After a hiatus of five years, Katha was seen once again at its best, providing theatre-goers in Karachi a much-needed opportunity to be entertained by quality theatre.
Speaking to Katha's moving force, director-writer Shahid Shafat who initiated the theatre group in 1992, Images on Sunday learned how it came about that the theatre group found itself re-emerging after such a long gap, and Shafat's plans for the future.
Explaining Katha's revival Shafat said, “People had been after us to restart, but because of financial constraints we had been avoiding it. Then Rotary Club came along asking us to do a play for them, which of course made it a lot easier for us as it is difficult to finance theatre. It turned out to be a very comfortable experience — they trusted us and gave us a free hand. Perhaps our only issue was that the tickets were expensive, and we felt that by reducing the price we could have gotten a greater audience turnout. But the club wanted to do it as a fundraiser, so they couldn't compromise on the ticket price.”
Commenting on the general revival of theatre Shafat confessed, “While I was thrilled to see that there was another play being performed simultaneously in Karachi when we put up ours, it made me nervous as well as that meant that the limited theatre-going audience would be divided. But I must say it's a healthy sign that the city can sustain two plays at a time.”
A two-actor play, the success of which depended wholly on its relevant script and the acting abilities of its limited cast, Mein Adakara Banoon Gi based on Educating Rita by Willy Russell received rave reviews because it excelled on both counts. Throwing light on the development of the script, Shafat said, “I had been planning this play for the last three years and had the script changed numerous times as I wanted it to be very localised, but all the writers I tried couldn't grasp that somehow. Finally, Baber Jamal gave the play the local flavour I wanted — but even then it went through four drafts.”
Shafat has come a long way from when he first became interested in theatre during his university days. He recalls that thanks to his friends — Aslam Azhar and Mohsin — he wound up doing a lot of backstage work for Dastak, a theatre group patronised by them. He even acted in Mansoor Saeed's presentation of Galileo, and laughed that he was “very bad at it.”
Over the years, having done direction and scriptwriting for both television and theatre, Shafat says that while he enjoys writing for theatre, he prefers directing for television in spite of all its faults. “Writing is very difficult and it's been a while since I wrote my last script, Balcony, which was later published in An Anthology of International Plays for Young Audiences by an American university.
“As for direction, I find that the sophistication of the two mediums is different. Theatre is more sophisticated with a cool environment; and even with limited means it is possible to have an infrastructure that is decent.
“On the other hand, television is a more demanding medium, and its infrastructure is bad to boot. It's very mechanical; actors who are not ready with their lines perform in heat, sweating away. Acting is a more fulfilling profession for theatre actors, who also tend to be less focused on making money and more focused on their characters as they know they will get immediate appreciation or criticism. Television, in comparison, is a passive medium.”
Although Shafat would like to get back to writing scripts, he is bitter about the local media generally being indifferent to what is being written, and that other than one magazine, none had bothered to cover his last play. “Good or bad, at least see it and form an opinion,” he urged. “It is very pseudo, but mostly only foreign writers are encouraged by our media.”
Shafat does not feel that theatre is a very effective medium of change, but does think that it plays an important role in helping the minds of the audience to grow and develop, and hence assists change. “Theatre doesn't provoke people to revolt or protest — nor do I feel it should — but it does provide them hope and can subtly convey messages through wholesome entertainment. I feel street theatre should also be revived in a big way as it is a very effective tool for change.”
As for television, Shafat feels that it is important that channels be run by people with vision if there is to be any change. “Many adults refuse to watch TV with their families these days due to the kind of content shown. Channels should cater to children and the youth, and viewers' opinions should be considered when designing programmes.”
The ultimate dream of most showbiz people is to make a film, and Shafat is no different. However, he has no illusions of grandeur and says quite matter-of-factly, “I need time, though, and I feel it is too early for people to trust me as a film director.”
Meanwhile, Shafat is already working on a play titled Art, adapted with a twist by Hasan Zaidi. What's more, immediately after Mein Adakara Banoon Gi was staged by Katha, Goethe-Institut approached the group to perform a serious play from German literature, which would be done for The Citizens' Foundation. So, with offers steadily trickling in, it seems Katha is here to stay this time round.
