The other side of Faiz

‘Rozan-e-Zindan Se’ explores the tumultuous time during which the poet was jailed.

LAHORE:

Ajoka Theatre’s latest play, “Rozan-e-Zindan Se”, which premiered on February 13, paid tribute to the legendary poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz as part of their centennial celebrations that are taking place across the country to remember the poet. With their 1985 play “Yah pay Sheher Ko Dehko” based on Faiz’s musings, the Ajoka Theatre group has become well-known for bringing the poet’s work on to the stage.

“It’s a good thing that people are remembering the poetic genius of Faiz, especially by reciting poems such as ‘Hum Dekhain Gay’. However, our aim for the play was to highlight the other facets of his personality,” said Madiha Gauhar, the Director of Ajoka Theatre.

Set during the time period of 1951-1955, the play explored the correspondence that took place between Faiz and his wife Alys while he was jailed. Ajoka’s veteran writer, Shahid Nadeem, who edited and pulled selections from letters said about the play, “It highlights how progressive intellectuals and thinkers were persecuted during that time. It also details how Pakistan was sold to the American camp during the Cold War period.”

Using a rather simplistic set design, which included two small desks, a projector and spotlights on the stage, the play was defined more by the powerful narration and classical dance performances. Regarding the stage, Gauhar said, “The point of keeping it simple was so that people who may be familiar with his poetry recognise the ideological context behind his prose.”

With all the emphasis relying primarily on narration, one would have great expectations from the primary protagonists. And Naeem Tahir who plays Faiz and Yasmin Tahir who portrays Alys, did the roles justice and provided impeccable narration.

The three-hour long dialogue between the two characters, show not only Faiz’s stay in jail but the emotional context in which the poet conceived many of his major works. The discussions vary from legal matters, the solidarity of loyal friends, the political affairs of Pakistan and the world, their two daughters and the hopes of reuniting.

Everything aside, the on-stage chemistry of the two narrators brought these letters to life. The audience was able to see the romantic side of the poet which is defined by their mutual affection and courage of the couple amidst the state’s attempts at maligning the couple with “calls of public love-making”.

To add an artistic flair to the play, there were brilliantly choreographed dances from performers such as Nighat Chaudary and Wahab Shah. This came as a wonderful surprise as never before have any theatre groups paid tribute to Faiz through dance. The background score was based on the audio recordings of Faiz’s poems which were sung and recited by great artists such as Tina Sani, Zia Mohyeddin, Madam Noor Jehan and Nayyara Noor.

Despite the play moving the audience to tears, the real downer was the low turnout. It would’ve been great to see more people understand the context behind some of Faiz’s writings and get to know the woman who inspired and supported his masterpieces.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 15^th, 2012.