The arts are seen to be an eternal and easy target to be brought under coercion with books being banned, films and series being challenged in court, theatre being targeted and visual arts being mutilated if it doesn’t support a particular narrative. In an in-depth conversation on a virtual platform, Met Awards Channel discussed the role of the arts in reflecting on contemporary issues and bringing to the fore, key questions that impact society.
“Last year much of theatre has suffered huge loss, not just because money and patronage has disappeared, venues have shut down. But primarily the very essence of theatre professionals coming together to rehearse, recreate - that in itself has stopped. There has been some compensation via groups coming online and working together but that really has been far and in between because of pandemic issues there has been no mindspace,” Sanjoy K. Roy, Managing Director of Teamwork Arts said.
Moderating the session he spoke to Abhishek Majumdar, Junhi Han, Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry and Saurabh Shukla about the future of theatre and recent bans on creative expression on streaming platforms.
Chandigarh-based theatre artist Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry said, “A lot of us who work for theatres, define our lives through the rehearsal space - reading, responding, connecting, sharing. Nothing seemed, emotionally, creatively and ethically right as the world around us was collapsing. An artist in some way is a witness to his or her time. The kind of work I do is not activist. I’m not a journalist. I’m not the military, I’m not the police.”
She quoted Charles Dickens and said ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.’
They discussed that there is a growing movement to stop artistic expression and intent, also keeping in mind that previously books and paintings were burnt, banned.
We all have a point of view, a cultural sensibility, we sing and dance our way and we have too many different cultural experiences. Where does the sense of being insulted begin and end? How can an artist, performer and practitioner understand the intent behind it amid growing phenomenon of artistic work being sabotaged from expression.
Veteran actor Saurabh Shukla said, “I think we are living in a very confusing time. In India everybody's an artist. We know what to do. We know everything. And this new rise of social media for artists is primarily quite confusing. There was always a code of conduct. You have the freedom of speech, but you have to know your limit. And those limits were not laid down by a Censor Board or anybody. It was there. Everybody knew it. Today, we don’t know where to draw a line. So I think the art is not saying anything these days, anything objectionable. What people are in real life, what they’re saying and projecting is more objectionable.”
He spoke about UNESCO and how we all have a right. A policeman may not know what UNESCO is. They might arrest you, take you to the police station, and stop your production.
“It’s a habit. You have to say it. If I’m not speaking, then I’ll die. Everybody is telling you, just shut up. It’s my voice. Art for me besides my profession is also my voice. I’m not romantically saying it. When I tell stories, then I reflect myself. I think it’s a pretty bad thing for a human being if they can’t communicate,” he said.
Attacks on art and theatre have been happening for years. Should artists continue to practice but steer away from the politics of the time?
Shukla said, “I’m not a political person. I’m politically quite illiterate. You can never be free from the politics of the land, whether you participate in it or not. So even if I don’t practice it consciously, in my work, what I feel about it, that politics reflects. Because I am witnessing that. Artists should refrain from politics? Refrain? I think it's a wrong word. You can have your point of view, but that is not a finality. You can point towards what’s going on. They say art is a mirror of society. The mirror should not make you more beautiful than you are, nor it should distort you.”
