Proclaiming from the Rooftop

“We were right there in the front row,cheering for Ranbir in the song,” says Phuntsok,a Tibetan Opera teacher at the TIPA school in Dharamsala. All set to catch the late-night Rockstar show,Phuntsok expresses satisfaction with one aspect: “The Censor Board might have blurred the word “free” on the flag,but the flag was right there and so was the freedom patch that Ranbir is wearing on his shirt. Sadda Haq is our right.”

Phuntsok has been teaching the Tibetan Opera for 32 years at the TIPA school,along with running some other interesting courses. Besides,he has also been part of various film shoots in Dharamsala. “A lot of Bollywood and Hollywood film units come to Dharamsala,and when it comes to getting a bit of Tibet on board,we are the point of contact,” he says.

From Jab We met (they were in the song Yeh Ishq),Martin Scorcese’s Kundun,a film on His Holiness the Dalai Lama,to Dreaming Lhasa,TIPA has been at the forefront. “We also run courses on traditional costume making,shoe-making,Tibetan music and dance,” he says,adding that non-Tibetans can also be part of these short-term courses.

“TIPA is now 50 years old and it was established by the Dalai Lama to preserve Tibetan art and culture,” says TIPA director Sonam Shosur Choephle. He admits that the new generation gets swayed by new ideas and trends,but TIPA makes it a point to keep the passion for Tibet alive. “It’s our culture,our tradition and our history that gives us identity. How can we let go of it?” he asks.

For performer Tenzin Yangzom,TIPA is one place where “life is easier for the refugees”. “My parents initiated me into it when I was just eight,” she says.

But the principal focus of TIPA is the grand Tibetan Opera,also known as Lhamo. “It’s like a Shakespearean theatre: grand,opulent,larger-than-life,with all the extravaganza and the works,” says Phuntsok. Each Lhamo performance,he adds,is an event in itself,lasting six to eight hours.

“But nowadays,people have limited time. So,we stage abridged versions,” he says,adding how a lot of mythology and folklore is part of Lhamo,and interestingly,Indian stories as well. “We have presentations on Raja Harishchandra,Shakuntala and Gautam Buddha,” says Phuntsok,as he gears up to give the city a taste of the masked Lhamo performance.