Tiladi, Ek Bisree Yad: a Garhwali Drama Theatre, Stage Play about People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of Tihri King

(Review of a Garhwali Drama/Stage Play “Tiladi Ek Bisree Yad’ by Playwright Pramod Rawat (2007) about Political theatre, People’s Movement, People’s Martyr against Oppression of Tihri King)

 

Notes on Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre, People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Asian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; South Asian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; SAARC Countries Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King;  Indian Subcontinent   Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Indian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; North Indian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Himalayan  Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Mid Himalayan Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Uttarakhandi  Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Kumauni Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Garhwali Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King

                                                      Bhishma Kukreti

       Folk theatre or folk dramas had been is good medium for awareness of human rights, educating people about social causes, social changes requirements.  There are many folklores, folk songs are for social awareness and also tell the tale of people’s movement and people sacrifice for their human rights. In many countries, political theaters or stage plays were used for promoting underground activities of revolutionists and the political theater activists used old historical events of people’s movements, people’s resistance against oppression for public awareness. In many countries, Marxist theater personalities had been famous for using stage plays or dramas for public awareness about principles of Carl Marx. Bertolt Brecht used a sophisticated way for Marxist movement awareness by new tactic of using aesthetic-epic Theater. The Indian and African playwrights were greatly influenced by the tactics of Bertolt Brecht for political dramas or theatres. Peter Weiss wrote plays based on historical documents. Arthur Miller wrote two plays probing the human behavior as political and social animals. Feminist authors took help of theatre medium for raising the feminist’s issues as Elfriede Jelinek and Caryl Churchill. Judith Malina and her husband her husband Julian Beck (The Brig drama); Jack Gelber (play and film – The Connection) ; Antonia Ataud (famous for absurd dramas); many regional theatre/drama groups and playwrights or street theatre personalities as Jackob Apple of America, Bhupnesh Kumar of Garhwal and Habeeb Tabveer in Indian scenes; David Hare (Stuff Happens-political drama) ; David Edgar; Mark Ravenhill ; Howard Brenton ; Dario Fo; Jean Janet ; Jarzy Grotowsky; Harold Pinter; Erwin Piscator etc are a few famous International who took theatre for political and social awareness.

                Pramod Rawat a famous Garhwali drama, theatre activist who wrote a Drama/theatre about raising the issue on non development of Ravain tribal region of Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand. Theatre activist and playwright took the subject of ‘Tiladi Kand’ for political and social awareness about non-development in the region.

 ‘Tiladi Kand’  is equally cruel and inhuman acts of Tihri Riyasat against its subject as Jaliyan wala bag event by cruel British rule. When king Sudarshan took the regime of Tihri Riyasat as diplomatic gift from British he was a poor person. King Sudarshan had to run a small shop for his family living. Learning from British government from the administration in British Garhwal (Pauri-Chamoli Garhwal and Kumaun), kings of Tihri Riyasat paid attention on selling forest produces as export business for Tihri Riyasat. The kings of Tihri Riyasat nationalize the village forests and there was no forest land available for the villagers. Garhwalis were dependent on forests and forest produce for their livings for thousands of years. Villagers did not know how human beings could survive without forests. The people were deprived from grass, wood and other forest produce by the administration of Tihri Riyasat. On 20^th May 1930, People’s representatives of Ravain went to Narendra Nagar to plead their pleas about forest rights of villagers to the British Governor. The Tihri administration threw the people’s representatives into cold water pond.  When people of Ravain came to know the cruel behavior of Tihri Riyasat they revolted against Tihri rule and came in masses to Tiladi Plato at the bank of Yamuna river for mass protest on 30^th May 1930. Chakrdhar Juyal the prime minister of Tihri cruelly took order to fire on people .197 men were killed by firing and 197 people were taken to custody. Other 294 people were taken from their houses by Tihri administration. 9 people were killed in jail.

     Tiladi Kand is greatest sacrifice by Garhwali people against oppression and is best example of political movement for human rights. Still, there is no development in the region. Pramod Rawat took the subject of Tiladi Kand for social awareness in the political drama ‘Tiladi- ek Bisree Yad’ as still; there are tens of folk songs in Ravain region sung by people against Tihri Riyasat.

              Nav Rang Manch , Nauganv, Uttarkashi presented the  ‘Tiladi- ek Bisree Yad’ a Garhwali Drama, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of Tihri King  written by playwright Pramod Rawat. The director Tilak Tamola and playwright Pramod Rawat used folk songs and folk dances for making the Garhwali Drama, Theatres, and Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, and People’s Martyr, against Oppression of Tihri King vibrant and meaningful. Nirmala Aswal was music director of the  ‘Tiladi- ek Bisree Yad’ a Garhwali Drama, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance and  People’s Martyr, against Oppression of Tihri King on the occasion of Uttarakhand Natya Mahotsav , Dehradun in 2007 .

                 Asian theatre literature lovers will always remember Pramod Rawat as they remember the works of Bertolt Brecht; Elfriede Jelinek and Caryl Churchill. Judith Malina and her husband her husband Julian Beck (The Brig drama); Jack Gelber (play and film – The Connection) ; Antonia Ataud (famous for absurd dramas); many regional theatre/drama groups and playwrights or street theatre personalities as Jackob Apple of America, Bhupnesh Kumar of Garhwal and Habeeb Tabveer in Indian scenes; David Hare (Stuff Happens-political drama) ; David Edgar; Mark Ravenhill ; Howard Brenton ; Dario Fo; Jean Janet ; Jarzy Grotowsky; Harold Pinter; Erwin Piscator etc for taking theatre as medium for raising political and social issues.        

Reference:

1-Dr Anil Dabral, Garhwali Gady Parampara (Garhwali Dramas from beginning till 1990)

2-Abodh Bandhu Bahuguna, Gad Myateki Ganga (Garhwali dramas from beginning till 1975)

3-Dr Sudharani, Garhwal ka  Rangmanch (Garhwali Dramas from beginning till 1985)

4-Drama special issue of Chitthi Patri magazine (Garhwali Dramas and plays staged in Delhi, Karachi, Mumbai, Dehradun and other places)

5- Dr Hari Datt Bhatt Shailesh, Garhwali Natak evam Rangmanch: Ek Vihngam Avlokan (Garhwali Drams and theatres from beginning till 1985)

6-Dr Bhakt Darshan: Barrister Mukandi Lal Srmriti Granth (Garhwali dramatists or theatres playwrights till 1985

7-Dr Nand Kishor Dhoundiyal, Garhwal ki Divangat Vibhutiyan (pp108-116, about contribution of Bhagwati Prasad Panthri for developing Garhwali drama)

8- Souvenirs of Akhil Garhwal Sabha, Dehradun, Uttarakhand Naty samaroh (2005 and 2007)

 9- Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_theatre

10- Patterson, Michael, Strategy of Political Theatre, 2003

Copyright@ Bhishma Kukreti, 20/5/2012

Notes on Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre, People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Asian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; South Asian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; SAARC Countries Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King;  Indian Subcontinent   Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Indian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; North Indian Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Himalayan  Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Mid Himalayan Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Uttarakhandi  Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Kumauni Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King; Garhwali Dramas, Theatres, Stage Plays about Political theatre People’s Movement, People’s Resistance, People’s Martyr, against Oppression of King to be continued….