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| Kathmandu, Tuesday February 11, 2003 Magh 28, 2059. |
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Agni’s
women in Sama’s theatre
By SANGITA
RAYAMAJHI
Agniko Katha end-ed on
the edge of possibility as the female character Purnima stepped over the threshold of the
monastery to journey towards a future that was yet to be made and named. Still haunted by
the myth of the female body and the horrors of the present crisis, she leaves behind all
that had meant so much to her, thus postponing her Nirvana for Bodhisattva—to serve
those who needed her. Once again Abhi Subedi has brought women to the fore as in his
previous play Dreams of Peach Blossoms. Their selfhood, their confidence, their power for
life, their capacity to serve, and their sensitivity to the problem of the society brings
again with revitalized energy the responsiveness of the playwright towards the status of
women.
On Thursday, February
06, 2003 we all gathered around the entrance to Sama’s Theatre. The atmosphere was
one of excitement and anticipation. Sama Theatre was to open to the public for the first
time with Abhi Subedi’s play, Agniko Katha. The story is loosely based on or rather
inspired by the memories of damage caused by fire at the Tyangboche Monastery in 1989,
together with memories of other fires caused at other times. The play opens in a monastery
but the turbulence in the mind of the monks is evident from he very first scene, as Poet
Bhikchhu says:
This is but an
enactment of a play/ But here somewhere inside/ Something has occurred
In the mind or the
Gumba I do not know/ The wind blows through,/ The sky too is the same/ Inside, somewhere,
something has happened/ In the Gumba today the drama of the sky is about to unfold/ The
red burning horizon/ Could be of the mind, or of the Gumba/
Today, somewhere inside
me I get a feel of a call of something/ To forewarn everyone
I have come without the
Rimpoche’s message/ But carrying in mind the message of the Buddha. (All translations
mine).
These words which tell
us about the mindset of the monks is a premonition of a crisis that is to take place in
the monastery. The Library is burnt down. Gyan the main monk sets out in his quest for
knowledge, he goes out to seek answers to the questions that haunt him. While Purnima
stays back. But she too has questions that she would like to get answers to. When the fire
razed the library to the ground the pain of the charred books gave way to other pains that
were suppressed for so long. The pain was not the pain of having to live the life of a
nun, but the pain of a woman experiencing her loneliness, her isolation from the belief
that even Lord Buddha would forsake her once she leaves the monastery. As one nun says,
"Just see how it is. Lord Buddha is everywhere, but once we leave the monastery, it
becomes difficult even for him to protect us. That is why the nuns cannot leave. If they
leave even the gods will forsake them. I am quite surprised. If the monks leave the
monastery Buddha will protect them but if we do the same he will not be able to protect
us." And Purnima’s reply to this is still more fraught with pain, "God
looks over everybody equally. But one thing what you’ve said is quite correct. When
the monks leave the monastery everybody thinks well of them, but if we leave everybody
thinks we are immoral, we are sinners." Thus the fire in the library allows these
nuns to give vent to their pent up emotions that even in birth God has become impartial to
them. According to the Buddhist philosophy women are born as women because in the previous
life they had committed some unacceptable karma. And the voice of the singing nun rings
through the stage, "Even a nun is a woman".
Perhaps after seeing
the play many would not agree with me that I have once again chosen to talk about Purnima
or about the singer nun or the other nuns. But that is precisely the point. The main nun
Purnima in an answer to the main monk Gyan’s remark that a monk too has his body
says— yes, that’s what I mean. Woman’s body is not a weakness, it is a
power where the meanings of spirituality can be understood.
But in the monastery
the role of the monks and the nuns has to be the same in their search for spirituality.
Monk Gyan played by Subhas Thapa goes in search of knowledge and peace. In this quest he
reaches the climax of his journey when he makes a last leap to perfection to Kailash ; he
has to remain a monk. The Shaman played by Saugat Malla with all the accurate histriotics
of a jhankri does the same, and he too gets his answer, "I needed to be a Shaman. I
became a Shaman. I got this answer." The playwright thus brings the male and female
together in the search for peace. The singing nun played by Sarita Giri gets her answer
too, "I got my answer, whether I remain in the Gumba or outside I will live alongside
my song." This play puts that message very strongly. It rejects segregation and
separation. Why segregate in such great matters as spiritual quest? So Purnima played by
the senior theatre artist Nisha Sharma Pokharel develops a strength, a power within her
which enables her to walk out of the monastery with a mission in hand to begin working
among the afflicted, the wounded and children whose parents are killed in war. Purnima has
heard the pain everywhere and as she hands over the candle by chance to a girl named
Pallabi Sharma Gupto standing in the audience the play ends with the thought of her
mission that she vows to fulfil. The handing over of the candle signifies the symbolic
sharing of the mission among women of all religions.
The playwright by
putting the emphasis on this woman’s mission has created a problem within a system
where women’s voice is not given prominence if not actually muted. But in the play
the dramatic tension is the subject. How does the play do it? This play puts women’s
aspirations for great works, meaning for their life and existence into powerful words. But
the treatment that two persons have given to it makes it very effective—Sunil
Pokharel, the director’s understanding of the theatre of words, which are too
important to ignore, and the acting of the powerful seasoned woman artist Nisha. That
aspect of women and their mission in life which is and can be similar to that of any male
comes out well. The other women artists Basanti Maharjan and Aruna Karki charged each of
their expressions with the feelings natural to women whose role they enacted. The poet
monk played by Suresh Chand, the village monk played by Rajan Khatiwada, and the Rimpoche
played by young artist Nishansh Pokharel come out in the entire play very effectively.
Women have a texture
here. They are in the monastery. A singing woman brings the dreams of the outer free world
into her faith system. Her song blends so well with the faith system . She is supported by
the young dreamer, the seeker, monk Gyan. In the traditional system of dance mani-rimdu,
and singing and prayer the singing of the nun played by Sarita Giri, brings out a
woman’s sense of great spirituality and free imagination. The other women, played by
the same girls in different roles cover from the domains of faith to that of the rural
free movement and devotion.
Women’s scale,
canvas if you prefer to call it so, is wider than those of the monks. The movement, the
physical and spiritual dynamism is very important in which women’s journey becomes
very pronounced culminating in the departure of Purnima.
The smaller size of the
stage space, not enough chairs to sit and a packed audience on that particular day
probably are some problems. Due to these reasons, to some people the play must have seemed
a little longer, but in fact it has the perfect balance, length and dramatic scenic turns.
The important point is the mood that one play can create and touch our deeply wounded
thoughts caused by the violent turns of events in this country. If a play group invites
and shows a play like Agniko Katha as if out of blue and gives people a chance to search
for language within themselves that is a great cultural event. In a society where theatre
or music has not been given any role of importance, there will be no means to salvage the
afflicted minds. People who came to see the play did agree that it had given them a moment
for meditation on peace. As the English translation of the play is underway, it will be
easier for those who do not have access to Nepali to better understand the words because
this play puts stress on giving words the quality of theatre.
When the nun, Purnima
leaves the stage, she was asserting the power of a woman. This first journey of a woman
inside Sama Theatre today to search and prove the meaning of a woman’s existence and
her power heralds new times for women.
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