TO DATAR... TO DATAR...

This article appeared originally in Mumbai Mirror, of the Times Of India group.

This article also bows its head today, in deference, to the immense talent, drive and actual 'work' exhibited by Chetan Datar, a theatrewallah whose untimely demise has actually been a last gasp of sorts... for theatre in Mumbai.

THE GASP THAT GOES ON…



Theatre, dance and music thrive in a small municipal school hall – for thespians and amateurs alike, finds Rishi Majumder



Curtain Raiser. Turn into an undersized hall at the significantly unassuming and old New Mahim Municipal School at Mia Mohammad Chotani Road at seven pm, and you will face revelation. This might be a play, a musical rendition, a dance, a reading, a film, a rehearsal or simply a discussion. The participants may range from National Award and Padma Shree winners to amateurs who've started just a month ago. But the revelation will be the audience – ranging from interested college students to thespians like playwright Vijay Tendulkar.

Prologue. When the Christians in Rome were under threat they took to the Catacombs. Nepalese theatre activists today use private houses to voice national unrest through whispered dramas. Mumbai experimental theatre, however, fights not political, but economic battles. "This Awishkar Cultural Centre is the 'last gasp' before amateur theatre dies in Bombay," pronounces theatre stalwart Pandit Satyadev Dubey when asked for a quote. 'Dubeyji' had announced to us some months ago that "Experimental theatre like sexual intercourse will never cease". And if theatre group Awishkar's true-to-it's-name re-invention of a nondescript assembly hall into an artistic platform – for their faith – is anything to go by, Dubey's preceding verdict might just overrule his more recent one.

Act One. While theatre group Awishkar was formed by theatre legends like Vijay Tendulkar, Sulabha Deshpande and Arun Kaakre's historical breaking away from Rangayan in 1971, they formed their abode here due to problems (involving commercial consideration, presumably) with Chabil Das Hall (of the Chabil Das Theatre Movement fame) in 1993. But it took the group five more years to realize the "room's" potential as a performance space. "This wasn't the ideal place for opening a play – the authorities have never let us make any permanent changes. Plus the senior members were very disheartened by the fall-out with Chabil Das," remembers playwright-director Chetan Datar, the group's secretary who fondly calls the centre his "baby".

Act Two. But ply-wood walls were created to form atmosphere for any play. Multi-hued theatre spot-lights were strung on bamboo poles hung on hooks to create effects. And the tiny storeroom was lined with make-shift shelves to create space for a variety of props and set-pieces. Sitaram, the centre's ultra-experienced man-for-all-seasons can assemble a set and environment – with desired colour-schemes and props – within minutes. "Small for me has always been beautiful… designing a play for this space ensures it can be performed anywhere," laughs Datar. He also acknowledges that downplaying the ambience and effects ensures concentration on theatre's primary tools – text and performance.

Act Three. With government grants and money accumulated from 'donation cards' given to the audience barely enabling them to break even, the group focused on it's next mission: distinguishing the cultural centre from a mere theatre. "We have an average of three events a month, for which we advertise ourselves," explains Datar. While these are mostly plays, they also encompass performances from allied arts: "This is essential for theatre persons as well, as theatre is an amalgation of every art," Datar continues. So poetry readings by Kishore Kadam, dance recitals by Darshana Jhaveri, and classical music performances shares spaces the some of the years most memorable Naataks. Also, each performance ends with a discussion with an active audience: "Consisting of mostly middle or the upper-middle class, the primary reason people come here is 'mental stimulation'" Datar points out. He remembers Meena Naik's play Vaate Varti Kachaga, on child molestation eliciting strong responses: "Each person shared their private experiences on the troubling subject for a long time after the play." Also adding to the 'forum' quality are the theatre workshops conducted in the centre – especially the free-of-charge workshops by Datar and Dubey. "These workshops, in turn invent further volunteers and participants in the centre's events," Datar completes the circle. Arun Kaakre better known as Kaakre Kaka ("Kaakre Kaka is Awishkar and vice versa" is what people say when asked for his 'designation') sums up the initiative: "Our object is the R&D of theatre. Which is why we ask various groups spanning different experience levels, languages and cities to perform here."
Epilogue, Curtain, and Encore. Ending post performance discussions, the 75 odd crowd streaming out often blinks at the municipal building they emerge from disbelievingly. Aadesh Pawar a novice-actor from pune is still awed by his performance at the centre: "Can you imagine a mediocre actor like me getting feedback on a first performance from someone like Dubeyji or Sulabha Tai (Sulabha Deshpande)?" Aadesh and the hall seem synonymous as metaphors. For isn't experiment but finding the magnificent in the mundane?