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SUNDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2016 (PAGE 4) HERITAGE CULTURE Documents that helped Dogri Natya Samagama stimulates Jammu’s cultural scene SP Sharma and grammar. Mr.LK Advani was debated on December He succeeded in finding various doc- 22 and passed the same day by recom- Lalit Gupta atre, Swang, Nautanki and Indian dance drama traditions, was a Certain historically valuable docu- uments that were helpful when the ques- mending amending the Constitution. The successful initiative to get back to the mass bases of India, to ments unearthed by an officer and tion of including Dogri in the Eighth Bill received assent from the then ammu playing host to ‘Natya Samagama’, which concluded recover some of the suppressed performative methods as well as researcher, late Mr.BP Sharma, turned Schedule came. The standing committee President APJ Abdul Kalam on January this Wednesday, was an unexpected windfall as this five- traditions only to reiterate their continuing relevance in modern the tide in favour of the Dogri language reportedly remained unsatisfied with the 7, 2004. Jday festival of Contemporary Theatre Practices, Traditions times. These included Arjun Deo Charan’s Jamaleela, in and Diverse Cultural Expressions of India, originally to be held being included in the Eight Schedule of modern literature that was initially pro- Parliamentarians including Rajasthani, from Jodhpur, Raja Vikramaditya in Hiryanavi, in Kashmir but because of continuing unrest in the Valley, was the Constitution of India on January 7, duced for including the language in the Mr.Dharam Chandra Prashant, Vaid from Hisar, Babu Ji and Abhigyan Shakuntalam in Nagapuri, 2004. shifted to the winter capital. from Ranchi. The maiden performance of Purgi play Sartaqs, Schedule and wanted that some old man- Vishnu Dutt and Choudhary Talib Organized by Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi, (SNA) in The documents submitted on behalf uscripts or other documents should also Hussain were among those who raised directed by Kachoo Ahmad Khan from Kargil, was another of Mr.Sharma, who was ailing at that collaboration with J&K Academy of Art, Culture & Languages achievement of the festival as well as theatre scene of J&K. be put up for examining the case of their voice in favour of Dogri in the Lok (JKAACL), at Abhinav Theatre Complex, the third edition of time, to the high level standing commit- Dogri. Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. During his 5 Natya Samagama’s ‘Meet the Directors’ series under which Natya Samagama (two already held at Delhi and Agartala) the theatre directors of staged plays, interact to share respective tee of the Parliament that was constitut- Several old documents possessed by years term beginning in the Rajya Sabha ed to examine claim of Dogri's inclusion brought at Jammu’s door steps, an extravaganza of some of the journeys as well as the creative processes, proved to be quite Mr.Sharma, including one showing the in 1982, Prashant fought relentlessly for best contemporary expressions and traditional theatre presenta- in the Eighth Schedule were sufficient to stimulating and inspiring opportunity to the local theatre artists, Dogri alphabets and the other confirm- including Dogri in the Eighth Schedule. tions, alongside folk performing traditions of Jammu and directors, and technical teams, to have an insight into the life He also pleaded the case of Dogri Kashmir. and working processes of the leading personalities representing before top parliamentarians, The five-day mega-event, in which 600 artists staged 51 development of regional theatre in the country. including Indira Gandhi, Atal events, had turned the multi-purpose Abhinav Theatre complex The intesractions with Balwant Thakur, was especially Behari Vajpayee and LK Advani. as a buzzing melting pot of ideas, talent and inspiration. The cut- revealing to the local theatre artists as it not only gave an insight In a paper published in 1989, ting edge and awe-inspiring two solo and one two-actor theatre into his theatre journey, but also how as a young director in Mr.Prashant pointed out that acts could easily called as pick of the festival for their novelty 1986, while conceiving a play based on the life of Dogra hero Mr.Sharma was the first Dogra and innovations of themes and presentation. Bawa Jitto, he got motivated to go back to local and folk prac- scholar to challenge the state- Flying in the face of hackneyed, clichéd and often predictable tices of performances which were very much part of his person- ment of Dr.George A. Grierson patterns of expressions and representations on stage, these per- al childhood environment. formances sparkled with creativity for their representational regarding non-existence of any The festival was also witnessed by experts who were special- structures and story-telling mechanisms. printed Dogri book though he ly invited prominent theatre personalities from the state as well The markers of avant-garde practices in India, these produc- made a casual reference to the outside. book "Lilavati". Grierson was a Another distinguishing civil servant of British India who feature of the Natya ordered the first linguistic survey Samagama was the Akhara, under which a major show- in 1928, Mr. Sharma unearthed casing in recent times of the the "Lilavati" first published in living folk practices of the 1873 AD and read a well- performing arts of Jammu researched and informative and Kashmir was held in paper on the 19th century Dogri Jammu. True to Akhara’s publications printed during the conventional open air space, reign of Maharaja Ranbir Singh prove Dogri as an ancient language with it was held on the front lawn (1857-1885). of the Abhinav Theatre, its own script and grammar. These docu- Prof.Frits Staal of the where the folk groups drawn ments were beneficial for getting official California University, Berekley, from remote and rural pock- status for the language as the modern ing that the modified Dogri script was said "BP Sharma has shown that ets of Jammu and Kashmir time literature and other books were not introduced by Maharaja Ranbir Singh Grierson was wrong and that not less divisions performed with gay considered sufficient for this purpose. and in 1884 AD a printing press of Dogri than 20 books were printed in Dogri type abundance. Dogri writers, thinkers and politicians literature existed in Jammu were pro- during the second half of the 19th centu- The folk forms included also played their role in the Dogri becom- duced to satisfy the high level committee ry. All these books are very rare and of Haran, Gagail, Jagarna, ing one of the 22 languages that are in favour of the Dogri language. some the only known copy exiosts in the Jadu-Jadiyaan, Bhagtiaan, included in the Eighth Schedule. Finally, the victory of Dogri came Ranbir Public Library of Jammu. These Karkaan, Bhakh, Kud, After his retirement as director of AIR when through the 92nd Amendment of books show that during Maharaja Ranbir Chhajja, Jatar, Geetru, Cchinjaan, from Jammu in 1966, Mr. Sharma held various posi- the Constitution in 2003 four languages, Singh's Dogra renaissance the Dogri tions in the J&K government including region, and Bhand Pather, Dogri, Bodo, Santhali and Maithali were script was modified and improved. Surnai music, Dambaali and that of director of Information & PR and included in the Eighth Schedule thereby Mr.Prashant also credited also director of Field Survey Cchakri from Kashmir. This raising the number of languages in the Mr.Sharma for identifying the first Dogri mega show of folk art is like- Organisation (FSO). But at the same time Schedule to 22. The Eighth Schedule lists writer Jyotshi Visheshwar who authored he took keen interest in regularly visiting tions were the independent ‘Notes on Chai’, written, directed ly to prove as a boost for the folk artistes’ groups who are other- the languages the development of which the "Lilavati" in 1873 AD. The great and acted by Mumbai’s Jyoti Dogra and ‘Yahan’ by Rikh and wise living an unsung life marked with dwindling patronage of the Archives, library and museaum is responsibility of the government. Indian linguist Dr.Siddheshwar Verma where he spent ample time digging out Padadik, Kolkota, written and directed by Vinay Sharma and their art in their respective cultural milieus. The report of the standing committee appreciated Mr.Sharma for unearthing enacted by Sanchayita Bhattacharjee and Anubha Fatehpuria. documents that could prove Dogri being The Natya Samagama with back to back presentations of two was tabled in the Lok Sabha on the "Lilavati" and bringing to limelight its The opening play of the Samagama, Alag Mulakh Ka Bashinda, an ancient language with its own script and even three plays in one day also offered a new experience for December 5, 2003 and the Bill moved by author Jyotshi Vishveshwar. directed by Rajkamal Nayak, Raipur, also caught the imagina- theatre aficionados of Jammu who were hitherto satisfied with tion of the audience for its production design and the talented drama-a-day culture popularized by organizers of theatre festi- acting by the solo actor Neeraj Gupta. vals held by JKAACL, NZCC, and local groups. MOVIE-REVIEW The next genre of plays staged in the festival, were the iconic The successful festivals held under the stewardship of the and living plays like Bansi Kaul’s Tukke Par Tukka, from Bhopal, festival director Balwant Thakur, who was backed up & 18 mem- and Balwant Thakur’s Bawa Jitto, from Jammu, Kewal ber strong team of officials SNA, headed by Suman Sharma, the Dhaliwal’s Kanak di Balli from Amritsar. Devised in late 1980s Deputy Secretary, an NSD graduate himself, a number of local and 1990s, under the nationalistic project of establishing theatre theatre artists as volunteers, along with Arvinder Singh Aman, A tale well told methodologies and idioms which fuse native traditional folk Additional Secretary and the entire staff of JKACCL, especially What also works in the favour of the film is the fact forms with the modern, these plays are successful instances of the sensitive and ever helpful technical team of Abhinav that, while the film stays true to the title.