Rangmanch ka Jantantra- Written by: Hrishikesh Sulabh

Book: Rangmanch ka Jantantra (Hindi)
Written by: Hrishikesh Sulabh
Published by: Rajkamal Prakashan

This book is a collection of works written on theatre in the early 2000s for publication in different magazines. The author, Hrishikesh Sulabh, is a Hindi story writer, playwright and theatre critic. He is best known for his writings in adapting the Bhojpuri folk form of Bidesiya. In this book, Sulabh engages with various debates existing in theatres of India – the culture of theatre viewership, community engagement and hindi theatre, national theatre and its feasibility, realism v/s experimentalism, classical forms v/s contemporary forms, institutionalisation v/s decentralisation of theatre, to name a few. The book is broadly organised in four sections to understand the theatre in India – First, The author’s reflections; Second, discussions and debates with theatre practitioners like Vijay Kumar, A.G. Chidambar Rao Jaambe, Ratan Thiyam, Vijay Banerjee; Third, book reviews and finally an overview and analysis of the different theatre events and festivals. The articles are mostly focused on theatre in Hindi and its different dialects.

Elaborating on the experimental and thus, uncertain nature of theatre and democracy, Sulabh writes,
“जैसे किसी समय- समाज में जनतंत्र संदेहों और अनिश्चिताओं के बीच पनपता और विकसित होता है, वैसे ही रंगमंच भी इन्हीं स्तिथियों के बीच आकार लेता है। यही अनिश्चितता और संदेह उसे प्रयोगों के लिए उकसाते हैं और विकसित करते रहते हैं। यह अनिश्चितता ही है, जिससे एक ही नाटक हर बार या एक ही अभिनेता हर मंचन में नया स्वाद देता है। पूर्व नियोजित होते हुए भी संशय की स्तिथि इसे जीवंतता प्रदान करती है। “ ( Page 13)