Theatre and Shaik John Basheer go way back. It was in Class IX when he performed his first play, the applause and appreciation of which continues to be a gift that keeps on giving. That's why today, the Research Scholar from the University of Hyderabad is a well-known name in Telugu theatre. He hasn't just performed in Hyderabad but across the state, the country and the world as well. Carrying with him the same passion he feels for theatre and ensuring that every time he acts or directs, his audience feels the same.
The 36-year-old is a Practitioner of Theatre For Young Audiences (TYA), has won the Nandi Award, founded B Studio and has several other jewels in his crown.
As we count the jewels, the theatre artist, performer and director takes us through his journey — from right when he was in Class IX, standing on the stage facing an audience who was utterly delighted with his performance to now, when he has another play coming up on September 18. There is no doubt about the fact that this audience too will be in awe of the artist. Excerpts from an interesting conversation:
Take us back to the beginning. The moment when you decided that this is the path that you want to walk on.
I started my career when I was in Class IX. I did a show in school and the applause and appreciation I got after my performance was really rewarding. That is when I decided to take up stage drama as my career.
I did not have the exposure at that age to immediately dive into this field. I had done a few plays here and there in my early days and started my own drama club in college and we started attending a lot of competitions. We even got a little popular in our college as well as among colleges.
And when did Telugu Theatre specifically start to capture your imagination? Could you tell the specifics that make Telugu Theatre stand out from other forms of theatre?
Telugu theatre can be broadly divided into three types of theatre forms.
One is folk theatre, padayanataka (musicals) and social dramas. Theatre was just a passion since I didn't know that we could take up stage performance as a full-time career. We just started out with a passion. After graduation, I came to know that there are courses in Performing Arts where you can pursue Arts as a major subject. That is when I moved to Hyderabad and enrolled in Hyderabad University.
Hyderabad is a one-of-a-kind city where all kinds of theatres are happening. All languages and styles of theatre were flourishing in this city. In the beginning, all the plays I watched were only in English and Marathi. At one point, I noticed the number of theatre productions in Telugu was less in Hyderabad. That is when I decided I wanted to pursue my career in Telugu theatre.
What do you think is your breakthrough play and what are the challenges that you faced on its way?
I had this wonderful opportunity to work with slum children. In 2009, we decided to do a production with the children from the Kavadiguda slum. We did a workshop there where we taught these students to act and perform. It was very challenging since these children did not have any basics when it came to theatre and each child had a different issue going on with them. It was difficult to train them.
But all the hard work did reward us. The performance of these slum children received a Nandi Award (awards that recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, theatre and television, and lifetime achievements in Indian cinema) in 2009. That was the breakthrough point of my career. We were recognised by the industry after this production and award. After that, I also received various awards and performed in various parts of the world like South Korea, Sweden, Norway and so on.
Tell us about the experience of setting up B Studio and working with theatre actors. How did you come up with the idea to start a training institute for performing artists?
After graduating with my master's degree, I started to teach theatre acting in schools and colleges as visiting faculty. I realised that if I am going to be working for these institutions I have to stick to their curriculum and I was restricted from going by my own will. I didn't have the opportunity to get creative. So I realised that to have my own curriculum I had to start my own institution where I can also build Telugu theatre and encourage young artists to perform in Telugu. But one issue our team faced was that we did not have goodwill and it was difficult at the beginning for us to make students trust us.
I organised a number of free workshops to encourage people and gain their trust in B Studio. The foremost reason why I started B Studio is to show the country that the Telugu industry also has a place in the theatre industry and is not limited.
What is your upcoming production? What is going to be about?
Currently, I am directing a play named Maha Nirvaanam, written by Marathi playwright Satish Vasant Alekar in 1974. It is about death. The opening night of this play is on September 18, 2022, in Rangbhoomi, Hyderabad and the ticket price will be Rs 300.
The invite for his upcoming play, Maha Nirvaanam | Pic: Shaik John Basheer
What do you think is keeping the theatre industry alive? What about Telugu theatre when compared to the theatre from other languages, for example?
The theatre never dies. Nobody can kill it.
The theatre industry was hit during the pandemic and now people are giving the same importance to theatre as they give to movies and films. People should be ready to pay money for the tickets. Theater directors now are coming up with various styles of performing and new contemporary stories that also involve social issues. So people are also enjoying the theatre nowadays.
What advice would you give to aspiring theatre directors?
The script is everything. The story and how the story is performed is the most important thing when it comes to any kind of story. The story should be contemporary and creative. The creativity and individuality of the director are very important and for anyone aspiring to become a director, it is important to have stories about society and social issues.
