In the very early days theatre by and large rebuffed women participation. But in a world where the human race is divided into two genders it was obvious that two distinct points of view were to emerge and even contradict each other. For a long time the male voice came across as the dominant one. We got used to viewing things from a male perspective. But times changed and the female voice, slowly but surely appeared. And is here to stay. There are good reasons therefore to celebrate the uniqueness of the female voice in theatre, as in the other domains.

Between the 1st to the the 7th of November 2009, Mumbai witnessed the convergence of 200 women playwrights from across 20 countries around the world in one mother of an event - the VIII International Women Playwrights Conference. The WPC is a triennial event organized by The Women Playwrights International. Having successfully designed 7 such conferences in the past 21 years, in places such as Canada, the USA and Phillipines, the event this year took place in India. Organized by the Stree Mukti Sanghathana in association with the Mumbai University''s Academy of Theatre Arts, the event had a definite regional flavour and was one of its kind experience for all those who value good theatre and open mindedness towards the disctinctive creativity that women bring to the theatre.

The Kalina campus of Mumbai University was the canvas on which the artistic impressions from different countries and diverse backgrounds flourished to reveal the variety of work done by women in theatre today. Folk theatre, contemporary modern enactments, plays from across the globe sporting different sensibilities and style made up for an excellent salmagundi of visual and thought provoking ideas.

An overview of the event

The event was attended by eminent women personalities in the Indian society, whose voices have risen beyond personal overtures and who have addressed larger issues concerning women and society at large. Film star and social activist Shabana Azmi, theatre veteran Dolly Thakore, actors Mita Vashist, Hemani Shivpuri, theatre directors Usha Ganguli and Sushmita Mukherjee amongnst others graced the occasion with their presence and valuable ideas. The event was organized keeping in mind the need to experience and express, discuss and demonstrate, construct as well as deconstruct. The conference covered a wide array of interactive and performance based events, play readings, panel discussions, film screenings of plays and performances. The overall theme for the conference was ''Tolerance and Liberty''. The topic selected was all encompassing bringing to the forefront the struggle of women artistes in pursuit of recognition and uninhibited expression.


Participation

Apart from the 200 official delegates from various countries the event was attended by local artistes and women from different fields - journalists, practicing artistes, activists and connoisseurs. While the male participation appeared weaker, mostly professors, fellow artistes and other theatre veterans graced the occasion. A large number of students too attended the event. There was inadequate attendance by theatre artistes from Mumbai''s theatre community though. There were hardly any students from other colleges and streams too. In a nutshell, the event was open to all but selected few took advantage of it. This lopsided participation raises a few fundamental questions about the work that women do and wish to show. It seems that while the work done by women in theatre is regarded as something of deep consequence, it doesn''t necessarily generate a real interest. Plays by women carry the tag of feminist ideas that have gained more academic credence than the full participation of such plays within the artistic community itself. Such and other concerns were dealt with in the panel discussions.

Panel discussions

The panel discussions were a daily feature and saw some of the leading names in theatre discuss and debate important questions that concern women as actors and playwrights. Actress Mita Vashisht who has been a part of the mainstream as well as the parallel cinema movement in India clearly challenged the stereotypical standards under which a woman is viewed in a visual medium. Australian actress Rosemary Jones in simple terms questioned ''who decides what should be shown in theatre - the practitioner or the critic.'' Every society has a different moral make up and benchmarks; the expression thus varies.

On day one ''Challenges of Modern acting'' were discussed to understand the image of women in modern day society and whether it needs to be altered and re-thought of. Also two important questions that were raised and debated were ''The Pains and Pleasures of Women Directors'' and what does one mean by terms like ''Theatre of Social Change?'' Taking up the challenge to answer the pains and pleasures of a woman director, Usha Ganguli, director-actor of the Kolkata based group Rangkarmee enumerated real life experiences that more than spoke for the kind of challenges that a woman faces. 'Often people will say that she had an excellent team, no wonder she could pull it off,' said Usha Ganguli. There is a constant danger of being underestimated, hence a woman has to work doubly hard to prove her own. 'What a man might show as suffering of a woman''s pain, a woman might depict it with greater dignity,' said a participant from the audience.

Other relevant questions raised by the audiences were: Why are plays written by women always about sadness in a woman''s life? Why can''t there be any humour in them? Why do topics written by women have to revolve around a woman and not touch upon more general issues? Relevant and definitely worth a thought, these questions were partly answered by the panelists and partly by the plays that were showcased. Unfortunately the apathy of a woman''s life finds little expression and essentially a playwright should write about what concerns and affects her. It is but obvious that a woman is going to be affected by women''s issues and write about them. This was a reverberating emotion shared by some panelists and participants alike. Anju Utpal reflected on how women''s issues were voiced and could gain their own distinct focus through individual style and method. Also another very important question thrown open for the audience to think and debate over was whether the process in theatre for social change is more important or the performance itself. As it became obvious in what Malo from Indonesia explained about ''The Artiste for Crisis program'' wherein a group of budding artistes and theatre students are trained and then introduced in crisis hit areas to perform and teach the affected. Through this kind of process not only does the affected gain a lot but also the artiste grows tremendously as a performer. So processes become extremely important too.

The pleasures of directing and acting and even playwriting became evident through the passion with which most panelists spoke and through the performances shown. 'I found my voice as a person when I started doing theatre,' said Usha Ganguli. Malo said, 'When you are writing, your world view is constantly changing. Every moment is a new experience, a new revelation.'

In terms of subject selection and tone of voice adopted or the extent of experimentation there is a difference in plays from developed countries and those from developing ones? 'Playwrights from developed countries experiment more with text and form, touch upon more neutral topics where a woman also is an important character as opposed to playwrights from developing nations, who have a more grim and activist nature of expression,' said a student. 'Also very often I found the idea of castism overlapping with feminism in texts from India, said another second year theatre arts student. Amongst the many things that students took back with them from the various play reading sessions, these are some of the musings that are worth a thought.

Performances

The event witnessed over 21 plays being staged over a span of 7 days. Video recordings of plays from as far away as Sweden to the Phillipines and plays from different parts of India were shown during the event. The majority of plays staged were from India and were representational of different styles and forms of theatre. The festival opened with the rather impactful ZULVA by Waman Kendre. The play talks about women from the ''Jogte'' community and of how they are exploited. Through the life of Jagni, a girl who harbors a dream to study and achieve success in her life, the apathy of a woman''s life in places where the devdasi system of prostitution exists, becomes obvious. The style of performance is loud and almost rhythmic giving it a distinct stylized format. The play was a social eye opener for many unaware of such customs and clearly set the tone for the festival. The next few days saw similar heart-rending stories being performed from all across the globe. Dealing with the issue of prostitution and trafficking were two other very important plays, Sushma Deshpande''s MY MOTHER, THE GHARWALI. HER MALAK, HIS WIFE, which was the story of sex workers in the red light area of the Sangli district in Maharashtra.

The play was experimental in its presentation where actual sex workers and their children came together to perform. Thus it was interesting to see how in a play like this, process becomes very important and physically and emotionally connects a real life protagonist to audiences. Similar stories of trafficking came alive in the Indonesian play JAMILA AND THE PRESIDENT, a socio-political drama about problems of child trafficking and prostitution in Indonesia. Penned by playwright, political activist and one-time presidential candidate Ratna Sarumpaet, the play has also been made into a film. The difference in the style of presentation of all three plays clearly spoke of each play''s artistic background and the diverse sensibilities that can co-exist. On the fifth day a play by Rabijita Gogoi touched upon some important issues concerning the inhabitants of Nagaland - drug abuse, unemployment, identity crisis etc. TECHINICOLOUR DREAMS 2 as the play was called used a mixed form. Video instillations and on set instillations gave the play a contemporary feel. However the form and performance by and large lacked maturity and finesse. Talking about different concerns and the role of theatre in projecting, communicating and very often preaching messages to an audience, Marili from the Phillipines made a short visual presentation, which clearly stated that theatre is an inadequate medium of communication in a place like the Phillipines. She took the audience briefly through the political history of the Phillipines and the ineffective role of theatre as a tool of social change. Usha Ganguli''s award winning RUDALI was a peek into the lives of women mourners. The play had a brilliant regional resonance taking you into the little hamlets in India where widows have little or no respect in a society. However the play struggled to reach a convincing climax, leaving an unsatisfied feeling. Among other notable plays at the festival were Q Theatre Productions'' KHATIJABAI OF KARMALI TERRACE and RICKSHAW AND GUN. KHAJITABAI... defied claims that women plays are serious and without humour. Margereta Skantze''s BLACK MADONNA, as she recounted its journery in her presentation has undergone transformation over period of time. The play uses music to a great extent and has a contemporary resonance.

WHO WILL SING FOR LENA enacted by Vanessa Adams Harris and written by Janice Liddell speaks of the inner conflict of a black domestic worker who killed her white employer after an abusive relationship. The Anna K France piece spoke against the culture of easy money that is ruining the American youth.

ARE YOU MY FATHER? written by Safa, an Iranian-American was a monologue that sought to co-relate the American culture of dating with the Iranian practice of 'temporary marriages.' Aamera Siddiqui''s CHISEL outlined the story of a South-Asian Muslim girl whose family has settled in the U.S. and who would have liked to have a different racial and family backdrop.

Speaking of passion, it was quite an unbelievable spectacle to see women groups perform folk forms of theatre such as Bharud and Vagha Murli, traditionally male dominanted forms with such vigour and gusto that it forced you out of your stupor and take notice of the changing trends and equations in the world of performing arts. Two performances though poles apart in their style, form and expression shed light on how society perceives women. The traditional folk form of Lavani is designed specifically for entertainment of men through graceful movements and lewd songs. Lavani is a popular art form in Maharashtra and always runs to full houses, as it did even during the fest. On the other hand Jyoti Dogra''s performance titled THE DOORWAY, was an abstract piece reflecting the perils of a woman''s life and the various doorways a woman has to cross in her lifetime. Grave as the play was, it seemed to endlessly pull you into the deep and tucked away layers of a woman''s life. However the piece, very bold in bits showcased a woman in her elemental form and made some deeply uncomfortable.

Thus the conference was an open playground for people to run through various cultures, histories and the realities affecting women. All in all the festival was abounding in spirit and learning. A one of its kind event to hit the shores of Mumbai.
*Akanksha Gupta has a Master''s Degree in Theatre Arts from Mumbai University. She is currently working with an advertising agency and enjoys photography.