Comedian Babu Baral’s family struck with poverty

Circumstances force stage veteran’s 17-year-old daughter Tabeer to quit school and take up stage performances

LAHORE:

Theatre has long been symbolised by comedy and tragedy masks, but for Pakistani stage performers, they connote a deeper reality. As they take to the stage wearing an unflinching smile, luring audiences with their dialogue delivery and dance moves, defenseless in the face of jests and name-calling, they put on an act more than they act. While some opt for the profession by will, others have no choice but to perform on stage to make ends meet. Who would have thought the daughter of stage and comedy legend, the late Babu Baral, would face this conundrum?

Powerless in the face of hardship, Babu’s widow Sobia was left with no choice but to get their 17-year-old daughter Tabeer to quit school and take up stage performances. “My daughter was innocent and not trained in dancing or acting, but it was due to our financial condition that she had to turn to the stage,” said Sobia. Tabeer was pursuing her O Levels at City School in Lahore. Since Babu’s demise, life has been tumultuous for the Baral family. Sobia, along with two daughters and two sons, resides in a rented house of 545 square feet, struggling to get past every day. Their lives have never been harder.





But come what may, Tabeer is determined to do her best for her family. She suffered an injury during a performance last week but continued with it and has been working in different theatres across the city. “I injured my knee and have been in pain but I have no time for illness as I run my family with the money I earn through performances,” she said. “I am the only one responsible for the education and wellbeing of my younger sister as our relatives avoid visiting us after my father’s death,” she added.

Being the elder daughter, Tabeer does her best to provide sustenance for her family and began with stitching clothes. She also gave tuitions to school-going children but “poverty and crises” forced her to pivot towards the stage. “I am lucky that there are still good people in the field and have lent their support to me in terms of acting and honour me due to my father. I have gotten a number of opportunities to perform on stage over the past few months and some production bigwigs have also contacted me to perform.”

But the young Tabeer continues to hope for the ‘tabeer’ of her dreams. “I wanted to give CSS exams. It was always my dream and my father did his best for our education. I could have never imagined we would see such difficult times,” she stated. “I am educated and belong to a family that has always worked hard. I am hopeful that I will be able to pull my family out of this misery one day.”



And then, she posed a question many still find unfathomable. “I ask the governmental authorities what they are doing for the artists of our country. My father spent his whole life representing the country and contributing to the field. It is painful that my dreams have been destroyed just because of poverty.” She further said, “It is shameful that artists are forced to send their daughters to perform on stage due to poverty and the onus is on the government.” Sobia added, “After two years of constant struggle following the death of my husband, the government extended support to me by offering Rs75,000.”

As if it was not tough enough to venture into stage, the people in Tabeer’s life have not made it any easier for her. “I have made a name for myself on the basis of my talent but a few relatives have been blaming me for earning a bad name for my family by performing and dancing on stage,” she shared. “I fail to understand the hypocrisy in our society. I will make sure I do not succumb to any pressure or perform any vulgar songs on the stage. I am only inspired by my father and feel acting on stage is nothing short of an art.”



Born Ayub Akhtar, Babu began his career as a comedian from Gujranwala and soon shot to fame with plays such as Shartiya Mithay to his credit. He reigned over commercial theatre for around 25 years but governmental authorities did little to glorify his legacy. “They [stage performances] do not pay well enough but I am hopeful that good days are to come and that my daughter will be a star, just like her father,” Sobia said. 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 7^th, 2016.

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