VALANKY BOTHELLO
One of the most popular and widespread forms of drama, a street play is a theatrical performance in outdoor public spaces without a specific paying audience. Spreading the cause of awareness among the public, artists are known to gather around any corner of the street, market, parking lots and start performing their act. From social issues of drug abuse, injustice, human abuse, hygiene, medical awareness to political and environmental issues, the artists grab attention of a mix-audience spreading these important messages through their dance-drama.
Evolved in the early 20th century, the street plays in India developed and gained importance during the anti-colonial era.
“Street plays and drama to a certain extent find roots in the tribal and folk theatre, an only form of entertainment and a means of spreading messages in the past,” says Hemant Aiya, assistant professor, Government College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Quepem. Fondly addressed as “Pathasamrat” or Emperor of Street Plays, Hemant mentors a team of street play artists Ami GCQ team.
“The youth play a major role in street plays, using their skills in acting, singing and dancing,” he says, adding that there has been an increasing response towards street plays. “The scenario of street plays in Goa is changing, with youngsters organizing, and involving themselves completely in the act. While many groups of youth prepare themselves for various competitions with the sole motto of winning prizes at institution levels, others dedicate themselves for the cause of social awareness. Besides the government is also encouraging street plays, serving the purpose of boosting talent and spreading social awareness,” he says.
Understanding the artist
Speaking of the efforts that go into making a streetplay, Hemant says, “Personally, when I started with streetplay writing and organising, I would first consider the core of my actors, and then lay down the script. It is all about understanding the nature of each artist, while one is naturally loud, the other is low or another is a good singer, or a comedian. It is about using the strength of each participant in the performance. Given good amount of time for training and preparations, we then try to work on a completely new concepts or characters. It is about using each participants limitations as an advantage.”
Bald memories
And his group Ami GCQ team is taking the concept of street plays in Goa to a whole different level with exhausting performances of building a human wall imitating that of the movie 300 and even going bald for just a small dialogue in the street play, Cashless Bharat to Kesless Bharat, (translated as “Bald India”) created during the demonetization time. While until a few years back, a limited range of instruments like ghumat, shamel, dholki were used, taking cue from Maharashtra, this group has begun the use of taal, pakhwaj, dhol, kasali, and many others. And the group has done as many as 13 performances in a day at times.
From dialogues to poetry
Realising the need of changing the style of delivering dialogues in order to grasp the attention of the audience, Hemant has begun the style of poetry and rhyming instead of direct dialogues.
“Difficult and complicated script and stories are hard to enact and grasp the attention of the audience, but a simple story enacted in a musical and rhythmic manner, will definitely turn heads,” he explains.
And Hemant believes that this form of theatre should be introduced to students at a young age as it yields an interest in the languages they study in class while making the class interesting.
“Instead of a test or an assignment, if students are regularly asked to write a script and enact it, either as a steert-play, monologue or a one-act, they will enjoy their subject, learn to use their language better and learn well,” he says.
However, this form of writing is yet to be recognised as a part of literature. “Though Konkani street play writing was not recognised as a form of Konkani literature, the scenario is changing now and many are thinking over revising the same,” adds Hemant who has recently released three books on Konkani poetry and short stories - Kathakaar, Kaay confused Kavita and Pokal. In fact, a collection of Hemant’s scripts edited by Mangesh Harijan titled Pathasamarat was released in February.
