Votary of change
Nonika Singh

THE titan of Punjabi theatre, Gursharan Singh, is today a changed man. And a happy one, too. For hasn’t society changed for the better. And the government, he once fought tooth and nail, working towards the desired reality that he has depicted all his life through his theatre. Without squirming, he accepts the charge that indeed his theatre is "lecture". And he winks, "Today they call it the courage of conviction."

That theatre could be an agent of change was a lesson he learnt more than five decades ago. The year was 1954. While working in Nangal, the remark — "what do workers know of theatre?" — set him on the path of theatre for masses. When his play Lohri di hartal struck a deep chord with management, he realised its potency.

He has directed over 53 plays and clocked 9,000 shows since then. Gurdial Singh Phul’s Jin sach pale hoye itself has been staged a staggering 1,800 times. While others may couch their theatre in aesthetic language and theatrical niceties, his has been the theatre of activism — simple, direct to the point, sans artifice — always taking the bull by the horns and hitting the bull’s eye each time. "A play", he deems "is one that can reach the people."

And how has he reached them? Today in villages across Punjab’s hinterland, villagers not only swear by him but also make a wish that goes something like this — "if my son gets married I will organise Gursharan Singh’s play in my vehda".

But then he has been the voice of the marginalised, the dispossessed and the oppressed.

Has the voice been heard? Says he, "An egalitarian society is still a distant dream, but there has been equality in thinking. No more can the downtrodden be browbeaten or cowed down."

But from where did he acquire the gumption to dare and to take on the establishment and to indict the powers that be? Perhaps, the answer lies in childhood years nurtured on heroic sagas of Jallianwala Bagh, Bhagat Singh and much more. Later on in life, he was deeply impressed by brother-in-law, Prof Randhir Singh, an indomitable Marxist. It was then it dawned upon him that politics alone can change society and he often challenged the political system.

More often than not his plays have been cast as satires — rib tickling and full of sarcasm — that critics insist happens to be his forte. Suddenly, he goes off tangent and quips, "Children have a great sense of humour". And the answer to our unasked query has been found. Undeniably, the child in him is still alive. At the ripe age of 80, when most octogenarians declare themselves over and out, he is only too eager to not only change but also to learn new lessons.

Once a die-hard Leftist, now he has no qualms in admitting that there is much to learn from the capitalist US, too. Like the rest of the world, he, too, thinks that the arrival of Obama signals a revolution. "In India", he opines, "many revolutionary changes are underway. What could be a more progressive step than the Right to Education? The concept of a welfare state has triumphed."

So has this man whose feats are very many. Take the line up of awards. From Kalidas Sanman to Kala Ratan conferred by National Sangeet Natak Akademy. Other glorious moments have been his persistence leading to the inclusion of mother’s name in Punjab School Education Board certificates. Equality of gender is a cause that he has always championed. Once again it was in his formative years that he had recognised that men can be rather cruel and thus his plays have always endorsed women’s empowerment. No wonder then that today he considers his two daughters to be his biggest achievement in life.

What of his innumerable disciples in whom he has instilled the same zeal and passion to pursue theatre as a cause and a deep abiding commitment? Well, he is especially proud of Kewal Dhaliwal, the NSD alumnus and Ford Foundation recipient. He is equally heartened by centres in Punjab that are actively engaged in community theatre. One auditorium in Mullanpur is named after him. A documentary film, made by his disciple Aneeta Shabdeesh hails him as Kranti da kalakar. He is deeply touched that he has been immortalised in his lifetime.

However, sitting on his laurels is not his mettle. Still raring to go, he has just finished his new play Thagi, thagi, thagi, taking on the travel agents who dupe innocent youth. "People’s voice will prevail", he says wistfully.

Well, in his plays it certainly will as he is the man of the people, for the people.

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