Bollywood steals a march over century-old theatre

CUTTACK: Bollywood and television have eaten into most art forms, weaning away audiences from a diet of traditional rural entertainment to glossy
showbiz.

Take for instance Orissa's century-old folk theatre form, Pala, which is fading from public memory. This vibrant art form which would thrive in the state's culture city Cuttack and its nearby areas, is losing its popularity.

The uniqueness of the form lies in its classic contribution for a harmonious existence of Hindus and Muslims during the Moghul era. Pala troupes worshipped Satyapir, god Satyanarayan of the Hindus and Pir of the Muslims. The Satyapir cult is believed to have evolved for strengthening Hindu-Muslim unity.

Pala gained popularity in the course of time with a transition from pure musical to a combination of music and literature. The artform had mass appeal. Earlier it was the only mode of entertainment which later became a medium for spreading messages. "But today no one gets to hear about pala shows," rued a singer.

"Earlier we would be booked for 30 days in a month, be it at a child's birth, a foundation stone laying ceremony of a temple or any auspicious occasion. But today we hardly get any programmes, how can we survive in this profession?" asked Prajapita Behera, a pala singer.

"Forget about auspicious occasions people don't even call us at ekosia (21 days after birth of a child) and solaah puja (16th birthday of a teen). It really hurts, film songs have replaced us at traditional functions, too," said Baijayant Sahoo, another pala singer.

A pala troupe comprises the principal performer who is known as the gayak or gahan, a drummer (bayak) and four palias. Though pala continued to rule as the most potent mode of entertainment and education in Orissa for centuries, it was marginalised with the advent of cinema and television, besides changing tastes of people with rapid urbanisation.

"We have brought about some changes in the presentation of Ramayana and Mahabharata to attract the modern crowd. The singing style has also been modernised but then the crowd continues to be a trickle," said Ruby Padhee, a pala singer.

The singers feel the government should draw up a policy for revival and survival of this age-old art form. While a lot of attention and money are given to Odissi dance, dying art forms like the pala are neglected, they complain.

Noted theatre artist Kartik Rath, said, "There is no patronage. So how can pala survive? These traditions are our treasures but since we are not giving them enough attention, they are on the verge of extinction."
by shoaib ahmed