When Habib Tanvir started with the Chattisgarhi Nacha actors , he got a troupe of nacha performers to Delhi and organized their stay. Nacha is a folk dance drama form with lot of satirical element in it. The performers were extremely live, great at improvisations and could turn on and off as they pleased. Habib Tanvir was trained in the proscenium theater though right from the beginning, Agra Bazar in 1954 he did show the inclination towards making theater easier than what must have been the practice at that time and later. The school of drama was a very different kind of style- urban theater with strong emphasis on the spoken word in Hindustani. The plays were also very urban. The folk element was missing- at least the time that I saw their plays. So, these chattisgarhi actors brought a lot of value to Habib Tanvir's theater. Then of course, music , singing , folk and tribal dances were very important part of his theater.
But when you met them and talked to them, the actors were always upset with Habib Saab. Why? Because they thought that they were betrayed by Habib Tanvir when it came to the moneys being shared between the actors and what Habib Tanvir made for himself through the theater. Now, I know this for a fact that the theater on most occasions did not make much money. The actors felt that it did but it seemed not to. There was a grant that the theater received from the government of India but other than that the only source of income remained the performances of its various plays at different venues in the country. Sometimes the money would be hardly commensurate but Habib Tanvir would still accept the offer of doing the show so that the repertory was in circulation. Yet, there is a fairly legitimate grouse that the actors had with him that he was still living in a decent apartment at Shyamla hills while the actors were paid a meagre salary. And thus they remained for their life time.
In one of the conversations I brought this up with Habib saab and he explained that the theater has all kinds of expenses. Pensions are being paid to people who were part of the theater but are now too old to act in the theater. Sometimes the medical care of the actors and the older actors also needs to be paid for. The moneys are limited and some times shows are taken up by the theater even if it was going into a loss and thus there was not much more the theater could do. However, more than all of this, he said if we somehow managed to pay the actors higher, they would disappear for six months. Since, the repertory depended on these actors it could not afford to lose them for such long periods. So, in short, that was how it was. Then also Habib Tanvir himself was able to afford an apartment in Bhopal quite late in his own life. He lived with restricted expenses. Everything in his house was budgeted. He drove a small car- a maruti Zen. So, the actors feeling that he was living in opulence while they received a raw deal was not probably that true though they should have received much more financially as they were some of the best talents that there was to see in Indian theater scene. Maybe, it was the nature of the art of theater and it remains so till date. There is hardly any money in it.
There were conflicts on this issue in the theater. This despite the fact that there was deep affection for each other. Habib Tanvir loved his actors and they respected him but there was always this underlying tension over finances. Naya Theater remained a creative powerhouse driven by Habib Tanvir despite this and kept functioning and producing great plays. I learnt soon enough that this complex relationship between the chattisgarhi actors and Habib Tanvir is not something that I need to meddle with, so, I remained quiet when the actors spoke about him and when sometimes he was upset with his actors.
But when you met them and talked to them, the actors were always upset with Habib Saab. Why? Because they thought that they were betrayed by Habib Tanvir when it came to the moneys being shared between the actors and what Habib Tanvir made for himself through the theater. Now, I know this for a fact that the theater on most occasions did not make much money. The actors felt that it did but it seemed not to. There was a grant that the theater received from the government of India but other than that the only source of income remained the performances of its various plays at different venues in the country. Sometimes the money would be hardly commensurate but Habib Tanvir would still accept the offer of doing the show so that the repertory was in circulation. Yet, there is a fairly legitimate grouse that the actors had with him that he was still living in a decent apartment at Shyamla hills while the actors were paid a meagre salary. And thus they remained for their life time.
In one of the conversations I brought this up with Habib saab and he explained that the theater has all kinds of expenses. Pensions are being paid to people who were part of the theater but are now too old to act in the theater. Sometimes the medical care of the actors and the older actors also needs to be paid for. The moneys are limited and some times shows are taken up by the theater even if it was going into a loss and thus there was not much more the theater could do. However, more than all of this, he said if we somehow managed to pay the actors higher, they would disappear for six months. Since, the repertory depended on these actors it could not afford to lose them for such long periods. So, in short, that was how it was. Then also Habib Tanvir himself was able to afford an apartment in Bhopal quite late in his own life. He lived with restricted expenses. Everything in his house was budgeted. He drove a small car- a maruti Zen. So, the actors feeling that he was living in opulence while they received a raw deal was not probably that true though they should have received much more financially as they were some of the best talents that there was to see in Indian theater scene. Maybe, it was the nature of the art of theater and it remains so till date. There is hardly any money in it.
There were conflicts on this issue in the theater. This despite the fact that there was deep affection for each other. Habib Tanvir loved his actors and they respected him but there was always this underlying tension over finances. Naya Theater remained a creative powerhouse driven by Habib Tanvir despite this and kept functioning and producing great plays. I learnt soon enough that this complex relationship between the chattisgarhi actors and Habib Tanvir is not something that I need to meddle with, so, I remained quiet when the actors spoke about him and when sometimes he was upset with his actors.
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