Journalism of Courage
The camaraderie was evident on Thursday evening at the Balshikshan Mandir school in Kothrud. The GRIPS theatre community in the city is quite a close-knit one. Every light moment in the play,Chaan Chote Vaitt Mothe,elicited giggles from tots as well as their parents. The claps and hoots were generous,and almost everyone knew everyone.
It was the opening of the four-day celebrations to mark 25 years of the presence of GRIPS in Pune,and indeed in India. The legendary Berlin-based children and youth theatre,whose name in German dialect means ‘brainy’ or ‘common sense’,landed on the Indian shores in 1986. Due to the active support of Maharashtra Cultural Centre,Theatre Academy,Max Mueller Bhavan and actor,Dr Mohan Agashe,GRIPS has happily chugged across 12 plays and close to 3,000 productions in its 25-year-long journey in India. Although it has travelled to Kolkata,Bengaluru and Delhi,it is the Marathi avatar that has found most resonance among the audiences. Chaan Chote Vaitt Mothe is the first play that GRIPS had showcased in 1986.
Her play,Project Aditi,will take to the stage on October 9. “We tend to underestimate children but they are an excellent audience because they are unbiased and start with a clean slate. Some of the GRIPS characters are played by adults,with moustache on,but the children connect with them within seconds,” says Deshpande.
Dr Agashe also agrees with her that the GRIPS’ “children’s worldview” keeps it going. “The themes could be serious,like communalism or the place of women in society,but it is still fun,” he says,hoping the legacy will now “spark something new”. The concerns and perception of children has shifted,and theatre will have to follow suit. “The basic issues will remain the same,just the form of express will change,” he says.
