Satyadev Dubey 87th birth anniversary: Students, acting legends and theatremakers to celebrate the playwright in Mumbai today

To some he was the enfant terrible of Indian theatre to others the greatest teacher of the stage To veterans he dragged Indian theatre into modernity To a younger generation he remains a mythical legend but to everyone who will gather at Juhu today Satyadev Dubey was a name that defined theatreBorn on this day in 1936 Dubey emerged as one of the most piercing voices in Indian theatre That he shared the stage with names such as Vijay Tendulkar Girish Karnad Ebrahim Alkazi Badal Sircar and Safdar Hashmi raises his standing furtherThe playwright conducts a workshop for the cast of Ken Ghoshrsquos film Ishq Vishq Pyaar Vyaar in 2003 File PhotoGathering of friendsTheatre was everything to him shares director Hidayat Sami who took over the famed Theatre Unit after Dubeyrsquos demise in 2011 ldquoHe was not very keen on tributes This is just a gathering of friends to celebrate his memory through short pieces from plays and writings he loved or worked onrdquo Sami shares Having spent over two decades in Dubeyrsquos company Sami reveals that the playwright is still revered and loved by his students It only took a request to get everyone to agree ldquoThere were no baggages no tantrums and no questions askedrdquo he saysA young DubeyThis year it will be the seniors such as Naseeruddin Shah Ratna Pathak Shah Akash Khurana and Neena Kulkarni among the other performers ldquoDubey loved to bring everyone togetherrdquo shares Kulkarni who was part of seven productions with Dubey Recalling his passion for the stage she says ldquoTheatre was his entire life But he was also a very giving person He would be a friend philosopher and guide to people who shared the stage with himrdquoSami agrees and shares ldquoHe would look after his actors He was a father figure to everyone whether that meant having to pay out of his own pocket for meals or dropping them home after late night rehearsalsrdquo No wonder says Kulkarni that he has a country of actors who are always ready to turn up Sami recalls names such as Shyam Benegal Govind Nihalani Girish Karnad and Amrish Puri pitching in with support during difficult timesTeacher par excellenceFor Divya Jagdale Dubey was a creative catalyst ldquoHe would challenge me to think He would tell me ldquoDonrsquot speak if you donrsquot have anything new to sayrdquo she remarks This Jagdale adds was his way of pushing her to do something different and better So not being a poet she will be presenting two poems with Sonali Kulkarni at the gathering ldquoSome of my best memories are waiting for instructions by post from London while we mdash Kumud Mishra Manav Kaul and myself mdash were preparing for Bekaar Ki BakbakrdquoDivya Jagdale Sunil Shanbag and Hidayat SamiTheatre maker and student of Dubey Sunil Shanbag remarks ldquoFor him the written word was everything As young actors we were drilled on how we spoke the text and interpreted itrdquo Shanbag points out that Dubeyrsquos multilingual talents allowed him to access scripts across the country ldquoBefore communication was easy he obtained scripts from Bengali Kannada Gujarati to be translated and produced He was the centre of a panIndia theatre scenerdquo he saysYet to all of them it is the teacher in Dubey who stands out ldquoHe trained over two generations of actors many of whom have gone on to become theatremakers of renownrdquo says Shanbag Tonight some of them will gather in the quiet neighbourhood of Juhu to recall memories of the old master On Today 730 pmAt Prithvi House Prithvi Theatre 20 Juhu Church Road Janki Kutir Juhu