BANSI KAUL, FOREVER IN MY MEMORIES
(23–08–1949 to 06–02–2021)
I first met Bansi Kaul in 1978 on a sweltering summer afternoon in Amritsar. My father, Gursharan Singh and celebrated poet Amarjit Chandan had invited him to lead a month-long theatre workshop for my father’s group, Amritsar Natak Kala Kendra. At the time, Bansi Kaul was a faculty of the National School of Drama and also a director in NSD Repertory. These were early days in his foray through an illustrious journey in the theatre world. He had an elegant personality, and impeccable manners which impressed everyone around him, be it men or women, young or old.
The workshop was intended to facilitate the production of DhamakNagare Di, which went on to become a historic play in the annals of Punjabi theatre history. The storyline of the ballad production was decided on the first day of the workshop in consultation with Amarjeet Chandan, the poet Shehryar and Prof Sabinderjit Sagar of Guru Nanak Dev University. It was agreed that the play would be a period-drama based on the peasant rebellion of Dulla Bhatti against the apathy and excesses of the Mughal empire.Dulla Bhatti’s story would be juxtaposed against the contemporary crisis in the agrarian sector.
One of the major challenges in organizing the workshop was the absence of professional actors. After my father was arrested during the emergency rule under the draconian provisions of the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA), comparable to today’s Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), most of his old group of actors stopped associating with him. Upon his release from prison, he therefore decided to set up a whole new team. These comprised of young high school and college students from Amritsar and adjoining villages, mostly from humble households. Although this young team of actors had been doing street theatre and plays in rural areas for the past few months, they had virtually no experience in participating in a large theatre production. Since it was a dance -drama, it also required actors with a background in music. This void was filled by Paramjit Singh, a young undergraduate student who could play the harmonium. In later years, Paramjit was to become the leading light of all my father’s musical projects. Some of the protest songs sung by him in 1980s such as Utthan da Vela reverberate in the on-going farmer’s protests in New Delhi even today.
When Bansi Kaul started the workshop with this team, he would often remark in jest, “I have never seen such a group of non-actors in a theatre production till now.” However, he was an exceptional team leader who was able to extract the best possible work from this motley group. He designed unique dance steps, which had a lyrical quality about them and were inspired by local folk traditions. Even now, thirty-five years later I remember that he danced with such grace that you could only look up in awe. He would often say that we are not doing Bhangra here, the dance should express the mood of the play, be it anger, bravery or grief. Such was his creativity that he was able to design a new musical instrument, taking two twigs and beating them together rhythmically. He was also effectively able to use each person’s innate talents in the project. For instance, some of the amateur actors were from tailor, carpenter and cobbler families. The sets and the costumes designed by Bansi Kaul for the play were made by the actors themselves. The production became a true example of community sharing and working class solidarity.
The workshop created a lot of buzz in Amritsar. A number of budding artists in the city started pouring in to the sessions, hoping to get a small part. One of these actors was Kewal Dhaliwal, a school student who went on to become a celebrated theatre personality in India. Ved Sharma, a veteran actor also came in one day. His entry solved a major problem because none of the younger actors were suitable to play the titular role of Dulla Bhatti. Ved Sharma played the role with a quiet grace, in one of the most memorable performances of his prodigious career. People from other towns also came in to participate in this production. One of these Phulwant Singh Minocha, my father’s colleague from his days at the Bhakra Nangal Project in Nangal. As a fourteen year old, I was so enamored by the theatre activity going on at home that I dropped out of school altogether and decided to write my class tenth exams as a private candidate. I began to feel that the experiential learning that I was able to get at home counted for much more than attending regular school.
Despite all the constraints, Bansi Kaul was able to put on a remarkable production which is remembered by Punjabi theatre enthusiasts even today. He also helped to take Punjabi theatre to the national stage. I will forever remember the days of this workshop, which for me embody the memories of an era gone by, where Bansi Kaul created magic through his direction and a generation of actors and musicians was created.
