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By:

Shoma A. Chatterji

21 August 2024 at 10:49:40 am

The Pallbearer’s Tragedy

Three decades after its premiere, Rangakarmee’s Mayyat remains a searing theatrical indictment of caste. Rangakarmee is perhaps the only theatre group that has been producing and performing plays in Hindi in Kolkata for 50 years this year. Founded and headed by the late Usha Ganguly, it is still as active and dynamic in presenting Hindi plays mainly new and sometimes recreating for the new audience, old plays that are timeless in their content and their appeal. The amazing feature of Mayyat...

The Pallbearer’s Tragedy

Three decades after its premiere, Rangakarmee’s Mayyat remains a searing theatrical indictment of caste. Rangakarmee is perhaps the only theatre group that has been producing and performing plays in Hindi in Kolkata for 50 years this year. Founded and headed by the late Usha Ganguly, it is still as active and dynamic in presenting Hindi plays mainly new and sometimes recreating for the new audience, old plays that are timeless in their content and their appeal. The amazing feature of Mayyat is that it was first performed by Usha Ganguly and her troupe way back in 1997 and has already performed around 500 shows spanning 30 years and signifies the cross-generational reach and popularity of the play. We saw a group of absolutely new actors dedicated to Rangakarmee. Their performance defined the strict discipline, the constant workouts and rehearsals to keep mobile and flexible because the very big cast needed to be perfect in body, mind and spirit during each 45-minute performance. What does the word Maiyyat mean? It is said to have its roots in Arabic and literally, it translates as ‘dead body’ or ‘corpse.’ The play is rooted in the deep internalization among the low castes of their exploitation and torture by the Brahmins of their village. The Brahmins are proud in their gait, their body language and even in their pure form of dress with the holy thread of Brahminism proudly on display. The custom of the proud, arrogant and rude Brahmins is to choose at least one among the four untouchables to become the pall-bearer when someone of the upper-caste dies. Instead of feeling sad or insulted, the chosen untouchable feels blessed and proud for being allowed by this strange custom of becoming a fake “Brahmin” if even for one day. Lakku is one such untouchable who lives somewhere near Aurangabad and leads a miserable life of poverty with the burden of a mentally deranged, motherless son he takes care of. The pall is decorated heavily with flowers and instead of looking like a bourse, it is decorated with lots of flowers like a palanquin. Someone obviously among the Brahmins is dead and the other Brahmins draw lots to find out which untouchable will be chosen to offer his shoulder to the bourse. `When Lakku’s name comes up in the shuffling of the paper chips, he is thrilled that at least for one day, he will enjoy the ‘blessing’ of becoming a “Brahmin.” But forced to run through the village on an empty stomach and with a weak body, Lakku collapses and dies before the bourse can reach the crematorium. Now, the question is – who will carry his body and carry it to the cremation ground? The entire performance, with 23 theatre actors, originally scripted, designed and directed by Usha Ganguly, is now performed by a new young cast under the guidance, training and supervision of Amal Saha, Deepesh Rajak, and Anirudh Sarkar. It has been conceived and designed like a musical opera with every Brahmin member of the cast, including the young women, dressed traditionally in pristine white with lots of marigold garlands and a sandalwood tikka adorning their foreheads. Though there are dialogues in the performance, these are either among the leading and decisive members among the Brahmins or scoldings and threats from the Brahmins to the four members from the untouchable tribe, each one representing a different low caste. These four men, alongwith Lakku and his mentally retarded son, keep waiting eagerly in one corner of the proscenium for the results of the lots to be drawn. They hug each other for joy when their names are announced and Lakku specially is thrilled with the responsibility of being pallbearer and becoming a Brahmin for just one night. Whose corpse is being carried in the bourse is not important. What is important is who are the pall bearers? At least, the Brahmins are not. What one carries home after watching a performance-play like Mayyat is the marvellous synchronization of the entire female cast wandering right around the proscenium space singing songs in complete harmony with not a note of error and the Brahmin men discussing, arguing and quarrelling over not how the corpse will be cremated but which low-caste man will become the pallbearer for one night. The bottom-line is caste is a continuous, historical evil. But should it remain so? (The writer is a noted film scholar. Views personal.)

Mahayuti poised for Rajya Sabha sweep

Spotlight turns to Sharad Pawar’s next move

Mumbai: With the dust barely settling on the recent political upheavals in Maharashtra, the state is bracing for yet another high-stakes battle. Seven seats from Maharashtra in the Rajya Sabha are set to fall vacant on April 2, triggering an election that will be decided not by popular vote, but by the ruthless arithmetic of the State Assembly.


For the ruling Mahayuti alliance, the numbers promise a near-clean sweep. For the battered Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), it is a battle for survival. But the overarching narrative centers on one man - Sharad Pawar. As his own term draws to a close, the patriarch faces a defining choice that could shape the future of the opposition in the state.


The seven seats going to polls are currently held by four parties. The Bharatiya Janata Party has two members, Dhairyashil Mohan Patil and Bhagwat Karad, and one seat allotted from its quota to Republican Party of India leader Ramdas Athawale. The Sharad Pawar led NCP SP holds two seats through Pawar and Fauzia Khan. The Congress is represented by Rajani Ashokrao Patil, while the Shiv Sena UBT has Priyanka Chaturvedi.


Maharashtra currently has 19 Rajya Sabha members. Of these, the BJP has seven, the Congress and NCP have three each, the NCP SP and Shiv Sena UBT have two each, the Shiv Sena has one, and the Republican Party of India has one.


Arithmetic of dominance

The electoral math is starkly tilted in favor of the ruling coalition. The Mahayuti—comprising the BJP, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, and the NCP faction now rallying behind Deputy CM Sunetra Pawar—commands a formidable strength of 228 MLAs in the legislative assembly.


In the complex preferential voting system of the Rajya Sabha, this number is a fortress.


To win a single Rajya Sabha seat, a candidate requires roughly 36 to 37 first-preference votes (depending on the exact number of sitting MLAs).


With 228 votes, the Mahayuti can comfortably elect six candidates (approx. 222 votes needed) with votes to spare.


"The BJP and its allies have the luxury of numbers," notes a legislative expert. "Unless there is cross-voting of a magnitude we haven't seen before, six seats are a foregone conclusion for the government."


In stark contrast, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) finds itself cornered. The combined strength of the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP) stands at a mere 46 MLAs.


This number is sufficient to secure only one seat safely.


This solitary seat presents a strategic headache for the alliance. With three parties vying for relevance, deciding who gets to send a candidate to the Upper House will be a test of their fragile unity. Any internal discord or cross-voting could jeopardize even this single win, potentially handing a seventh bonus seat to the Mahayuti if they choose to field an extra candidate to force a contest.


The Pawar Conundrum

The most significant vacancy on April 2 is that of Sharad Pawar himself.


Prior to recent events, the veteran leader had signaled his intention to step back from electoral politics, hinting at making way for a new generation. However, the sudden and tragic death of Ajit Pawar has fundamentally altered the landscape.


The tragedy has left the NCP (SP) vulnerable and in need of an anchor. Political analysts argue that Pawar’s "retirement" is a luxury the opposition can no longer afford.


He is seen as a stabilizing force for the opposition. His presence in the Rajya Sabha ensures the opposition retains a powerful voice in New Delhi.


If Sharad Pawar chooses to contest, it serves as a rallying cry for the dispirited cadres of the MVA.


Also, with Ajit Pawar gone and the other faction firmly with the BJP, Sharad Pawar remains the only glue holding his faction together. Stepping away now could accelerate the disintegration of his party.


“The script has changed,” said a senior NCP (SP) leader on condition of anonymity. “Saheb had planned to retire, but the party is in crisis. We are urging him to file the nomination. We need a general on the field, not in the mentoring room.”


Test for Sunetra Pawar

While the focus is on the opposition, the election is also a subtle test for the new Deputy Chief Minister, Sunetra Pawar. Delivering the votes of the NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) seamlessly to the Mahayuti candidates will be her first major legislative assignment. Following Sunil Tatkare’s defiant rejection of a merger, a disciplined voting performance by her MLAs will validate her control over the party apparatus and silence skeptics who doubt her hold on the legislative unit.

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