Page 285

Ghalib and his troubles

DIWAN SINGH BAJELI

Ghalib had his quota of worldly woes and “Qaid-e-Hayat” mounted by Abhigyan Natya Association captures them aptly.

Photo: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar

Celebrations Mirza Ghalib’s birth anniversary continues to be celebrated with fervour, be it through plays like “Qaid-e-Hayat” or candle light vigils at the Ghalib Haveli in Old Delhi.

More than 200 years have passed since the birth of Ghalib but his poems continue to be recited by the Indian elite and the common man alike. His works have remarkable relevance to our time.

It appears that Ghalib is our contemporary. It is no wonder if his life, time and his works have captured the imagination of dancers, stage and film directors. “Qaid-e-Hayat”, which was presented by Abhigyan Natya Association at Aiwan-e-Ghalib auditorium on the occasion of Ghalib’s birthday, under the auspicesof Hum Sub, a drama wing of Aiwan-e-Ghalib.

Formed by the late Begum Abida, it is one of the important theatrical tributes to a great humanist and poet. Written by Surendra Verma, a renowned Hindi writer, “Qaid-e-Hayat” captures the troubled world of Ghalib, his bitter domestic life, his financial hardships and above all his tragic love for Katiba – woman calligraphist – who is working on his diwan. The play had been staged by several directors, including Ram Gopal Bajaj who did it for NSD’s Repertory Company.
In house

Directed by Lokendra Trivedi, the main action in “Qaid-e-Hayat” takes place in the house of Ghalib. There is a span of one year between two acts. A scene in the first act is set in the house of Katiba. The opening scenes aptly present Ghalib’s problems with his creditors who frequently torment him with their demand for the return of their money, his domestic problems, the attitude of his contemporary poets and the place of Urdu mushaira in the cultural life of the enlightened people.
Yearning for love

In one of the scenes we see the interaction between Katiba and Ghalib which exudes intense yearnings for affection and love.


The last act takes place in the house of Ghalib when he returns after a year, dejected, broken and demoralised, from Kolkata after his appeal regarding his pension was rejected. Now he is under house arrest. . His arrest warrant is the result of his non payment of credit to one of his money-lenders.

Trivedi has handled his production in an intricate manner. He and his cast gradually build up a tense emotional atmosphere which enables the performers to reveal their inner world. Trivedi has aptly composed two sequences – Ghalib with his wife and Ghalib with Katiba – to reveal Ghalib’s bitter domestic life and his deep love for Katiba respectively.

His use of minimal sets and properties ensure unobstructed movements of performers. Bajaj’s production of this play was more sophisticated, rich in production values but it was more verbal and tending to be verbose at places while Trivedi’s production is suffused with poignancy that touches human heart.

Prashant Singh is cast as Ghalib while Meena Meer as Umrao and Rachna Joshi as Aapa the sympathetic sister of Umrao create impressive portraits of their characters. Alka Moga as Katiba imparts subtle touches to the characterisation of a woman in deep love.

Her voice is soft and melodious and her smile wistful, her movements delicate and her facial expressions nuanced. N.K. Pant as Parvez, a barber aspiring to be a poet, offers moments of laughter with a tinge of irony produced by common man’s inability to realise his dreams.