Daily Times

Like all great nations, ours also boasts a lavish variety of rich culture and arts. Be it song, dance, poetry or prose, the land has produced legends in every field. The vibrancy of this way of life is part of our genetic makeup. Needless to say, we are a very dramatic nation. As the popular character Joey Tribbiani from the famous television sitcom Friends put it, “I’m an actor, right? So I gotta keep my emotions right at the surface.” That more or less describes the average Pakistani as well. So, not surprisingly, the love of theatre has been inherent. Yet, like all great forms of art in this country, theatre faces its fair share of problems as well.

The journey of theatre has been a feat in itself. We are lucky that art transcends boundaries and was not subject to the laws of partition. Even luckier was that we managed to score Lahore, the cultural capital of Punjab, as part of the deal. In the beginning there were legends like Khwaja Mohiyudeen who paved the way for future artists in drama. Khwaja sahib, famous for plays like ‘Taalim-e-Balighaan’ and ‘Lal Qile se Lalu Khait Tak’ set the bar for dramatics, giving it fresh style and quality scripts to match. He was succeeded by Zia Mohiyudeen, a legend in his own right, who is still the face of Pakistani theatre around the world.

To say that these people had it easy would be nothing short of fallacy. There has always been lack of institutional support. At a recent event, the talented actor and playwright Kamal Ahmed Rizvi recalled the story of how he had to borrow money from a friend in Bangladesh to set up his first play performance. The silver lining to this story is that Kamal sahib managed to make enough profit to return the loan and realise that our audience values good quality plays.

Later we had a series of martial laws waiting for us where we saw a major hiccup in performing arts along with all other artistic endeavours. General Ziaul Haq’s rule, which aimed at banning pretty much anything to do with expression or free speech under the banner of religion, managed to put a temporary deadlock on theatre. However, surprisingly, it was during these times that Pakistan saw some of its most revolutionary playwrights and acts come to the surface. Defiantly making a stand for theatre in those times was the multitalented troupe of Ajoka and Lok Tamasha. With the objective of providing meaningful performances that meant not only to entertain but also enlighten the public, these two organisations gathered a huge following and wide critical acclaim the world over. This brought the culture of making plays with strong messages of morality and ethics, leading the audience to reflect on their lives.

The main struggle of theatre has been to emerge from the shackles of social taboos that have bound it for generations. Acting being associated as the talent of con artists, thieves, beggars, prostitutes and the like has led to the whole art form being heavily demonised. More so in our country where the veil of perpetual piety is tossed around left right and centre to cover anything and everything except our own conscience. The disintegration of commercial theatre from improvised comedy to bland vulgarity did not help this image either. Here, credit is due to talented geniuses like Ashfaq Ahmed, Anwar Maqsood, Shahid Nadeem and the Peerzadas for reviving a level of intellect, class and integrity in the art.

Efforts have been made in the recent decade to revive the stage from a final curtain call. However, the hurdles have not been reduced in the least. With the influx of talented youth from across the country into mass communication and media, there has been a rapid revival of culture publicised over the tube. This has helped, but institutional support is still lacking. Directorial talents like Shah Sharabeel have been able to produce sold out performances throughout the country and introduce the trend of sponsorships for mega theatrical productions. Acting talent from across the border has filled seats irrespective of the ticket price with veterans like Naseeruddin Shah and Om Puri coming over to perform.

Israel has implemented a law that it be compulsory for students to have attended at least five theatre performances in the academic year. Putting demand and supply into effect, theatre has grown as a tool for social awareness and mobility. What this does is also prepare generations of inspired young talent to take over this responsibility. In Pakistan, we have had talented young troupes emerging in the past few years with the right amount of passion to not only keep the art alive but make it prosper as well. However, there is only so much a handful of such groups can do. The number of obstacles that stand in the way of production houses to stage a performance are ancient and ridiculous. Writers and directors need to be applauded and have their worth realised. It is time to cash in on this zeal and promote performing arts at all levels, in particular making it an essential part of our education curriculum, thereby not only safeguarding our culture but also bettering future generations to becoming more socially aware, proactive and confident human beings. The stage can only spread the word. It is up to the people to do what is necessary with that message. For all the resilience it has displayed on upholding this responsibility, Pakistani theatre undoubtedly deserves a standing ovation.

The writer is a freelance columnist