Art under attack?

Napa blames law and order for the academy’s depreciating performance.

KARACHI:

The National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) is a one of a kind institution that teaches performing arts and produces outstanding theatrical plays. Unfortunately, in three years of theatre production, Napa Repertory Theatre (NRT) barely managed to break-even. This year, however, the situation is slightly different. Anjum Ayaz’s play “Begum Jan” was a success and ensured Napa did not go into a loss.

After its success, “Begum Jan” was set to return after Eid, but the worsening law and order situation of the city compelled the organisers to cancel the play.

“Who will come to watch a play in such trying conditions?” inquires legendary actor Rahat Kazmi, who is also the director of NRT. “Only a handful of people come to watch our plays anyway, and if the city’s situation is not stable then it is pointless to perform,” he adds.

The Pakistani version of “Begum Jan” (originally written by Indian writer Javed Siddiqi) included as its cast well-known TV actors like Naila Jaafri and Nimra Bucha along with Ali Shaikh, who is a graduate of Napa. The play ran for 10 consecutive days and received great response after which the academy decided to stage it again — a plan that couldn’t follow through due to the unavailability of the venue and then, the actors.

“Law and order was one problem but even if we had chosen to perform, the Arts Council was not available and in the days when the Council was available, our actors were busy with other projects,” complains Kazmi.

Napa — which Kazmi had stated, aims to produce six plays a year — has not been meeting the target number of plays since last year. NRT performed four plays in 2010 and with only four months remaining till the end of this year, they have only managed to organise three theatre productions.

“I know we are supposed to do six plays, but I can’t help the back-to-back bookings of the Arts Council and the situation in general,” Kazmi reiterates.

When asked why Napa can’t opt for a venue like Shanzay Auditorium, located near Ayesha Manzil, which has more capacity and a revolving stage, Kazmi replies, “I personally visited Shanzay Auditorium and while there is no doubt it is a decent venue, it’s not feasible for the class we cater to.”

Further elaborating on the matter, he explains that although the attendance at Napa plays is low, they still have created a market of their own. Still, Kazmi adds, NRT is planning to perform its upcoming plays at different venues, so that more people are exposed to theatre.

“From now on, we plan to perform at the Arts Council for 10 days and three days at an alternate venue, so that we can assess if we have a market; although nothing is final as yet.”

According to sources, Napa will be performing one more play this year directed by Chairman of Napa, the well versed, veteran artist Zia Mohyeddin. “The lion is out of the den,” says Kazmi about the legend’s return to theatre direction.

“Theatre lovers should get ready as Mohyeddin Sahab is all set to direct Agha Hashar’s ‘Naek Parveen’. The audience will get to hear the details of it soon,” Kazmi says.

Napa has made a considerable amount of contribution to the new wave of theatre in Pakistan, however, their zeal and enthusiasm to produce quality plays seems to be decreasing with time. According to Kazmi the company is supposed to perform six plays in a year, yet they fail to meet their goals and get the bookings of a venue right across their campus. NRT produced four plays instead of six in 2010 and they are now restricting themselves to only four in 2011.

However, what is even worse is that a large group of people are not aware that an academy run by our very own legendary artists exists in the city — an academy which charges nominal fees to teach the performing arts. It is high time Napa revises its policies and more importantly its marketing strategy if it wants to reach out to the masses.

Theatre and art in general would be plunged into obscurity if an academy like Napa takes a back seat during a time when people need quality entertainment the most. It is the success of institutions like Napa that will rekindle the government’s interest in the long neglected field of performing arts and lead to further investment in the field of arts and theatre.



Published in The Express Tribune, September 13^th, 2011.