Solo Act

The multi-faceted Sen had the audience mesmerised with the mega production,with musical sequences interspersed in the narrative,giving viewers a panoramic view into the lives of one of the greatest poet of all times. The story revolves around the life of Tulsidas,who survives a difficult childhood as an orphan beggar boy to become a great poet,play a big role in social reforms and write the Ramayana in Awadhi.

Sen has always taken up subjects that are deemed too risky for theatrical production,portraying the lives of Tulsidas,Kabeer and Swami Vivekananda. “I had nothing to lose. I was a low-profile artist,not many knew me and all I had was great confidence in my artistic abilities. I turned my weaknesses into my strengths and decided to play characters that were larger than life. In order that the audience accept me in a variety of roles,I insisted on less media exposure,” he says. The strategy worked and at home and abroad,the productions turned out to be huge successes.

Sen believes in following the principle of aesthetics in everything,with packaging being an integral part of the process. “For instance,in today’s play,the 52 sequences were in different ragas,a treat for those who appreciate classical music. The play emerged from an international conference on Ramayana and the subsequent books that I read. I was restless and raring to experiment,” he says.

Going solo can take an emotional as well as physical toll. “Each of us is multi-faceted and plays many roles. You just have to strive to be good and get better,” smiles Sen. But he is also planning to get out of that mould and his next play is on the common man. Each one of us,Sen says,has the potential to be a great person. “The only difference is that these great men and women utilise their treasure and values to the maximum and we don’t. When I started out,I had nothing,but I never lost hope and kept working to create a special place for myself,” he signs off.