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Journalism of Courage
History isn’t a mere jotting down of events. To make meaning of it, the sequence of events needs to be viewed in accordance with the socio-political factors prevalent at the time, the cause and its effect analysed. This basic principle guides the narrative of Makarand Sathe’s Natkachya Tees Ratri: Ek Samajik Rajkiya Itihas, a book that maps the history of Marathi Theatre over 150 years. The English translation of this work, spread over three volumes and roughly 1,300 pages, titled Thirty Nights of Marathi Theatre: A Socio-political History (Oxford Press, Rs 4,995), was released at the Gateway Literature Festival in Mumbai last month.
The narrative uses two characters — a clown and a playwright — to tell the history of Marathi theatre from the early 1840s. Setting it against an Arabian Nights-like backdrop, Sathe unfolds the history as a dialogue between them, albeit not in chronological order. The clown, a metaphor for a court jester who is knowledgeable and the only one with the liberty to speak against the king, takes on the role of the playwright’s guide. Over 30 nights, he narrates the history of Marathi theatre. The form, says Sathe, allowed him to bring in multiple voices, thus creating space for debate. “But more importantly, it ensures that the work not only appeals to the intellectuals but also reaches out to the masses,” he says.
The author, an architect and a noted Marathi playwright, dedicated nearly two years to Thirty Nights… A project backed by India Foundation for the Arts, he released the original in Marathi in 2011, which was then translated into English by Shanta Gokhale.
To piece together the history of theatre after Mahatma Phule until Independence was especially a challenge because of the lack of documentation. “The first play on women’s issues dates back to the 1870s, but the movement wasn’t documented till the 1930s or ’40s,” he says.
Sathe had to, thus, leaf through articles from journals and newspapers from all periods, including the oldest ones such as Dnyanprakash, Induprakash and Balgangadhar Tilak’s Kesari. He then established a relationship between the information he found and the socio-political history of the state, emphasising the relevance of the art form during its time. Sometimes, the brittle, yellow pages containing the nearly-lost history would be so fragile that he wouldn’t dare to lift them to photocopy — he would instead copy the text by hand.
Sathe’s study has explored significant strands of theatre that have largely been uncharted by others. The Satyashodhaki Jalse and the Ambedkari Jalse are forms that emerged as a vent to the subaltern’s voice. Based on Phule’s and Dr BR Ambedkar’s thoughts respectively, these, says Sathe, are also where Dalit theatre of protest has its roots.
Censorship remains a running theme throughout the work. Currently a subject that is heavily debated following the controversies around All India Bakchod’s “roast” and the Central Board of Film Certification’s (CBFC) many faux pas, theatre has constantly battled censorship too. “The first Marathi play to be staged was in the durbar of a local Brahmin king called Patwardhan. A Brahmin from that durbar attempted to stop the play because he felt that theatre is for people from lower castes,”says Sathe. Controversies such as these existed early too. He cites the example of the first feminist play, Manorama, staged in 1876. “It witnessed huge protests for the language used although it was derived from real life.”
However, his larger concern is the Constitutional censorship in the country “that has curtailed the freedom of expression” of several thespians, including Vijay Tendulkar. “Constitutional censorship was introduced by the British for it was in their interest to suppress the voice of dissent. However, the 1876 law is still followed, albeit with few amendments. As a result, a political play cannot name a party or a politician,” he says, “And that is where, traditionally, the clown steps in. He shows the playwright how rules can be broken.”
