Bengali play 'Deshe-Bidweshe' set to have its debut show in Bengaluru this weekend

When we talk about the culture of Bengal, what most of us essentially connote is an intellectual lineage that originated during the 20th century colonial-ruled Calcutta. In that sense and in many others, Bengaluru-based Ekalavya Performing Arts & Picture Wicture Productions’ play Deshe-Bidweshe (In Home and In War) which is set to have its debut production this weekend, is quintessentially Bengali.

But why develop the play in Bengali, we ask, given that it’s not a vernacular language in the region? “But there is a sizable population of Bengalis in the city. Several people attend our shows because they love theatre but a lot of them also come to experience a bit of their homeland away from their homeland,” co-director Dr Tanumay Dutta contradicts us, adding, “We also have people who do not speak or understand Bengali much in the audience. I believe that theatre, if done well, transcends the barrier of languages.” The other directors include Biplab Kundu and Bodhisatta Sarkar.

Home and the war
Deshe-Bidweshe consists of two stories: Swadhinotar Swapno (Dream of Freedom) and Juddhobaaj (Warmonger). The first one is a modern take on the life and times of Khudiram Basu (essayed by actor Abhishek Tarafdar), one of the earliest and youngest martyrs of the Indian Independence Movement. The story has a play within a play and begins when a theatre group, comprising people with very different political opinions, begin to develop a play on the life of the freedom fighter.

The second one is a socio-political satire that reflects on the perils of war, often glorified under the garb of hyper-nationalism. The story is set in a dystopian world where money is the supreme power and war is an everyday affair, and hence the Warmonger becomes the ultimate puppeteer. “At its core, Deshe-Bidweshe is our take on the political scenario in the contemporary world – both local and global. It’s a commentary on current politics while looking back at history,” the director explains.

Swadhinotar Swapno is set in today’s time and follows a group of people trying to understand the politics of early freedom fighters. And in the quest, they begin to understand the history of India from 1908 to the present times.

“The second one (Juddhobaaj) is focused a little more towards global politics. It is about capitalism and how that shamelessly promotes war for political and economic benefits and the role of the media in it. The story is set in an imaginary space, which is in the frontier between two neighbouring countries that are fighting. The characters in the story include a young man, who wants to be a doctor but instead, he has to serve in the army because his country is at war. There are several other people who can see how the war might turn their lives upside down. However, when the businessmen and politicians shout out the war cry “juddho chaai” (we want war), they have no choice but to listen to them.

“We do not mention when or where the story takes place, but it’s modelled after today’s times. So, you can think of the countries to be Iraq-Syria, Israel-Palestine and Russia-Ukraine,” Tanumay elucidates. The question then becomes what are we letting go of while drunk in the demand for war? Who is the most affected?” the director asks pensively.

Influences and inspirations
While Juddhobaaj draws its inspiration from the wars going on in contemporary times, Swadhinotar Swapno is set in British India and hence, needed a lot of research. “In terms of reading, a lot started once we decided on Khudiram Basu. We wanted to make the story historically correct. Lots of books have been written by revolutionaries while they used to be in jail. One such book is Banglay Biplob Protishtha by Hemchandra Kanungo, which we took reference from,” Tanumay informs. The other book that they took reference from is Lokomata Nibedita by Shankariprasad Dutta.

Apart from books, the 2006 Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra-directorial Rang De Basanti also served as an inspiration for the theatre production.

Behind the scenes
One important question that one comes up with is the role of stage design in a play like this, where one story is set in a historical period while another is set in a fictional era. Tanumay avers, “In both plays, the design has been kept minimalistic. None has a traditional sofa and table structure. It’s a minimalist modern theatre setting, where cube blocks are used to construct various props.” In that sense, the props are more abstract and metaphorical than you can see traditionally.

The role of music in the production, on the other hand, is equally pivotal. “In both the stories, live singing plays a key role. Actors will sing live on stage and percussionists will also play live. This is something we are really happy to have achieved,” Tanumay says, further noting, “We have also composed the background music ourselves.” And the background music ranges from beats in Juddobaaj to patriotic songs in Swadhinotar Swapno. Hence, the demarcation between the two eras is made through a sonic landscape.

Important transitions also take place through visual cues like changes in costumes. For example, in Juddhobaaj, all the chorus singers have the same costume but when they transition into individual characters, they put on a piece of accessory like a coat or a shawl to differentiate them from the chorus.

Not preaching
And in doing all of these, what does the team aim to achieve? “We assume most of the audience we will be interacting with will be well-educated. But what we want is for them to be more aware of what’s happening in the world and not fall into the traps of nationalism. We don’t want our audience to lean this way or that way – we only want them to ask more questions. And if possible, learn a bit more about our history and become a better citizen of our country. In the end, we just want our audience to think a little more,” Tanumay remarks.

Before calling curtains to the conversation, the director teases us with a little information about their upcoming project. “We have another production planned around July, which will be more of a mixture of mime and theatre,” he says, signing off.

INR 300. January 20, 3.30 pm and 7.30 pm. At Jagriti Theatre, Whitefield.

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