The pioneer of contemporary Indian theatre,Habib Tanvirs demise has left a deep void in the countrys creative realm,feel playwrights in the city The year is 1975 and at the premises of FTII,for the first time ever in Pune,Habib Tanvirs play Charandas Chor is being staged. Tanvir sits with knitted brows along with a bunch of budding theatre directors,awe writ large on their faces. That theatre workshop at FTII is still fresh in Satish Alekars mind. And yesterday,as Tanvir,the legendary Hindi playwright,left for his heavenly abode,it flooded many with the memories of the stalwart of contemporary Indian theatre. A student at the theatre workshop where Tanvir came to deliver a lecture on theatre and expressions,Satish Alekar reminisces the legends ease at handling the nuances of the medium. Everyone knows he was the one who tapped folk theatre when many in his era were busy catering to urban theatre. But he was also a man to whom theatre came naturally and effortlessly, he adds. Alekar,whose interaction with Tanvir has been more than just occasional, remembers him as a transparent and simple person,who never let his popularity get the better of his modesty. His plays are landmarks on the Indian theatre scene and he himself was a living legend. But when somebody met him,it was his simplicity which was the first thing which struck you, says Alekar. Playwright Makarand Sathe,who has placed the director on a pedestal because of his dedication to folk theatre,says,Tanvir has nurtured almost three generations of artistes from Chhattisgarh. He created this whole new concept of paid repertory. He discovered talents in regions where people would not even bother to look in his times. Tanvir,who always traced the genesis of his interest in folk theatre to his childhood,created a whole new niche for his childhood memories and theatre became a reflection of his life. Now that his life has come to an end,folk theatre suffers a loss whose enormity remains boundless. He left the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London to do theatre in India. This is where his heart lay. And today,when he is no longer there,I am sure not only folk theatre but the entire theatre scene in India will suffer a severe setback, says playwright Mahesh Elkunchwar for who after Vijay Tendulkar the demise of Habib Tanvir puts an endto the most progressive era of theatre . Tanvirs Naya Theatre works almost exclusively with folk actors. However,even his occasional productions with urban actors and for groups other than Naya Theatre,such as,Dushman (Gorkys Enemies) for the NSD repertory or Jisne Lahore Nai Dekhya Wo Jamyai Nai (Asghar Wajahat) for the Sri Ram Centre Repertory - are marked by the style that he developed through his work with folk artistes.
