Raj Bisaria – a TV, stage, radio, literature personality who continues to inspire aspirants, this octogenarian thespian, is still working on his Shakespearean favourite, ‘Hamlet’.

“Oh my fair warrior …,” this line from ‘Othello’, began the career of the father of modern theatre in North India – Raj Bisaria.

Today, 53 years after his first professional play as director, octogenarian Bisaria is working on another admired work of Shakespeare, ‘Hamlet’, and looking for an answer to the question: “To be or not to be…”

It was 1965, Bisaria, all of 30 years, conceptualised the thought of directing ‘Othello’, only with four characters- Desdemona, Iago, Emilia and of course ‘Othello’. “All were British artists, who were here in India under some literature and linguistics programme,” said Bisaria, going down memory lane.

“We started working on it in October 1965 and it was staged on February 12, 1966. I telescoped the play to four characters. I worked on the essence of the play with no violation of its spirit,” he added. It was the first play by Bisaria’s theatre group- The Art Workshop. After that there was no looking back as he directed more than six dozen plays in English as well Hindi, in India as well as abroad.

Since then, the changed viewing culture has pained the octogenarian thespian. “The entire viewing culture has changed. We just see short images. Especially when the audience is not theatre-oriented, theatre conscious, what do you expect,” he said.

Anguished over the fact that the younger lot is less interested in theatre, he said, “Even parents are not interested. Still, people like me are working for a bright tomorrow. I am the lone voice in the wilderness.”

Critical of the ‘modern’ form of theatre, he said that theatre is not song and dance but it is relates to human issues and psychology, which is universal. “Kalidasa’s ‘Shakuntala’ was performed in Germany. Shakespeare is alive in India, even more alive now. What connection do the Germans have with Kalidasa or we with Shakespeare?,” asked Bisaria hypothetically, and then responded, “Theatre depicts human problems, which are universal, these can’t be ignored. But convenience of ignorance is creating barriers in culture.”

‘STINT WITH CINEMA’

The thespian said that he meant to be a film actor and director. “There was no theatre accept Papa Ji (Prithviraj Kapoor). I am talking about 1950s,” he said. “I tried for films but I was told that I am too ugly, too thin to become an actor,” said Bisaria smiling and added, “Rejection trained me.”

However, he credits firms for his theatre education. “My whole theatre education has been through films because there was no theatre. But I believe, theatre is the womb of all the arts,” he asserted.

However, he has acted in Muzzaffar Ali’s ‘Aagman’ and Govind Nilhani’s ‘Aaghat’, besides several Doordarshan’s productions including ‘Biwi Natiyon Wali’.

Recalling theatre legends’ date with Lucknow, he said Prithviraj Kapoor, Geoffrey Kendal, “they used to come with their group to Lucknow. But times have changed now.”

BEYOND SHAKESPEARE

Five decades after staging ‘Othello’ and working on ‘Hamlet’, Bisaria, is the more impressed with Charlie Chaplin. “I stayed bit long with Shakespeare but my work ranges from George Bernard Shaw’s ‘Candida’ to Maxwell Anderson’s ‘Barefoot in Athens’, Harold Pinter’s ‘The Caretaker’ to Mohan Rakesh’s ‘Aadhe Adhoore’, Badal Sircar’s ‘Baki Itihas’, Dharamvir Bharti’s ‘Andha Yug’ and Adya Rangacharya’s ‘Suno Janmejaya’.

As a stage and light designer, his use of colours and perception of its psychology help him create a new spectrum of theatrical images. “My effort has remained to promote a serious bi-lingual theatre, more purposeful and contextually relevant to India’s social conditions,” he said.

ENGLISH THEATRE

After ‘Othello’, he directed Christopher Fry’s poetic play ‘A Phoenix Too Frequent’ and Eugène Ionesco’s absurd play ‘The Lesson’. A significant advance was made when he directed Jean-Paul Sartre’s existential ‘In Camera’, Edna St. Vincent Millay’s ‘Aria Da Capo’. Bisaria recalled, “In 1967, I directed Ronald Duncan’s translation of 12th Century classic ‘Abelard and Heloise’ in a three-bill.”

HINDI, URDU THEATRE

Bisaria put his efforts to promoting bilingual theatre sensibilities in Lucknow. He invited groups from other parts of country to produce plays in Hindi, under TAW’s umbrella. Badal Sircar’s ‘Baqi Itihas’ was the first Hindi play directed by Bisaria under the auspices of TAW.

Bisaria did not stop there and his debut in Hindi theatre lined up a wide range of plays which were translations from English, Bengali, Marathi, besides Hindi.

BHARTENDU ACADEMY OF DRAMATIC ARTS

Bisaria said he was excited when he founded Bhartendu Academy of Dramatic Arts. “I taught in the university for decades but I am not a teacher. I am an artist,” he said. He suggested the then state government, to have a semi-professional repertory theatre in Uttar Pradesh and in 1974 the State Government asked him to set a roadmap for establishing a drama school, which would function as a full-fledged academy. Hence, Bhartendu Academy of Dramatic Arts (BADA) was born in 1975. That time, its contemporaries were the Delhi-based National School of Drama, said Bisaria, who, remained founder director of the academy for years.

STILL LOOKING FOR THE FIRE WITHIN

“Something like a fire is within me which I am still looking for,” he said, showing, some papers relating to a project under the prestigious ‘Tagore National Fellowship’. “Shakespeare’s ‘Indian Summer’ is the title of my work, which tells about the theatrical study of Shakespearean plays in India.

Other than this, under the ‘Senior Fellowship’ of the central government, the thespian has worked on a book – titled ‘The Mind of the Director’ – on Hindi theatre directors.

But, Bisaria, who is working on directing Hamlet – his 5th of the Bard, said, “Hamlet is my favourite work and character. I would love to do the role of Hamlet.”

AWARDS AND HONOURS

For his contribution to modern theatre, he was honoured with the third highest civilian award, Padma Shree, in 1990. Besides, Bisara has been awarded with several awards at the state, national, international levels.

source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Lucknow / Hindustan Times, Lucknow / by Saurabh Chauhan / February 18th, 2019