the devastating aspects of war. Playwrights have also portrayed the most notorious characters of the world like Hitler and Mussolini. It is also interesting to note that this theatre has represented the liberal credo for promoting religious harmony, or rather "the religion of humanity."
From around 1960 to around 1970, this theatre absorbed new themes as socialist and communist movements gained influence. During this period it has thus not been uncommon that the plays focused on the life of Karl Marx, Lenin, Ho Chi Minh or Mao Zedong.
Today, this theatre typically protests against the prevailing discrimination and oppression in society, and at the same time it exposes the dark sides of political leaders and the hypocritical religious bigots.
This form of theatre is performed in a way that does not leave a gap between the performers and the audience. Although the themes of the plays usually are very complex and often deal with social conflicts and religious or psychological issues, they are portrayed in a way that is close to the beliefs or the experiences of the audience. The audience therefore understands the characters as if they were individuals in real life. The audience also thinks of every action on the stage as if it were true and as if what happens on the stage were a part of their life. Hence, the audience becomes deeply involved with the plot. Music adds to the attraction of this form of theatre. The performance continues from 8 p.m. until sunrise. In some cases, dances take place between the acts. This is mainly to give the audience an entertaining break and the time to reflect on the story. The audience returns to the plot when the performance starts again.
This form of theatre is performed in rural as well as in semi-urban areas. It is performed in the same area for at least 20 days, in some cases even for several months. These days, Jatras are regarded as a great festivity by the local people because the audience, be they urban or rural, are very fond of this kind of theatre.
This festive and magnetic form of theatre is termed Jatra in my area, i.e. the Indian sub-continent. The term 'theatre' is Western and when used, it gives the impression of association with the West.
The history of the growth and development of Jatra is as interesting and fascinating as it is characteristic of the subcontinental cultural phenomenon involving interaction of different regional styles and genres.
In Bengal, there was a form of singing called carya, which was popular between the ninth and the twelfth centuries. The carya songs are considered to be the creation of followers of Mahayana Buddhism. There are references to a Buddhya nataka (a song-based play about the life of Buddha) and to a few musical instruments. While no definite deductions can be made from this evidence, there are indications that this kind of musical drama influenced Git-Govinda (dramatic songs. about Krishna). What is clear is that Git-Govinda provided the foundation of poetic, musical and dramatic activities in all the three states of Bihar, Orissa and Bengal.
In the fifteenth century, when the Bhakti movement (a movement among people who believed that they would get salvation and find their way to God through love for each other and for mythological/religious heroes) swept Bengal, devotees went singing and dancing in processions. They sang in temple courtyards, narrating the events in the life of their patron god, and expressed their devotion through frenzied acting. The collective singing amidst the clang of gongs and fumes of incense produced a mass hypnosis and sent singers into an acting trance. This singing with dramatic elements gradually came to be known as Jatra, which literally means, 'to go in procession'.
Phani Bhushan Biddyabinod, a celebrated actor-director-writer, however, provides another explanation. He claims that the Jatra concept grew out of the musical enactment of an episode in Lord Krishna's life: Krishna is leaving his foster parents and the milk-maids in the woods of Vrindabon to go to Mathura in order to punish his uncle King Kamsa. This heart-rending separation became the favourite theme of singers and players, and Krishna's march, or jatra, to Mathura has been celebrated in the palas (plays). Later any pala about Krishna's life or about any mythological hero was called Jatra.
Popular forms of dramatic singing and expressive acting from the sixteenth through the eighteenth century were Jhumur (duet songs with a bit of dance and dialogue), Panchali (a performance by a single actor-singer), Kathakata (one actor singing a religious story), Keertan (devotional singing), and Kabigan (recitation). All these were the cultural expressions which would be integrated into the Jatra form and enrich it.
By the close of the eighteenth century, Bengal was completely under the East India Company, the last ruler of Bengal, Nawab Siraj-ud-Doula, having been defeated in 1757. The British introduced the concept of private property rights on land and a new system of government. The changes in the economic and social systems that followed, and the injustices that were perceived by the people, were increasingly reflected in themes of the Jatra plays as the political consciousness grew, especially throughout the nineteenth century. In this way, it came to serve a political function in the agitation against colonialism. This kind of Jatra plays was apparently very effective, and the hence the British in 1876 found it necessary to introduce the Dramatic Performance Act. According to this law, all Jatra companies had to be registered with the local authorities, and plays with an anti-British content were forbidden. However, many Jatra plays continued to have some sort of political message.
Throughout the nineteenth century, Jatra became increasingly secular and usually also more contemporary in character. During this period, the Jatra repertoire swelled with love themes, erotic stories, historical romance, mythological heroes as well as tales of legendary robbers, social reformers and champions of truth and justice, thereby diluting its previously dominating religious colour.
The largely secular character of Jatra has been maintained throughout the twentieth century. At the same time, the contemporary relevance of the plays has been strengthened, as witnessed, for example, by the increasing influence of the socialist and communist movements which grew in importance in this part of the world from around 1960.
Traditionally, male actors 'performed all roles. The tradition of having men acting women characters is common in many forms of Asian theatre. Due to social and religious reasons, women's participation in the performances was strictly prohibited.
Stage
The stage, called ashara, is an open and empty space improvised by a square-shaped platform, sixteen by sixteen feet in size and two and a half feet high. Two ramps run along the two sides at a height of about two feet and serve two purposes, as entry and exit and as a place for the musicians. On one of these, the percussion players sit with drums, cymbals and bells. On the other side, the other musicians - comprising a clarinet player, flutist, violinist, trumpet player and a harmonium player - are seated. From one corner of the stage, there is a nearly sixty feet long gangway which is made of rope and short bamboo sticks. In addition to providing connection between the green room and the stage, this gangway is also an extension of the stage and may serve different purposes: it may suggest a street, a highway, a temple path, the venue of a procession or the assembly place of an army. Bamboo poles are erected on all four sides of the stage and are used for lighting purposes and to hold the sheds above the stage. The audience sits on all sides of the stage, with one side reserved for women.
Props
The props used in Jatra plays are simple, and they are symbolic rather than realistic. One and the same property might represent different things, depending on how the performers use it. A chair might thus not only serve as a chair, but also as the steps of a river bank, stair etc. Similarly, the bamboo poles along the sides of the stage may also represent trees, etc.
Costume and Make-up
Visual effects are created through costume and make-up. The colour of the costume is very important though the design of the costume is vague. The performers may be dressed in a vague kind of period costumes or attire which bears no association with real life. The make-up is awesome and powerful but not sophisticated and stylized. Earth colours, chemical colours, white lead, and red paint are mixed with grease. Stripes and lines on the face are drawn according to the character, the demons being particularly fearsome with teeth painted at the upper lip. Every performer does his or her make-up. In some palas, especially the religious ones, masks are used to create a special effect.
Music
The music in Jatra is strongly influenced by Indian classical music. Music has played a vital role in the shaping of the Jatra form, and despite changes over time the musical flavour of the palas has been retained. In fact, the tune of the music determines the vocal expressions of the performers.
Performance and acting style
It is a characteristic feature of the Jatra play (pala) that it starts with a climax. Thus, the playwright (palakar) wants to catch the pulse of the audience by presenting a big or dramatic event in the opening and not slowly take the story from a low pitch to a high. A mythological play (Pouranic Pala) may thus start with the entry of a demon holding a blood-dripping head and a historical play with the firing of a gun. Neel Kuthi, a soclo-political play on the oppression of the Indigo planters, opens with the plantation owners whipping the farm labourers.
In every pala, there is a stock character which is called vivek, meaning "conscience". The vivek always sings serious songs, and it is always the finest singer in the company who acts this character. He wears a robe of black, saffron or white. His movements are sharp and conclusive.
The vivek enters the gangway running on the run, and disappears the same way. He has the freedom to move around during the entire play and can appear in any scene - in a bed chamber, in a king's court, in heaven, in hell, in a burning forest, in a street. When a main character does something wrong, the vivek turns up to warn him through a song. He lives in the past, present and future. The vivek is thus the shadow of every main character. The vivek has also a definite dynamic function. Not only does he comment upon actions or wrongdoings through his songs, but he also externalizes the feelings of the main characters by raising questions to them as well as to the audience.
Jatra is a powerful form of theatre performed mainly in Bengal but also in Orissa and Bihar. It has developed from its initial religious form into a mainly secular and contemporary form. Mukundo Das, the most important playwright of political pala, can be cited as an illustration of how Jatra was used to advocate against religious fundamentalism. Some lines from his pala "Society" can be used as an example:
"Look my brother in what way you judge the caste
And creed of Brahmin, Ksatriya, Baishya, Hindu, Muslim,
Death will not spare you.
As long as you are living
You are judging the caste and creed.
But when you will come to the Ferry for sail
All of you will be on the same boat."
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