A Theatrical Journey...or...A Journey in Theatre!!!

Traveling around the street corners of Delhi at the outbreak of monsoon in the year 1983, i was desperately in search of a job. By then I had passed out from the Drama School, and got married soon. It was my responsibility to take care of my family. But in a profession like Theatre, who is going to give me a job? I was desperate enough and was completely frustrated. Though I was a good student and passed out with a highest score in my specialised subject, it was taugh for me at that time to bag a job in Theatre in a cosmopolitan city like Delhi which had no room for a budding theatre practicing who had come from a rural background. every day, I used to sit near by the Fruit corner, adjacent to the Drama School campus and looked at people, their behaviour and body language with a hope that somebody may turn up to me and offer me some work. Drama School repertory did not accept me because of linguistic barriers. I am talking of the day when Naseeruddin Shah was just getting a leap in his career; Om Puri and Anupam Kher were struggling for their lively hood in Bombay. Somebody advised me to go to Bombay, meet them and look for a career in films, but I forced myself at the last moment not to get into films as I was not convinced with the life style of that medium. Moreover, it was always Theatre that gave me a kick than films and above all the cultural difference is a huge gap which I failed to bridge with.

My days went on sitting near that fruit stall or hanging around the tea shop near by Mandi house area. I was left with no job other than introspecting and waiting for a helping hand who could come and give a shape to my career which was almost at docks. The burden of my family was mounting as ever and forced me to borrow money from friends. Adding on to the woes was my smoking habit for which I had to borrow cigarettes from the betel shops.

Standing nearby a pan shop at Sankar Market, I was smoking and staring at the wide open sky with blank eyes until they got stuck with an old torn hand written advertisement depicting " Actors Required for Delhi Art Theatre". And the next thing I did was to move into the repertory, located there only, with a hope of getting the job. My eyes caught up with an old Lady with closed eyes, very calm and composed, sitting alone in an old wooden chair, perhaps waiting for her actors to come. Seconds of look on her made me scared. don't know for what reason, I did not have the audacity to go near her and enquire about the job. At the same time, I had no option of coming back without meeting her too. So, I waited for her out side with a hope that my destiny might click there. Eventually, actors started coming in and the rehearsal started. They were rehearsing Faiz Ahemad Faiz's "Dard Ayega Dabe Paon..." in Punjabi. Sometime later I discovered that She was the famous Shila Bhatia, the age old lady of Punjabi Theatre and the pioneer of Indian Opera.

She called me as soon as the rehearsal was over. It was almost late night and I have been waiting for about more than four hours. She gazed at my face, smiled and asked me, "You are looking tired. How long have you been waiting?" "For about four hours" I answered. She stared at me and said "You must have got bored. But look I have been sitting in this chair, waiting for my actors to come for the past twenty six years! I have never seen the sun set for such a long period. So don't be disheartened. Wait until you achieve your goal... You are selected...". To my utter astonishment, she did not even interview me. Later, I got to know that she had been observing me from the rehearsal hall for the past four hours.

There started my journey of Theatre. I acted, Designed and Directed Plays for her repertory. I learnt Punjabi from her. In her production "Tere Mere Lekh" (Punjabi adaptation of Lorca's 'Blood Wedding' ) I perform the roll of a woodcutter and spoke three dialogue in Punjabi. I also designed sets and lights for this mile stone production. I became popular among the young and aspirant designers of Delhi Theatre.That was my first professional venture. In her Punjabi Opera version of Dard Ayega Dabe Paon..., Omer Khayyam, Jeevan Raag, and in Mansarover ( short story collection of Munsi Premchand ), Mitro Marjanni, I explored myself at length as an actor, Designer and directed Haya-Vadan and Rashoman for her repertory. I discovered the warmth of a new language (Punjabi) and its culture. So many Punjabi actors including the famous punjabi singer Ms. Madan bala Sindhu ( Maddi Ji as we call her ), Abhay and Kiran Bhargav, Hali Vatts ( Shila ji's husband ) became my friends. My horizon expanded. Shila Ji could not pronounce my name properly; instead she would call me "Satti"...

During the course of my professional journey, I had to leave for Bharat Bhavan, Bhopal, again came back to NSD after six years, spent time on travelling, exploring myself and teaching Theatre, but my relationship and work with her continued till the Delhi Art Theatre got closed in 1997. The oldest repertory of Delhi came to an end due to her bad health. We could hardly meet again.

I got to know about her illness and was planning to meet her. However, she passed away in between.

Salute to the Great Lady of Indian Theatre who made me what I am today.

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