Worker’s Act

At director Atul Pethe’s residence,a black and white poster of the play Satyashodak sits next to the book shelf. The artwork on the poster is simple,capturing a time in the past. “Satyashodak is a contemporary,historical play,” says Pethe. “It is not just about the life of Jyotiba and Savitribai Phule,but also the relevance of what Jyotiba thought then,linked to the present day.” The stage performance uses Jalsa – a folk theatre form intertwined with lavani and shahir powda.

The play,written by G P Deshpande,is being revisited after a gap of 17 years. “In Prof. GP Deshpande’s script,I found a reinterpretation of Jyotiba’s thoughts in the modern context,” says Pethe. In a lot of ways,Pethe’s version of the play is a befitting narrative on Jyotiba’s teaching. More than seventy percent of the cast is comprised of municipal sewage and sanitary workers. While making the documentary ‘The Garbage Trap’,Pethe had realised that there was a lot of untapped talent in them. “I had the opportunity to watch the life of sewage and sanitary workers from close quarters. I bonded with these workers. I believe they have amazing talent in performing arts”.

The play was the result of a six month long workshop that Pethe had taken up with the workers. “The workshop was a free-wheeling,open one. We had first started with helping them come out of their physical problems through exercise and medical help. This was followed by long sessions where we shared experiences,learnt how to tell a story,read an artwork like a painting,sang a song. Slowly,we started work on the play,and now it has been performed in several places in the state.”

The 50th performance of the show will take place in Solapur. In Pune,the play will be shown on May 17 at Bharat Natya Mandir. For Mukta Manohar,general secretary,Pune Municipal Corporation,Kamgar Union,this was also a way of educating the workers. “The sewage workers have a lot of problems. Caste differences are very high here and political inclinations damage worker unity. Jyotiba Phule’s life story told through the play has made an impact on them.”

(The play Satyashodak will be screened at Bharat Natya Mandir on May 17 from 9.30 pm)