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From glory days to gloominess

With the change of time and taste Jatra does not attract city dwellers anymore

Durdana Ghias
"Princess! If you leave me that's alright, but don't expect me to forget you," cried the visibly upset prince as the glittering princess flounced off the scene amid rippling tunes of cornet and clarinet.
This type of typical Jatra scenes are now rarely seen as staging of Jatrapala has gradually declined in the city due to lots of problems gripping the traditional theatre art and changes in people's taste.
There was a time when Jatra was a regular seasonal festival in Dhaka. Artistes wearing dazzling outfits and glittery jewellery would mesmerise the people during winter and the Durga Puja festival.
Shows were arranged regularly in Badda, Kamalapur, Katasur, Kamrangirchar, Sutrapur, Kalabagan playground, and the open spaces around Manik Mia Avenue and Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.
"Even in 1970s there were at least two Jatra shows in the new part of Dhaka every winter. Jatra was entertainment to a big part of the city dwellers. To me it was like a festival,” said Aziz, a regular Jatra viewer of that time.
The attraction of Jatra decreased in late 80s when television became a popular medium of entertainment. It became difficult to manage a few hours to watch Jatra when one can easily watch television at home.
With the change in people's taste Jatra groups found it hard to survive.
Some groups introduced indecent dances to attract cheap audience that damaged the traditional theatre to a great extent.
According to Jatra artistes and owners, one of the main reasons of declining ire nd of this art 16 the occasional restrictions imposed by successive governments that made it difficult to stage a show.
During the rule of BNP-Jamaat alliance it became difficult to take permission from the administration for staging a show, they said.
Often Jatra groups had to incur losses when they missed programme schedule for delay in getting permission.
In metropolitan cities permission is given by the police commissioner following clearance from the deputy police commissioner of the concerned area. In district level permission is granted by the deputy commissioner following clearance from the police super (SP).
"It is a long and complicated process. We have to secure permission after going through many tables," said Md Alamgir Hossain, proprietor,
Bishweshwari Natya Sangstha, a Jatra group of Dhaka.
To start a Jatra group a proprietor has to invest around four to five lakh taka.
"During Jatra season (starting from Durga Puja for the next six months) we have to sign contract with around 50 artistes. Each artiste usually lakes I k 8,000. We have to arrange their food and accommodation,” Alamgir said.
"If we don't get the permission for a show we face financial loss. We have to pay the artistes because the contracts are already done,” he added.
Despite being a popular traditional form of theatre, Jatra remains neglected.
“There is no permanent stage for Jatra in the country. We are never invited for trips abroad,” Alamgir said, adding that the governments have never come forward to help the Jatra people financially.
Swapan Pandey, proprietor, Choitali Opera, Magura, said it takes a lot of money for the groups outside Dhaka to come and stage shows in the capital.
Besides collection of artistes, they have to spend at least Tk 15,000 a day on costume, makeup, music, refreshment, conveyance and rehearsal.
He said around 7/8 years ago they used to stage at least 9/10 nine shows in Dhaka every year. Later some unprofessional groups started arranging indecent dances and offering lower rates for viewers as their cost was lower that that of the professional groups. This trend gradually led to a decline in the professional group's trips to Dhaka.
“Now we stage around 3 shows in a year,” he said.
Milon Kanti Dey, secretary general, Jatrashilpo Unnayan Parishad, the only organisation representing Jatra artistes in the country, said at present they do not face that much problem in getting permission for a show.
He said the caretaker government's attitude towards Jatra is favourable but still a strong government policy is needed to save this traditional theatre.
"There are around 20,300 Jatra artistes in the country and five lakh more are dependent on this profession indirectly. In Dhaka there are around 1,200 artistes in 52 groups and 9,600 people are dependent. Many of them are unable to maintain their families," Milon said.
A series of government circulars (from November 1, 1991 to January 31, 2005) imposing temporary ban on Jatra for a certain period hampered staging of shows for 1,014 days, causing a financial loss of around Tk 33.20 crore for the groups during the period, said sources at the
Parishad.
During the rule of Awami league there was no ban on Jatra but there were administrative tangles.
“Due to a circular in December 2007 our problem of getting permission has resolved to some extent as now we need only the SP's clearance," Milon said adding that Jatra is still regulated by the Bengal Places of Public Amusement Act 1933 which has been withdrawn for theatre.
About the indecent dances he said that a taskforce, comprising cultural personalities and activists, should be formed under Shilpakala Academy in each district to monitor Jatra shows to stop this practice.
"As punishment the licence of that certain Jatra group can be postponed for the time being," he said.
Tapash Sarkar, secretary general, Lokonatya Goshthi, said involving educated persons is vital for Jatra's survival.
“In West Bengal people are more interested to watch Jatra than watching cinema and drama. Then why won't it be possible here?” he added.
Abdur Rahim, another Jatra artiste and a lawyer by profession said that there is a common perception that Jatra is performed by lowly people.
"We have to change that view,” he said, adding that Jatra and its artistes must get proper recognition and respect.
Golam Sarwar, deputy director, Shilpakala Academy, said, “We have a plan for making a permanent stage for Jatra. But right now we can't say when it would be possible, because we need money and space.'
About keeping Jatra artistes out of trips abroad, he said foreign countries prefer dance troupes, musicians, magiciansand singing groups to drama because those can be enjoyed by all beyond language barrier.
Besides, sending a drama or Jatra group abroad is much more expensive than a dance troupe as more people are needed to stage a drama.
"Most Jatra artistes are very naive and dedicated but they are the victims of a few non-artistes blackening the image of the profession." he said.
"There is a dearth of talent and novelty as many of our good palakars (scriptwriters) have left for India. New faces are not coming," he said.
About the government policy on Jatra, Dr Zakir Hossain, deputy secretary of the cultural affairs ministry, said, "We have received a lener from the Jatra people in this respect. We will start the process of forming the policy soon."