Choiron Ama

Seireng amata eege khanna,

Karui wahei-gi keithel da,

Koithi thirui anouba wahei

Marketta keithelda dukanda

Anouba wahei thungladri hai

Soidana youraklanisu hai

Nongma ninisida anouba wahei

Marketta keithelda dukanda /

Kharana hainei

Blockade-ki mingda

Marwari karbar wala singna

Thadoraktabanee haina /

Kharana hainei

National Highway da

Police siphai singna

Wahei phajaba singdi chingthahoure /

Blockade touba singsu

Seireng eerabra keino

Moisu waheigi karbar yaore /

Lairaba warakki Kabi eidi

Wahei thiba koichat chatli /

Nahan Sunday numitta

Second hand market ta phao

Wahei ahongba thiba chatlui /

Korea dagi lakpa,

Japan, America, China,

Europe tagi lakpa,

Second hand gi wahei phao

Yamna tangngi leiba ngamde /

Khara hongba Bengali,

Sanskrit, Hindi su

Malle Kabi mayamna

Pangsinda sijinnamandana /

Nahan nongmadi nupa ama

Waheigi truck na takpada si

Magi nupi angangna nungaitabadu

Wahei leite tamnaba /

Wahei tanky ani ahum lakkhibadu

Party mayam mantri mayam munnabada

Kabi eikhoigi saruk thungde /

Thikadar Engineer Waheigi flyover

Sannanaba Project tannarisu hai /

Part-time Oja singsu regularise

Tounaba wahei yonba chatlesu hai /

Khangde mayam panghaida hainei,

Adubu eidi wahei phangde,

Koichat chatli, leppa leite /

Nupa amadi aruba wahei heklubada,

Umangda lai oknadana ngaokhisu hai /

Kashmir dagi purakpa

Athumba angangba Waheidusu

Ee ngakta paklamdana langthokkhi /

Khwairamband Bazar da

Ahing athengbada

Street lamp makhada

Wahei khunnaba thirui

Yong bidi mapun ama khullak-ee

Machei tara-nipan yaorammi /

Ganga dhaba da phamna phamna

Pothaduna thak-ee bidi do

Wahei kadaida thirusee khalli /

Phuk hougatli

Bidi thakna thakna

Wahei thiba chatli

Inglaba ningthamthagi ahingda

Alu ghali da phaorak-ee /

Wahei haplakpa Cartoon box mayam

Mei tharaga kuli mayam tiktuna leirammi,

Makhoigi waree-singbul

Kuphet kaphet tarak-ee

Makhoidi lamdamse

yamna nungai hainahouwee /

Ngaihak leiraga

Mahei mahei tumba changnakhi;

Thela ghari mathakta

Potpham mathakta

Kachin kachin,

Magi magi maphamda,

Nokna nokna yamna nungaina /

Eisu moigi marakta

Ahangba kachin amada

Ngaihak chepsillui, tumthakhi /

Tamthiba mang ama mang-ngi – 

Nongmei paiba mee-oi kharana

“Nang natra, Wahei thiba koichat chatli haise”

Haira hairaga koitan tannei eibu;

Ei kanna chelli

Leirak khullak phaona chelli,

Lahore youna chelli,

Rajasthan phaona chelli,

Delhi gi mee chinkhraba

Chandni chowk ta chelli,

Hindi film gasu malli,

Kolkata gi gali gali da chelli,

Agartala youwi, Dhaka youwi,

Lamhang amada phai,

Lourida pui, kokta nammi

Thang… laoba makholda

Ei phuk hougatlak-ee;

Mayamsu hougatlammi,

Eidi mihun thang thang chong-ee /

Kuli amana hai,

“bhaiya nongmei makholne,

Anakpada malle /”

Ei wahei thiba leplage

chap yungna khankhi /

Choiron parongi

Paodamsina seireng oihallage ningkhi,

Karigibu oiba yaroi,

Wahei leiba ngamdaba eikhoigidi /

Masibu seirengni khanna pabiyu /

Usham Rojio

November 14, 2013

Kumheidi Leppa Yade

Meetei na kumhei pambadi

Ahansingna hainei,

Eepuna lirammee

Malemgi anisuba lanjao manungda

Langi lanbung oijarasu

Meeteigi harao kumhei

Eesei nongmai hengatlak-ee //

Britishka Japanga soknajaba lanni,

Eikhoi yaode khandokna lei //

Chenba chongba yaorasu

Akeeba phaonarabasu

Eesei nongmaidi

Matamduda hengatli hainei //

Matamgi ningthiraba eesei

“Jati koubi sakhenbi,

Leiranglaktagi athoibi”

Lallakta gramophone diskta

Ahanba puthokpa eesei ni //

Lallakta Meeteigi anoi

Phana chaokhatkhi hainei //

Ngasisu mangde

Meeteigi

Harao kumhei

Eesei nongmai

Jagoi lila

Hennadum hengatlak-ee//

Leppa leite

Chahi chuppa//

Nupisu nupasu

Ahalsu angangsu

Kumheidi pamdaba leite //

Soratsu kumheini, phiroisu kumheini,

Luhongba, jeiga, naa hutpa //

Phana leitrabasu chara hellabasu

Chara henduna sikhibagisu

Soratti ningthina chaona solli,

Ingkhol bandop thamlaga oirasu//

Kumheigi mihul hulli Meetei //

Lallakta lakle

Sangai festival //

Yumthong yumthongdagi

Sangaina jagoi saa-saaduna

Chatpagum

Chong chongduna

keraduna thorakle

Sangai festival yengba

Queue bu phana sangi

paphaldouna

mathek mathek thek-ee

Eisu leppi queue,

Tiket amata kakke haina //

Bombjao pokhaibagi makhol tai

Mayam kanasu nachungde

“Ae nakti nak-ee hei”

Hainei, queue leppa kaide //

Ammana hai,

“Meegi lamdadi luhongbada

Bombula thanei,

Eikhoigi asuk chaoba

Sangai festival touraga

Bomb thakhaigadouni keino”//

Mayam haraona nungaina

yengnahouwi

Sangai festival //

Usham Rojio

26/11/2013

Manipuri Theatre: A True Calling

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” Oscar Wilde

 An attempt to answer one riddle, we first have to unfold many others. In this case, the riddling starts with me, as an audience of the theatre festival watching the plays last month at 15th Bharat Rang Mahotsav, National School of Drama, New Delhi, particularly the Manipuri plays that were performed in the festival. The festival witnessed three plays from Manipur – 9 Days Newspaper by Joy Meisnam, Eigi Khongthang Lepkhiroi by Dr. S. Thaninleima and A Far Cry by Deepak Ningthouja. Deepak Ningthouja’s A Far Cry is one play better than the other two. But the music was too loud and the script was not telling. The other two plays were too loud. Confusion of forms, political incorrectness and sheer pride, insularity of thoughts and lack of professionalism were some of the features that many of us witnessed. It doesn’t necessarily mean that Manipuri artistes are not talented but a good leader with certain sensibilities is necessary to streamline ideas and bring out a telling production.

9 Days Newspaper was marked by political incorrectness, an ethnic centric and communal in tone whereas Eigi Khongthang Lepkhiroi was marked by “appeasement” strategy to her gurus in NSD like our Ministers do to the Centre and so somewhere the voice get lost. Such plays unfold many riddles and the politics involved in the theatre fraternity. Theatre has become a mere spectacular exercises and extravaganza fattening themselves on corporate bounty and so it has caught up in the snarl of contradictions conforming only to the need of the state politics and corporate demands.

 Many were not happy to witness the quality of Manipuri theatre deteriorating both in terms of form and content in 15th Bharat Rang Mahotsav festival. The directors displayed no senses of music with their loud, explicit and off-tune music. Today, it is true that the actors lack training and practice and it is hard to find actors for theatre as Heisnam Kanhailal mentioned in one of the discussion in one DDK Imphal programme with L. Kishworjit sometime in November last year. But it is not only actors but it is also hard to find good and committed young playwrights and directors with “required sensibilities” today. Having said this, the problem is the politics behind the selection of such plays for the festival. As far as my knowledge is concerned, there must to be a local representative in selecting the play. Is it that these plays are the best or is there a favouritism involved in selecting the plays as one can see the NSD alumni got into the festival whether their plays make senses or not.

 But a Taiwan based Manipuri Director and actor, Chongtham Jayanta, also an NSD alumnus brought a play worth watching. The play A True Calling (in Manipuri and Chinese) is based on a story of the same name by Indian author Vijay Dan Detha, inspired by a Rajasthani folktale. The Hindi title Rijak ki Maryada, after an oral version that by tradition has no formal title. The simple yet riveting story about a professional bhand who is so realistic in the guise of a dayan (witch) that the king who, in spite of being forewarned about the consequences, challenges him to don the guise, and runs for his life while a drunken brother-in-law is killed by the witch. The king, in order to eliminate him, finally asks the bhand to take the guise of sati or (in the play) a woman who immolates herself. But Jayanta has not use the word “sati” in his play, may be because in Meitei and Chinese there are no tradition of Sati.

Chongtham Jayanta’s story telling through performance stands at a juncture where the ever-dynamic collective consciousness preserved in oral cultures of folktales is represented through the privileged retelling by performance skill and where the sheer choice of medium tends to freeze the inherent fluidity and flexibility of the tale. As Detha’s story are inimitable insofar as they epitomize the confluence of the age-old oral world of folklore and the relatively modern genre of short story in which the interiority is as much a concern as the world of action; in which there is no moral compulsion of privileging good over evil; and most important, which is meant for readers, not listeners, Jayanta transmute it for listeners and viewers. Jayanta’s success in bridging the two and metamorphosing in the ingeniously perceptive form, like a true storyteller who always meddles with these “travelling metaphors” and ingrain new meanings in them to appeal to his audiences. Jayanta also revamps them with contemporary themes to appeal to the modern mind.

Without compromising their archetypal motifs, psychic underpinnings, and context-sensitive performativity, Jayanta metamorphoses them into captivating stories, which have a spellbinding impact on the minds of the modern audiences. Mighty kings, rich business-men and feudal lords turn out to be cowards and ordinary bhand wise. In this theatrical ambience of wisdom, where worldly ways are ridiculed and human frailties and strengths are carefully delineated, Jayanta injected his own ideological preferences for social justice. Notwithstanding their apparent simplicity, the play unfolds the complexities of human life in its myriad forms. The stagecraft itself was suggestive of the complexities of human life existence. As Jayanta puts in a simple language yet loaded with existential philosophy, “the cage-like setting in the play is because we the human beings seem to be trapped in the cage but there may be ways to escape. The ladders are the symbols for that but no one use these ladders.”

The performance was embedded with a vast array of cultural codes, aspirations, and ethical preferences of Meitei and Chinese. Without any string of cultural authorship attached, they also represent a panorama of human aspirations and desires as well as anger and resistance against prevalent norms. The staging of a written text inevitably involves a process of individualization and privileging of certain perspectives, however Jayanta has been able to catch the nerves of audiences through his performance.

Staging a text is part of the pedigree of re-telling not of an original but in the sense of having no precedents. The actor's voice, visual or aural space and the actor's body on stage become loci of the re-interpretation and explode into a new expression in the sensory perception of the spectators. It also becomes continuous and synchronous with real life events as they are lived out on the stage. Such journeys towards new synchronicities happen across genres, periods and cultures. We need to think of the performance text as yet one more performance of a story in a tradition necessarily various and multiple: each version a creative "telling in turn." Ingeniously, Jayanta make the story alive and well, and has able to create a new set of criteria whose goal isn't so much to assess ownership as liveliness, eloquence, even emotional, political, or moral relevance. He became the author of the performance text itself, but he is not the exclusive writer just as he is not the sole creator of the performance.

Chongtham Jayanta certainly deserves adulation for his professionalism and his engagement with the dynamics as a director and also as an actor, passing on the verbally transmitted, travelling tales to us by translating them into the equally forceful and dynamic performative story where the performativity and narrative voice retains the flexibility of the oral storytellers; where the spectators are continuously prodded to partake of the wisdom carried in the story, or to face the same dilemma of choices that the characters are faced with; where the currency of hope always wins over the occasional disruption of the absurd; and where the seething psychoanalytic penetration into the established discourses results in an astute diagnosis of culture and society. Chongtham Jayanta’s professionalism and quality of theatre is a true calling for young contemporary Manipuri Theatre practitioners and artistes.

Usham Rojio

In Search of a New Language of Theatre

"Thou calm, serene but courageous Cicada, Set to journey a tiny stream, In the midway, the deep water displays its existence. In the midway, Shows its currents, strength and madness. Unable to cross it, Unable to get across, Thou, in wrath, full of angst Standing on the bank, pronounced, “O…thou water… Why thou makest tidings? Why thou deep water hinders? O’ Water, thou makest the heart umbrage.” The seven day Delhi Ibsen Festival 2012 has started from December 1 to 7, 2012. Organised by the Norwegian Embassy and the Dramatic Art and Design Academy, the festival features plays of Henrik Ibsen performed by a range of avant garde troupes and directors from across the world. This year, two young Directors from India - Heisnam Tomba from Manipur and Sankar Venkateswaran from Kerala - have been commissioned for Delhi Ibsen Festival with other well-known international Directors like Staniewski and Ovlyakuli. The Padatik Group from Kolkata has opened the festival with “The Master Builder” directed by the Polish avant garde theatre director Wlodzimierz Staniewski on December 1, 2012. These are in addition to troupes from Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Norway. The closing of the festival is the performance of Kalakshetra Manipur’s production. The Manipuri Director, Heisnam Tomba of Kalakshetra Manipur, is directing the Ibsen’s famous play “An Enemy of the People”. The play addresses the irrational tendencies of the masses, the hypocritical and corrupt nature of the political system that they support. The play’s heated discussion of ‘Just’, who should control the levers of power in a society, whether the intellectually superior, forward-thinking individual or the mindless majority should dictate public policy, makes for savoury meat to chew on. It is the story of one brave man, whose voice loud and clear as cicada, struggle to do the right thing and speak the truth in the face of extreme social intolerance. The co-ordinator of the production, Usham Rojio, also a Research Scholar at Theatre and Performance Studies, School of Arts & Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi who also has selected this particular play, expresses, “The theme of the play is of contemporary relevance, essential issues of the time, the conflict between conventional and traditional world, and the tragic flaw of democracy. The play is very much relevant to the political scenario of contemporary Manipur.” Kshetri Sanajaoba who initially translated the English text to Meiteilon expresses, “Ibsen spoke for individualism and emancipation against the compromises of liberalism and its limited ideas of freedom. True freedom, for Ibsen, is social freedom, spiritual freedom, freedom of thought and conscience. The play is very much important in the context of Manipur.” The Director, Heisnam Tomba says, “Initially I thought several times whether i should embark on this project or not after being invited. Finally I decided there is no harm in venturing this experiment. Finally it became interesting journey experimenting and working on Ibsen’s theme keeping his universality intact. ‘An enemy of the People’ is being transformed to our own theatre, privileging the self of the actor over the character in reflection as a way of cathartic process. Ibsen’s text is attempted to locate in a continuum of living theatre, sensitive to the sensory, energised by the power of sound and movement.” Tomba continues, “The causal and discursive dramaturgy of Henrik Ibsen’s ‘An Enemy of the People’ is attempted to transform into a dramaturgy “logical, sensuous and lyrical” through images created by body, sound and music to suit our own individualised theatre. We have collaborated extensively with our performers, designers, musicians, writers and scholars with an understanding and appreciation of distinct aesthetics, rhythms and sensibilities that each of us shared and brought into the production, making it an intercultural and multilingual performance.” Nissar Allana, the Director of the festival in his visit in Manipur last month, after observing the rehearsal of the play expressed, “Tomba’s play is a different Ibsen altogether. His play is lyrical which is very interesting. No other production has attempted Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People in such a manner.” Moving away from the demands of the Urban Theatre, Kalakshetra Manipur’s team work together as a family in the vicinity of its premise situated at a hillside in the outskirt of Imphal city. The team wake up early morning at 4:00 am ready for morning walk, someday on the top of the hill, someday on the range of the hillside. Someday they went to the river playing with the water. Coming back from the morning walk, the team cleans and tidy up their rooms and their working spaces. Then, after a cup of tea, they begin their physical and vocal exercises developed by Kalakshetra Manipur under the guidance of Heisnam Kanhailal, Heisnam Sabitri and Heisnam Tomba in their 40 years of existence and research. The team then have their breakfast prepared themselves and some of them voluntarily prepared their lunch and the rest continue to rehearse their roles passing jokes laughing heartily at the fullest. After having their lunch they have an hour of nap then continue their rehearsal of the play till evening. Interestingly, acting is not taught in Kalakshetra Manipur but a space of self creativity and of energising the body and sound is given to the actors by working together, laughing heartily, playing various indigenous games and theatre-oriented games. The effort here is to create a space interspersed and traversed by subjective interpretations of the team, of gestures, lyrical dialogues and musical movements, privileging the self of the actor and his/her impulse. A larger narrative of the process itself which was also realized as not always premeditated and consciously being ‘performed’ but rather events created out of spending time together in a series of happenings and the gradual unfolding of a somewhat coherent performance through several conflicts, opinions, indecision and false presumption. One of the things which also emerged out of the process of rehearsals was the simultaneous lumps of these performances within a constantly changing space, along which the actors and the spectators moved from one fence to the other. The actors constantly having dialogue with the meadow, paddy field and streams of water as a part of their voice exercise creates a lingering soundscape that becomes not only a metaphorical matrix through language and mood but also served in enlarging the spatiality much beyond the theatrical studio space. As I realized, such voice and movement exercises gave direction to the choreography and composition of the scenes. These were developed and experimented through improvisation and the construction in the dramaturgy attempted to create and understand a possible new Ibsen in contrast to a realist ‘Ibsenian style’. Heisnam Tomba added, “The performance so far is a work-in-progress, journey in search of a new language of theatre keeping the Ibsen’s universality intact. The play is being transformed to our own theatre, privileging the self of the actor over the character in reflection as a way of cathartic process. Ibsen’s text is attempted to locate in a continuum of living theatre, sensitive to the sensory, energised by the power of sound and movement.” The powerful rustic music by the director of the play is a language in itself. At this instant, the Kalakshetra Manipur is all set for the final show of the Delhi Ibsen Festival 2012 on December 7, 2012. Usham Rojio 2nd Dec 2012

Of Story, Melodrama and Grammar: Ningthem (A Manipuri Digital Film)

Cinema as a popular art form not only entertains but also visually archives a huge corpus of social facts. It highlights not only social, political, economic and religious themes but also articulate in a subtle way the anxieties of the filmmakers, particularly that of the director and the screen-writer. Those engaged with story-telling in visual and performing arts are all familiar with these, not so peculiar conditions associated with the medium. They express their anxieties in various forms of art like literature, theatre, songs, dances and cinema. Cinema as a popular art medium is liked by the people for its easy communicative capabilities in its myriad and complex forms. Manipur Research Forum screened the Manipuri film Ningthem, directed by Bishwamitra on the 11th of July, 2009 at School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi. Those who watched the film comprised students, professionals and young scholars. One could see everyone willing to share his or her views when the screening was over. As programmed, a serious discussion followed the screening. Dr. Bhagat Oinam, Associate Professor of Philosophy, JNU initiated the discussion and requested Associate Professor Dr. A. Bimol Akoijam from the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, JNU to give his critical assessment of the film. Dr. Bimol Akoijam emphasized that we need to look into two aspects of film production. The first one is the 'film grammar' aspect which include methodology, philosophy and technology behind film making. The second is the narrative aspect which include social message, issues addressed in the film that the writer/director is trying to depict. He pointed out that the film is very poor as far as the 'grammar' aspect is concerned. This view was seconded by many who were present at the discussion. He elaborated on it by drawing comparison with the critically acclaimed Manipuri film Mami Sami. He further tried to examine the issue by elaborating the reasons why such technical brilliance could not take place in Manipuri Cinema. He argued that majority of the film makers lacked intimate knowledge of making films. Despite this apparent lack, Dr. Akoijam said that when it comes to the second aspect related to narratives and of the ability to put across social messages, the film surpasses many of the familiar story-lines we see today in Manipur, despite the film Ningthem still following the typical melodramatic mode. He argued that the filmmaker and the writer tried to address certain social issues in the Manipuri society caught between modern legal framework and traditional-familial associative relations. The film is a family drama, depicting different aspects of human relationships ranging from personal to social and personal to the legal. It highlights tensions that exist in the Manipuri society between the urban and rural, rich and poor and many other dichotomies. The film ends with a tragic note carrying strong moral messages. Pari, the lone child of a young couple faces the trauma of separation between his father and mother. The poor father rears Pari all alone without the support of the child’s mother. This plight of the parents affects the tender mind of the child. The deteriorating health of the child creates a new twist in the life of the child and parents resulting to ups and downs of the family and its relationship with the world outside. Dr. Akoijam emphasized on the tensions that created obstacles in the relationship between the husband and the wife. He found pride, class difference, male chauvinism, patriarchal dominance etc. as the culprits behind the sour relationship. Some participants in the discussion pointed out that the mother (played by Maya chaudhuri) in the film represented a feminist critique of the patriarchal stereotype and hence depicting a story of female emancipation. Another young scholar viewed that the separation between the husband and the wife was hinged on a mild note which was the result of faulty characterization of the individuals by the director. The pride of the father (Sadananda) was clearly depicted, whereas why the mother having a son would not return at her husband's dwelling place, was not clearly depicted. The young scholar argued that it is the prejudice of the mother that led to the break up of the relationship. But, the director failed to depict and arouse that prejudice to the audience. Hence, the child was sacrificed on the altar of 'pride and prejudice'. Social adjustment, which is the theme of the movie, is ultimately a question of human relationships and central human relationship that lies at the core of all societies. As Dr. Akoijam had also pointed out that because of the capable director, the same actors Sadananda and Binata did a good job in the film like Mami Sami, however their potential didn’t come out well in this movie, everyone also agreed on that note. Mr. Dhiren Sadokpam commented that often while we use film as a medium of aesthetic communication, we tend to mix it up with other modes of communication such as theatre, sumang lila, radio plays, etc. It was felt that most of the films in Manipur fail to produce films using cinema as a means of communication. He suggested two possible ways through which a film can be studied; (i) seeing a film completely without sounds, and (ii) listening to the dialogue without seeing the visuals. The exercise will show richness or poorness of cinematography of a film. Other members who took part in the discussion too highlighted the absence or the lack of a consistent effort towards using the visual medium to its fullest by giving many more examples of various shots, sequences and picturization. Most of the members of the audience agreed though the story line was very strong it was not done justice by a good screen play or direction. Reviewed by Rojio Usham and Deepak Naorem

Creation

Tender little tides of creation
Often forgotten tides of composition,
No ownership, no one’s possession,
but whosoever, it is final touch of the image,
Shape and reshape out of clay,
Renovating the assembled system today,
For the eventual recovery tomorrow-day.

Tiny tides in the gasp of life,
Impelled by our lived-experiences,
Cross the threshold,
Stuff the hand-made earthen corpse,
To mystifying energetic performance,
Communicating to the living matter.
Cultivate as the maker’s own masterpiece,

Artistically metabolising the sword of human survival,
Drawing and withdrawing the blade of militarisation,
Refuting the monster of the ruler’s muscle-
Careless, kiss and kill ideology,
Shameful Brotherhood, Love and Peace propaganda,
Slaving tides of varied range and audacity,
Gently thrilling expression of pain and suffering.


Soothingly arousing a trivial melodramatic insurgency
Demystifying the authentic blade of materialism-
bicycling greediness and covetousness-
Journeying from rancour to succour life
with the abyss of non-existentiality,
Communicating to the living matter,
Cultivate the tides of aesthetic pleasure.

Usham Rojio
14-03-2010

Stop Peace Hunting!

Flaunt no more your guns,
like an insincere advert
offering customers its stain.
In them, my choosy eyes take no delight
nor do I scare to pen my verse.
They are shiny roses amid deadly thorns.
Moan not if futility results from your frantic shoots.

I’m not blind, am much aware of sound mind
I’m not deaf; my ears grasp the hopeless strike.
Disparity, you say you extremely dislike.
What about your insincerity?
What about your insecurity?
Rome, they say wasn’t built in a day
As listless seconds altered to wearied minutes
Lonely Minutes to frustrated hours
Unwieldy Hours to mundane-ridden days
Peace-hunting days to peace-hopeful weeks
Harmony-buffeted Weeks to convalescing months
On the road to recovery Months to bitter years.
Streams to flow in deep red.
I’ve nothing to share.
Flaunt no more your guns,
Before it strikes you back.

Usham Rojio
18th April 2011