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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.)

The Saffron Flag Bearer

Devendra Fadnavis has many achievements to his credit—at 27, he became the youngest mayor of Nagpur and when he took oath as the chief minister of Maharashtra, he was the second youngest person to occupy the top post, only after Sharad Pawar who shouldered the responsibility when he was just 36. Born into a family that was active in the Jan Sangh, Fadnavis joined the ABVP, the student body of the BJP, while studying in Nagpur and became a corporator at 22 years, at an age when most are still completing their education. He continued his education to attain a degree in law and then in business management. His made his debut in the state legislature in 1999 when he won the elections from Nagpur and has represented the constituency since then.


His tenure as the leader of the opposition in Maharashtra was appreciated for his well-studied arguments and a close watch on the government’s policies. As the chief minister, he is credited with introducing several progressive initiatives such as digitisation of villages, the CM fellowship programme which was aimed at bringing in subject expertise into the CM’s office, reservation for orphans and mega infrastructure projects like the Samruddhi Expressway. The top job also came with ample criticism, from party colleagues as well. In 2019, his early morning attempt at forming a government with a break-away faction of the NCP, marred his stature. He had a public fall-out with alliance partner Uddhav Thackeray who accused him of going back on the promise of sharing the chief minister’s position in the government. The relations between the former saffron alliance partners soured enough for the two sides to hurl allegations at each other. In 2022, he formed a government with a faction of the Shiv Sena but had to settle for the position of the deputy chief minister. Over the course of his political career, Fadnavis has also held several top organisational positions within the BJP such as leading the youth wing in Maharashtra as the vice-president, becoming the state president of the party and also being in-charge of the BJP in Goa apart from being a leading face of the party.


Fadnavis’ father Gangadhar was a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council as a representative of the Jan Sangh. His aunt Shobha Fadnavis is also in the legislative council and was a member of the assembly from Saoli in Vidarbha between 1990 and 2004 and also a former minister. His high-profile wife, Amruta, although not in politics, is active in Mumbai’s social circles and runs an NGO. Amruta won appreciation for being vocal about public issues and policies and retaining her bank job.

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