The Beginning…

Janani Baisha,a play he first staged in 2004,has not only won him critical acclaim as a playwright,actor and director but it has also given him satisfaction by bringing the marginalised to the fore. The play,based on a story of a Santhal woman,has actors drawn from the Santhal community,many of whom have had no formal education and are now rated as one of the finest actors at various drama competitions.

Since early days Mukherjee has had an inclination for literature and the performing arts. Although he cannot precisely say how it all started,but he believes it came from the family tradition of love for art and literature.

“My father Panchu Gopal Mukherjee was a writer and a sub-editor on Jugantar. My grandfather Pramatha Nath was a close associate of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay,” he says,insisting that it was in his blood,as it were,that he was drawn to drama,although he had had no formal education and his job never took him even remotely close to the subject.

An economist by education,Mukherjee did his masters in Economics from the University of Calcutta in the 60s. Till 2001 he worked for a bank and then opted out with voluntary retirement. Mukherjee founded a theatre group called Natabith in 1970. He has been actively pursuing his cause since then with more than 40 plays to his credit. The group was on the downslide for some time owing to lack of enthusiasm of other members but he kept the flame alive all by himself.

Mukherjee was deeply impressed by a short story,Maa,by Manab Chakraborty. In fact this play revolutionalised his life.

Maa is a story about a Santhal woman Baisha who takes part in a political rally for pounded rice and jaggery. She fights with men and gets her share for her daughter. Later,members of the Santhal community threaten to excommunicate her,but she runs away from the mob which was threatening to snatch the bundle of pounded rice.

The play needed a number of actors and Mukherjee started looking for them but could not find any. After a painstaking search he heard of a Santhal locality near Nagerbazar Town Hall. The residents had to be convinced to take part in the play.

Slowly and slowly he started penning a few lines and directing the actors. For the first few days the actors showed interest but sometimes they would turn aloof. However,after a lot of persuation he was able to cast the Santhals in the play of a duration of more than two hours.

The play has won laurels in the state and has been recognised by other states as well. It won six awards in Lucknow at a drama competition organised by the Bengali club and Young Men’s Association. The awards included the best actor and the best child actor. Many characters in the troupe of 30 actors are Santhals,including the woman who acted in the lead role of Baisha. Mukherjee himself acted in the play in the role of a politician who organises the rally.

Mukherjee says the play has been staged 15 times in the city,including at Girish Mancha and Sisir Mancha. The response has been overwhelming. Everyone has taken a note of it.

“What has been the most striking feature is that the play is performed by Santhals who never ever took to the stage,” said Mukherjee. He says most of the actors who staged Janani Baisha come from a family where the parents are either employed as domestic help or as sweepers.

Mukherjee now finds a remarkable change among these Santhals. “They now sing Rabindrasangeet with us and have grown more confident. Many of them show an eagerness to learn,” Mukherjee adds.

Mukherjee is keen to rope in the Santhals in his forthcoming ventures as well. To the 64-year-old actor-playwright-director,Janani Baisha is the beginning of empowerment of Santhals and an achievement of those who have been marginalised.