Be it history or mythology, politics or social ill — the Maidi Artistes’ Association of Tribals (MAAT), a theatre troupe in East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand — packs a punch to it with drama and dance, music and morals in indigenous flavour and fervour to entertain and enlighten its audience.
MAAT, as the name suggests, is a group of tribal artistes. It has been staging plays in Adivasi languages Santhali and Ho besides Hindi since 1992 that have fetched both critical acclaim and public accolades. Till date, the tribal artistes’ group has presented over 25 shows comprising 18 Santhali, three Ho and four Hindi plays in Jharkhand, Delhi, Kerala, Odisha, Assam and several other States.
“Earlier, Jharkhand lacked a proper platform to present tribal issues through informative and entertaining plays. MAAT has now filled this void,” Jitrai Hansda, MAAT’s Secretary, Director and Writer tells The Indian Tribal.
Its play ‘Fevicol’ in Hindi — staged for the National School of Drama (NSD) and Mahendra Group of Companies in Delhi and then at the International Theatre Festival under State Sangeet Natak Akademi in capital Thiruvnanthapuram of Kerala in 2013 — focuses on jal, jungle, zameen, the core issues of the Scheduled Tribes of India. It bagged the Mahendra Theatre Excellence Award in Delhi that year.
Similarly, its Santhali ‘Jugi Triyao’, one of the 80 plays shortlisted for Bharat Ranga Mohatsava-2023 of NSD, combines a mythological tinge and a contemporary tint to highlight the need of woman’s rights in the Adivasi society.
“I have been appreciated for my acting, scripts and direction in Cuttack, Agra, Ranchi and Jamshedpur. The Central University in Jharkhand has conferred the ‘Birsa Munda Kala Samman’ on me, while Jamshedpur-based Jaya Laxmi Natya Kalamandira has anointed me with ‘Natya Samrat’. Besides, the Jharkhand Government has bestowed its state award upon me,” Jitrai says proudly.
The tribal Director-Writer’s historical play ‘Birsa Munda’ in Ho, staged in 2018 at the Civic Centre in Rourkela, Odisha, turned out to be a massive success. However, Ho plays are a tad bit tough for MAAT’s Santhali actors and choreographers, as they do not have a thorough knowledge of the spoken and written Ho.
“When a new Santhali or Hindi play is taken up, we usually take a month for rehearsal. But in case of a Ho play, a fortnight more is required,” says actor Laxman Marandih.
“Scripts are always in Devnagri script, as we are not acquainted with Ol Chiki (Santhali script) and Warang Citi (Ho script),” says Urmila Hansda, who mostly plays lead roles.
Incorporation of Santhali dances like ‘Firkal’, ‘Langde’ and ‘Baha’ to dose up a play an entertaining interlude is a piece of cake for MAAT’s choreographer Sabita Tudu from the Scheduled Tribes community. Ho dances like ‘Maga Susun’, ‘Heroh Susun’ and ‘Anandi Susan’ sometimes prove a bit off the beaten track for her, as Ho dance steps are a little different from those of their Santhali counterparts.
“We seek cooperation from the nearby Ho people who readily throw ball with us to make things easy for us,” she says.
However, music, played in consonance with Ho dances never goes queer, as the orchestra comprises the same instruments—madal, nagara, churchuri, bansuri, kendri and ghanti.
“Though the tunes and timbre of Ho music have their individuality, we can infuse their feel into our performances after some interacting sessions with a Ho-team in Chaibasa,” explains MAAT’s other choreographer.
How Is It Going For The MAAT?
- MAAT’s 30 tribal artistes are primarily farmers, labourers, students and those engaged in other occupations
- Depending on the number of shows, payments vary between Rs 50,000 and Rs 1.50 lakh and each artiste gets an honorarium up to Rs.1000
- The troupe claims to be one of its kind in Jharkhand
- There is no all-India level umbrella association for tribal theatre artistes
ABOUT WORLD THEATRE DAY
Initiated in 1961 by the International Theatre Institute (ITI), it is celebrated annually on the 27th March by ITI Centres and the international theatre community. Various national and international theatre events are organized to mark this occasion including circulation of the World Theatre Day Message through which at the invitation of ITI, a figure of world stature shares his or her reflections on the theme of Theatre and a Culture of Peace. The first World Theatre Day Message was written by Jean Cocteau in 1962. The World Theatre Day strives to promote theatre in all its forms across the world; make people aware of the value of theatre in all its forms; enable theatre communities to promote their work on a broad scale so that governments and opinion leaders are aware of the value and importance of dance in all its forms and support it; enjoy theatre in all its forms for its own sake; and share the joy for theatre with others.
