Barry John: Artist traditionally operates on the fringes of society

Barry John: Artist traditionally operates on the fringes of society

The stories that float about and around in the world of theatre are perhaps as old as the institution of theatre itself. The first among them is that the theatre is dying, there are no new audiences coming in; secondly, theatre doesn’t have money and then thirdly, long live the theatre. Barry John, a noted director, actor and Theater Action Group’s founder director is not sure though. A recipient of this year’s  Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META) 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award, he replies, “Theatre has been dying ever since it was invented, but yet it struggles on, and with considerable good health and vigour in certain quarters. Theatre has never been rich, except where it has prostituted and commercialised itself, and became unrecognisable. Most theatre workers don’t join the theatre to get rich. The gold crowns the king and queen wear are made of cardboard! The theatre doesn’t have any money because most people don’t go to the theatre, and those that do go, seek a ‘Pass’ rather then a ticket! Theatre is condemned to be a free public utility. And, yes, it will live long, resuscitated by every new generation of worshippers.” 

Born and educated in UK, Barry has lived and worked in India since 1968, first teaching in Bengaluru, then he moving to Delhi and after spending close to four decades there, shifting to Mumbai. Currently, he is leading a semi-retired life in Dharamshala.

We ask him if he could tell us about the art scene and the talent pool found in those cities, and if he has he seen any changes over the years during his visits to these cities. 

“A difficult question because every time I’ve moved to a new city, I’ve left the old one behind. I was in Bangalore for just a few years (1968 - 70) and when I’ve gone back, it was specifically to visit just one new theatre. I’ve spent most of my life in Delhi (1970 - 2007) which, of all the cities, except perhaps Kolkata, has seemed to have the liveliest theatre landscape. Since shifting to Mumbai in 2007, I have lost touch with the theatre scene in Delhi. I have seen very little of Mumbai’s theatre activity which happens mostly ‘downtown’ — a two-hour drive from the Andheri suburbs where I lived and worked. The last three years I have been in semi-retirement in Dharamshala where there is neither a theatre nor a play to be seen,” says Barry, who was the founder-director of the National School of Drama (NSD)’s Theatre in Education Company and has been responsible for writing the CBSE curriculum for theatre. 

In the popular domain though, he is recognised as the acting coach of Shah Rukh Khan and Manoj Bajpayee. The artist has also acted in a few films like Shatranj Ke Khiladi, Massey Sahib, Gandhi, Tamas, Miss Beatty’s Children, The Last Viceroy, The Frontier Gandhi and Tere Bin Laden. As a teacher, Barry was known to insist that his students read literature and watch other art forms. Those who actually took his advice seriously are very few as he remarks, “Most students are unwilling to learn by reading these days.” 

In recent times though, we have seen art and artists at the forefront of protest movement. When asked if art and activism goes hand in hand, he replies, “They don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand, but it’s a fact that the artist traditionally operates on the fringes of society, usually in poverty, observing and commenting on the ‘circus’ of everyday life. They may become rebellious when what they observe is unjust, undemocratic, violent or immoral. A part of their usefulness is that they ‘hold a mirror up to nature’ and show people for what they really are. They are the poets and dreamers who have the imagination to sense how human nature can be improved, and how life can be evolved in a more positive and caring way.”

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