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| Commonalities in Asian arts | | ON STAGE |
| Kirti Jain / New Delhi Jul 26, 2008, 02:57 IST |
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When recently I was asked to speak on Indian theatre on an Indo-Korean friendship platform, I remembered the time about 10 years ago when, after having discussed a detailed project of cultural exchange with a Japanese representative, I had asked him pointblank if the Japanese were at all interested in India or Indian culture for us to take on a collaborative project.
The representative had hesitated, perhaps due to the legendary Japanese politeness, but finally had replied, “No”. It was decided to shelve the project. I must admit I was a trifle disturbed. Whatever had happened to Asian brotherhood and, of course, our common interest, Buddhism?
Anyway, one had to accept that somewhere along the line we had slipped out of their consciousness. I nursed my hurt thinking that, after all, we too didn’t think of Japan except for their cameras, TVs and such gadgets. And as far as culture was concerned, both looked to the West for new ideas and opportunities.
Ten years down the line, people in general and artistes in particular from Asian countries are not only aware of India but are interested in it. So what has happened in these last 10 years?
Well, the nuclear issue is one reason. It is also the much-hyped state of the Indian economy that has made them notice us. But isn’t it ironic that violence, as symbolised by nuclear testing, and capitalism that is destroying all things indigenous, are the foundations of a new-found cultural identity of India?
We are being noticed because we have joined the rat race, not because we are special; our culture and tradition are being hailed when we are on the verge of destroying them; our arts are being celebrated when we are in the process of annihilating the artistes.
On the other hand, this predicament is common to most Asian countries. Probably that is why today one finds increased dialogue, exchange and collaboration between Asian artistes and this has a lot of potential.
When artistes from these countries work together, there is plenty of common ground to start a dialogue. There is the high culture of the good old days; the historical context of imperialism in different forms; the struggle of the last five decades reinventing identities, and the contemporary reality of being swamped by crass influences that threaten to destroy the very fabric of these cultures.
In addition, performance in all these cultures has been a celebration of life. There is no concept of tragedy in this region. The tragic in the text is transformed into beauty through the intervention of the artiste who provides joy through his representation.
Theatre, for instance, is a complete art form that comprises dance, music, the visual arts and literature, in which there are no boundaries between one and the other.
The concept of stylisation, of flexibility of space and time, of non-linearity is deeply ingrained and, therefore, comes naturally to Asian artistes. With slight differences, even the body language from one culture to the other is not so drastically different and allows for blending.
With so much in common, and faced with a common hostile environment, one hopes that Asian artistic collaborations will be pushed to find creative answers to challenges thrown up by the new global reality in order to emerge stronger.
(kirtinsd@gmail.com )
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