Table Of ContentThe Migration of a Text:
The Indar Sabha in Print and Performance!
KATHRYNHANSEN
T
raditional modes of communication, particularly those found in India's pre
modern theatre forms,served toentertainlarge groupsofpeople long beforethe
adventofthe mass media.Although theatricalactivityspreadtothemetropolitan
areasandacceleratedafter1850,ithad forseveralcenturiesbeenprevalentthroughoutthe
subcontinent,and many linguisticregionspossessedwell-establishedgenresoftheatrical
performance. In the northern Indo-Gangetic plain alone. there were first the religious
dramas, the Ram Lila and the Ras Lila,whichinculcated devotionto sectariandivinities
through pageantry. music. and dance. These could take on either a courtly or popular
character.Vaishnava dramas werepatronizedbytheroyalfamiliesofMithlla.Nepal.and
Assam,whileinBanarastheRamLilaatRamnagarcameunder themaharaja'scontrolat
aboutthistime. Lesselaborateproductionswerestagedbyfolktroupesandlocalresidents
who intermixed comedy and social satire with storiesof the gods. In the secularrealm,
entenainmentsrangedfrom theskitsperformed byNaqals,Bhands,andNatstothepoetic
dramas written in Braj, Marwari, Punjabi, and eventually Hindi and Urdu. Again royal
patronagewas significant:Rajputkings supportedtheKhyaltheatreineighteenth-century
Rajasthan, and the Rani ofJhansi's husband, Gangadbar Rao(r. 1835-1853),presented
Shakunrala and Harishchandra at court. Meanwhile in the coastal cities, new styles of
urban theatre emerged out of the encounter with British imperial culture. The modem
stage, first in English, then in Bengali, developed a following among the gentry of
Calcutta. In Bombay the Parsis spearheaded a more popularly oriented movement that
soonfanned outover thecountry,
These activities collectively constitute what Raymond Williams has called a
"community of forms",'an historically specific set of practices located in an evolving
socialenvironmenrt. Bythe 18805and '90s,changing conditions insocial life,politics.
the economy, and technology combined with evolving literary and artistic trends to
restructure this community of forms. One outcome was therise of apopularHindilUrdu
theatre tradition, Nautanki, about which [have written at length'. Nautanki can best be
understood as an intermediary form of theatre,a conduit in the cultural flow connecting
moreurbanized areas withthehinterland.Asthistheatreconveyedstories,poeticgenres.
tunes, beliefs,and values from one levelof society to another,itbridgedthe villagerand
thecity-dweller,theeducatedand theilliterate,theHinduandtheMuslim.Aportableand
SangeetNatakNos. 127~128, 1998
4 KATHRYNHANSEN
permeableart, Nautankicrossedboundariesandcreated aninterstitialcultural space.
Popular consumption of theatre has played a significant role in producing shared
valuesandsymbolsforatleastthelastseveral hundredyears.Although denigrated bythe
reformists.culturalphenomenalikethe lowbrowNautanki createdtheconnectivetissue
ofimages. tastes, andvalues thatunderlie the success ofthemass media inthe twentieth
century. In this essay also, I extend the investigation of how collective identities are
constructed,butonadifferent.somewhatbroadergeographicalcanvas.Thedramaknown
asthelndarSobha, reprintedscores oftimes.translatedintomany languages. andalive
onthestage throughthe 19405,transcended linguistic,temporal, and socialboundariesin
a way that prefigured theHindilUrdu popular cinema.Itis no coincidence thatitwas
transformed intoapan-Indianphenomenonby Parsitroupesfromthecommercialcentre
thatlaterproduced 'Bollywood' andtheworld'smostprolificfilm industry.Moreover,in
relationto ideas of portability andpermeability. the 'post-modem' characterization of
contemporary popular culture is appropriate for this early modem landscape as well.
Taking the performance and textual history of the lndar Sabha as a case in point, il
becomesapparentthatnotionsofmigration,diaspora,andhybridityareasrelevanttoan
understandingoflate-nineteenth-centurypopularconsumptionas theyaretomorerecent
cultural practices.
Amanatand the LucknowCourt
TheIndarSabha(TheAssemblyofIndra,hereafterIS)appears atatransitional moment
inthehistoryofnorthern India.Onthemostwidelyacceptedaccount,itwascomposedin
1853byAgha Hasan Amanat(1816-1859),apoet anached tothe court ofWajidAli Shah
atLucknow.AlthoughtheruleoftheNawabsofAwadhwastocometoaningloriousend
withinafewshortyears.WajidAliwasagenerousandcreativepatronofthearts,andhis
reign leftabrilliant legacyinthefieldsofdance, song,anddrama. lie nourishedtheIndo
Muslim style of Kathak, took the light classical song-form Thumri to a new level,
composed poetry underthe names of'Akhtar' and 'Ptya',and adapted both Persian-style
romances (masnavt; and Vaishnava dramas(lila) for hisown royal performances.Famed
forhishedonistichabits,among theBritish hegainednotorietyforspendingmoretimein
his harem, which he called aparikhana or 'house of fairies',than attending to affairs of
state,The bloodlessannexationof Awadh in 1856 besmirched his reputation permanently
andleftlaterIndiannationalistswithacutememoriesoflossandguilt-,
Intheeclectic style prevailing at his patron's salon, Amanat assimilatedGhazals,
Thurnris, and Awadhi folk songs to a narrative base drawn from several popular
masnavis,creatinganoriginalworkthatisstillcountedasthefirstdramainUrdu literary
history.Since the 1920s,Urdu critics havedebated theoriginofthe ISand theinfluences
thaimayhavecontributedtoit.Thedominantagendaofthesecriticscanbesaid.perhaps
notunfairly.tofocusfirstontheproblemofthe Islamictabooontheatricalrepresentation
and, secondly, todeterminethe rankofthisspecificdramawithin the Urdu literarycanon.
INDARS.~BHAL'IPRNT&:PERFOR.\IA."CE .
My purpose, on the otber hand, is to consider the largerlife of the IS as aphenomenon
that cut across boundaries. whether of religion. class. linguistic community. or the
category'literature' itself.
The nature of the boundary between courtly and popular performance arenas in the
nineteenth century. however, requires some comment if one is to comprehend the
movementoftheISacrossit,andinthissensethecareerofAmanatmayproveinstructive.
Alarge andrather consistent bodyof opinionasserts that Amanat wascommissioned to
writethe ISbythe Nawab afterthemodelofWesternopera,andthatthefirstperformance
of the drama occurred on the royal stage in Qaisar Bagh. Adding to this, some
commentatorssaythatWajidAliShahplayedthetitleroleofKingIndarinthedebut.This
view.accepted by the English-language historians of Urdu literature. Ram BabuSaksena
(1940). Annemarie Scbimmel (1975). and MuhammadSadiq(1984). as wellas ahost of
criticswritinginUrdu.stemsfrom NurIlahiand Muhammad Umar'sNasokSagar(1924),
acompendiumofworJddramaandthefirstsuchtobewritteninUrdut.
Interestingly, by the timeof the Natak Sagar'spublication.Ilahi andUmar'snotions
hadalreadycomeunderfirebyAbdulHalimSharar.thereputedchronicleroftheNawabi
era.Inthe NataleSagaritselfthey included along passage from anessay thatSharar had
previouslypublished in Dil Gudaz,togetherwith theirdetailed refutationof it.Asimilar
article by Ilahi and Umar, published in the journal of the Anjurnan-i Taraqqi-i Urdu in
1924.provoked anotherrejoinderbySharar".Sharar maintained thatAmanat.ratherthan
taking ordersfromthe Nawab orany foreigner, onhis own initiative hadimitatedthe
courtentertainmentscalledmhos orras,enactmentsofthedalliancebetweenRadhaand
the gopisand Lord Krishna.inwhichthe kingreputedly acted with his favourites".
In 1927.MasudHasan Rizvi 'Adib' addedhis voice to Sharar's, basinghisarguments
on what he considered the first edition of the play. to which Amanat had appended a
commentary (sharh). Later research by Rizvi took shape in two lengthy volumes under
thetitle UrduDrama allrlstej (1957). Bristlingat thenotionofWestern influence.Rizvi
rathersweepingly asserted that no European had access to the Nawab. He denied that
Amanatwas ever present atcourt. citing Fasahat, Arnanat's youngerson, who in1926
wrote thatasidefrom hisfather'sattachmenttoaSufisanctuaryfrom whichhereceived
astipend. he hadno connectiontoanydarbat". Further, Rizvipresentedevidencefrom
ta:J,irasandthepoet'soeuvretoshowthatAmanatsufferedparalysisandfrom theageof
twenty could not speak. in the commentary to the IS.for example,Amanat had written
thathehadbecomehouseboundbecauseofhiscondition.and from thisRizviattempted
toestablishthathewas neveractually presentatcourt. Finally, Rizviquoted Amanat's
first sonLatafatto theeffectthat his fatherhadcomposedtheISattherequest ofhisown
friendsv, Inthe absence ofany mention of Arnanat inWajidAli's many writings.Rizvi
concluded thatthere was noroyalcommand behindthedramaand nocourt performance.
Rizvis position has beeninfluential amongthe newergenerationofUrdu scholars.
6 KATHRYNHANSEN
whoperhapsare more eagerthantheirforebearsto establishtheindigenousrootsofthe
IS. IIis notdifficull 10see how denying foreign contact, particularly at the moment of
origin.fitsaparticularkindofnationalistnarrative.Withoutbelabouringtheissuefurther,
itseemslikely thatbothviews containsometruth.Theeventofcompositionmighthave
occurred overa period of time andamidsta combinationof circumstances: Amanat's
probable presence at court (whethermute or no), suggestions circulating about a new
operatic style. his desire to capture the Nawab's favour (possibly unsuccessful), and,
performancesinsideand/oroutsideweroyalcircle.ThedisgraceattachedtotheNawab's
narne b)' nationalists couldhelpexplain the later disavowalsb)' Amanat's sons.Perhaps
theywereattemptingtolegitimizetheirfather'sachievement.
Regardlessofthemeritsofthetwosides'claims,whatstandsOUt moststrikinglyisthe
fact that popular opinion until the 1920s firmly associated Amanat and the IS with the
Nawab of Lucknow, Wajid Ali Shah.Although in 1924 the issue ofthe drama's origins
did becomeatopicofdebatewithinasmallscholarlycoterie. in the period ofitsgreatest
publicfollowingtheIScarried withitahistory thatlinked ittothecourtatAwadhandto
theflamboyantpersonalityoftheNawab,Thathistory was recounted eagerly byaudience
members. b)' theatre personnel. and b)' educated observers alike. Writing in 1889,John
CampbellOman.aprofessorofnaturalscienceatGovernmentCollege.Lahore.reponed
afterviewingaperformance ofthe]S inAnarkalithatitwas"composed. itissaid.bya
Mussulman poet,bycommandofWajidAliShah ..."10Theopinionofthe NatakSagar
authors wasbasedlargelyontheoraltraditionsofKhurshedjiBaliwala, afamousactorof
thenineteenth-century Parsi theatre".A.YusufAli, inan article for the Royal Societyof
Literature in London, called Wajid Ali Shah and Arnanat "co-founders" of the modem
schoolofHindustanidramat-.
Thewidespreadperceptionofroyal originscouldbeasignificantfactorinexplaining
the IS's popularity,insofarasspectatorsbelievedtheywere beholding adirectlinktothe
Awadhcourtanditshedonisticambience.The famousdramaenjoyed the reputationof
offering something real. something historically verifiable about the monarchical past.
Moreover,thiswas apasttransformed,broughtclosertotheaudiencebyhavingcrossed
an imagined boundary between the court- where it hadits putative origins-and the
populace- whereitwaspresentlysituated.
TheStructureofthePia)'
Turningnow tothetextitself.itnaturallydividesintotwopans.Thesecondof these
comprises thestory proper, in which the Emerald Fairy (Sabz Pari) falls in love withan
earthly prince (Gulfam), tries to bring him to Indar's heaven, is caught b)' the king and
plunged to earth, and finally gains readmission and is united with her beloved.Thegod
Indra first appears in the Rig Veda and is still associated with rain and fertility in folk
beliefs and songsu, B)'late medieval timeshehad evolved into an emblem ofthelordly
monarch, oflen depicted surrounded b)' a harem of beautiful dancing girls. This Hindu
lNDARSABHAIS PRI:'IoT& PERFOR.\{AtI;CE 7
icon,with itssymbolic potency for India's Muslim kings, is wedded in the IS to astory
of Islamic origin. The theme of fairy-monal romance had long been a staple of the
narrativegenres inUrdu and Persianknown asqulssa,dastan,andmasnavi.Amanatmay
havemodelled his ploton two masnavisthatachievedparticular popularityearlier in the
nineteenth century.The romance ofprince Benazir and princess Badr-i Munir as told in
Sihr ul-bayan by Mir Hasan (1727-1786) was,in 1805,oneofthefirstUrdu booksever
printed.Itcouldbethesourcefor suchscenes in theISasthefairy's firstencounterwith
thesleeping prince,his befuddled awakening in the fairy world,the imprisonment of the
prince in the well,and thedisguise ofthe fairy as ajogin.A,later work,Gutzor-i Nasim
by Daya Shankar 'Nasim' (1837), itselfa reworking ofthe prose tale Gut-i Baka...ali or
Mazhab-i lshq by Nihal Chand, was said to be an effort at repeating Mir Hasan's
successt-.FromitAmanatmay haveborrowed thedescriptionof Indar'scourt,theking's
angerupon learning of the fairy's lovefora mortal,andotherpassages.
What sets the IS apart from its antecedents is the very simplicity of the story line.
Whereas long dastans contain embedded worlds with innumerable conquests and love
affairs, even the shorter tales generally include a subplot with a second pair of lovers,
useful for complications such as jealousy, mistaken identity, and so on. The IS plot is
restricted to a single pair of lovers, and the only serious obstacle they face is the king's
hostility.One aspectthat theIS shareswiththeearliernarratives.ontheotherhand,isthe
presenceofanactivefemaleashiq(lover)inthecharacterofthepari. Paris inthesestories
pursuetheir malelove-objects,declare their infatuationopenly,carry them away through
the air,and kissor touch them uninvited.Born of fire,possessed of the abilitytoappear
and disappear atwill,theyexert a kind ofpowerfulcontrolover the hero. not unlike the
demanding,high-statusBelovedof theUrdu ghazal.Thedifferenceisthat theBeloved of
theghaza!remains Other-distant,veiled,unobtainable.Thepari isalltoonear,forward,
and potentiallyoverpowering.
Thereductionofthenarrativeand,possibly,theconstructionoffeminineagencycould
pointtoarudimentary form ofrealism,areading buttressed by thepopularcommentarial
tradition.Forgenerations, ithas been maintained thatthe characterofIndarinthedrama
is based on the historical figure of Wajid Ali Shah. Some interpreters extend the
verisimilitude to the other characters as well. Gulfam's tenderness and passivity are
hereby explained as the character traits of his real-life counterparts, the princes at the
court. The effete environment in which they moved supposedly deprived them of
manliness and fortitude. The Sabz Pari similarly is said to resemble the courtesans of
Lueknow. She is depicted asfull of daring, vision,and determination, Additionally. she
usesaformofwomen'sspeech(zananibali)thatidentifiesherasamemberofaparticular
stratumofLucknowsocietyn.
Thisinterpretationgains supportfromthefirst(and incertain waysmoreoriginal)part
ofthedrama, in which Amanat recreates a darbarthat resembles Wajid Ali Shah'sown.
8 KATHRYNHANSEN
Intheopeningscene, Indarenjoyshimselfas heattends toa successionoflovelyfairies
who.onebyone,enter andperforma seriesofsongsanddancesbefore him.Inthisroyal
assembly,termedvariouslysabha,majlis,mehfil,andjalsa inthe text.thecharacterIndar
is interpellated as deity. king.patron.poet. and lover.One moment a fairy takes onthe
voice of a gopi in a Hori (a Bra] Bhasha song-form celebrating the spring festival)and
chidesShyarn(Krishna) fordrenchingherwithcoloureddye:
Palagikarjori
Shyammo sekhelonohori.
Claspingyour feetIbegofyou,
PleaseShyarn.don't playHoli withme!
Next she mourns the absence of her lover (piya, 'lover'. was one of Wajid Ali's pen
names) inthe genre specifictotherainymonthofSayan:
Bijari kichamak tarpave darave
Binpiyaghata nahinbhave,
Thelightning crashes.mybodythrashes.
Without myBelovedIPiya, Icannotenduretherainyseason.
Or in thecharacteristic pose ofan Urdu ghazal she complains ofher beloved's haughty
neglect:
Takarakesarkojan nadunmain10 1..:)'0 karun.
Kabtakfiraq-iJarkesadmesahakanm.
Whalshould Idobutdashmyhead [againstthewallofyourindifference)?
HowlongshouldIbear theblowsofseparationfrom the Beloved?
He. thepassivebut powerfulBeloved.emergesasamultivalent objectofdesire.
'Hindu' and 'Muslim' referents overlap as the ling's identity slips between Indar,
Krishna.and Nawab.The language ofthesongsandverses moves back and fortheasily
between Urdu,Braj,Awadhi.aod Khan Boli.Whetheronechooses to think ofthe ISas
a self-consciously syncretistic workor anunconsciousreflection ofthe hybrid cultureof
the Lucknowcourt, thedistancebetweenitandits sectarianantecedents-the Vaishnava
drama and poetry, the Sufi romantic allegories- is striking. The mystical overtones are
absent or converted into erotic pleasure bordering on parody. Although Ihe current
meaningsoftheword'secular' arenotentirelyappropriateinthiscontext,overthecourse
of time the IS was unproblematically consumed by diverse audiencesregardless of their
religious or communal affiliations. The relevant point is that the potential for this
pluralistic pattern of consumption is specifically encoded in the play's formal means of
Ill/DARSABHA INPRINT& PERFORMANCE 9
representation.
Indar's very presence onthe stage invites the spectator into ageneric courtlysetting
within which the drama unfolds. Given the structure of the play within the play. the
audience's sense of being a witness-indeed a participant-s-at court travels with the
performance regardlessof wherethestageissetor whoenacts theroleofIndar.Thetext
thussuggests anenduringfeatureof nineteenth-centurypopularculture asitmanifests in
countless expressive media. This is the fascination with royalty and its symbolism of
splendourand sensual pleasure,even as the political fortunes of the aristocracy were on
the decline.The courtly aesthetic with its opulent sets.costumes.etiquette, diction, and
abundance of feminine beauty dominate the era, providing a point of identification
initially for the pleasure-seeking nobility but eventually for spectators of more humble
origins.
Indeed,thepost-feudalaesthetic would provetobefar morepersuasivewiththelarge
populacethan theshifts inliteratureandart towardsdepiction ofthenewurbanelite and
itsconcerns.The reformistsmayhave spumedthis nostalgiaforthemonarchicalpastand
devalued works of popular theatre that represented it, but feudal attachments remained
strongamongthepublic well intothe twentiethcentury.
Withthebreakdown ofthestructureofroyalpatronageaftertheannexationofAwadh
and the post·1857 consolidation of British power, sophisticated styles of music, dance,
and poetry moved out. often through the mediation of popular theatre, to a restructured
entertainmenteconomy.Earlier. inthe days ofShuja ud-Daula, Lucknow had witnessed
an enormousinfluxof musicians and singing courtesans,a process whichaccelerated in
Wajid AliShah'slime.Then,afterthe fallofAwadh, thereensuedanexodusofthecourt
and the harem to Matiya Burj in Calcutta.With performers formerly employed atcourt
turning tothe rapidlygrowing theatre industry (andlaterthecinema) forsurvival,dance
andsong genressuchas Karnakdance.Thumri,and Ghazal-singing entered thepopular
arena.where theywerereadilyconsumedbyaudiencesattractedbytheirauraofprestige.
TheSpectatoras Consumerof Visual Culture
Searching thetext forclues toitsperformanceandreception.oneisstruckbythestrong
visual element which is conveyed at two levels: (1) through the language with its
concomitant suggestions of costume, and (2) through illustrations to the various printed
editions. The illustrations call for separate treatment. to which I will return. Even
audiences unfamiliar with theprinted book wouldhavebeen struckbythecolour-coding
contained inthe scriptand carried intothe productionby the stagedirectors.Inthe first
part, thesabha section perse, the fourfairies are named after monocoloured gemstones:
Pukhraj (topaz),Nilam(sapphire),Lal (ruby),andSabz(emerald). Each fairyisattiredin
clothesappropriatetohercolourandsingssongsthatdescribeherbeauty,refeningtothat
colour and its association with seasons, festivals, flowers, trees, and other elements of
nature.Thus the Topaz Fairy sings an item known as Basant (spring) inthe raga Bahar
10 KATHRYNHANSEN
(spring), celebratingher yellow outfitandreferringtomarigolds and the new blossomsof
the mustard plant (sarson).
As the pageant proceeds, the fairies assembled on stage fonn a rainbow. Theirsongs
suggest an abbreviated barabmasa. a favourite song-genre of the nineteenth century
depicting the twelve months of the year. Their serial performances could also be saidto
constitute afashion show, an early Miss India contest, wherein acting and singing talent
arejoinedwithcontrastsinappearanceandstyle.Itisquite possiblethat thisinitial section
of the drama foreshadows the variety show, now a ubiquitous genre of transnational
Indian popular culture. Opening acts in which song and dance items are performed to
settle the audience and warm them up for the main fare are a common feature of the
Nautanki, Tamasha, and other 'traditional' musical theatres, and could be either
antecedentsorheirs tothe IS'spractice.
Expanding now upon the idea of generic shifts, it is significant that the IS charts a
movementfrom theart oftraditionalnarrative with its emphasis on episodic elaboration,
extension through itemization, and verbal exhibitionism, to the late-nineteenth-century
genre ofmusical drama thatcharacterizedseveralregionsof Southand South-eastAsia.
Here narrative is attenuated, and the action is not plotted so much as incidental to set
pieces of song, dance, and poetry that seek repeated rounds of audience applause. The
second movement is the accompanying shift from a private'space to a public arena for
entertainment, and withit amove from an aural/oralto a visual mannerofconsumption.
Dastans with their endless illusions (tilasm), although recited in company, were often
enjoyed within the realm of personal fantasy, aided by consumption of opium!", The
theatre replaced the visions in the mind with visions on the stage. It constructed several
'gazes' or types of viewing relationship: that between performers on the stage, that
between performers and the public, and that among members who consitituted that
public!".
Blending the modalities of 'concert' (sabha) and· 'poetic assembly' (mehfil) with
'exhibition' (jalsa, tamasha), theIS manifeststhe intersectingrealmsofthe aural and the
visual. The gaze operates here at multiple levels even without the complication of a
performance ofthe IS within the historical court ofWajid Ali Shah. The fairies perform
for and bestow their 'sidelong glances' (tirchhi nigahen) not only upon the king but also
upon the audience. Audience members look atthe king and at the entertainingfairies, as
wellasateach other. And Indarhimselfpresidesoverandgazesupon allthoseassembled.
These mutual gazes in tandem with the celebrationof longing in poetry and song create
an 'eroticcomplicity' betweenperformers and spectatorsu.
Indar'spresence, areminderoftheglorious post-Mughalpast, couldalso bedescribed
aspedagogical. He instructshisaudience inthe artofocularconsumption. Hispositionin
the drama as patron and admirer of a bevy ofcolour-coordinated beauties constructs an
imagined self, generating the desires ofthe emerging consumer. not only for theatrical
INDARSABHA INPRI~& PERFORMANCE II
entertainments but, by extension, for twentieth-century cinema, print journalism (filrni
and fashion magazines).andromanticpulpfiction.
The PerformanceRecord
Although a reliable written record of the lS's performance history is not available,
sufficient highlightsof thedrama'sstage life are preserved to assembleat leasta partial
picture.Mostcommentators note that Amanat's dramaearned immediate fameandsoon
appeared on stages all over India. Yet there is a gap between the date of composition,
1853,and whatappears tobethe firslParsitroupe performance inBombayin186-1.One
can onlyconjecture howthe play reached Bombay from Lucknow. Rizvi,referring to a
qita of Amanat's in the first edition of the IS, maintains that the drama had already
become famous bythe timeit was published and was widely imitated andcommitted to
memory.Professional troupes were established in Lucknow, fanningout intotownsand
villages in order to perform it. Performances were known by the names of the troupe
organizers,e.g.Hafiz kiIndarSabha,lawaharkiIndarSabha. Competitionswere held.
suchassimultaneousshowsonoppositesidesoftheHusainabadtank,toseewhichtroupe
couldattract the largestcrowdw. Rizvi'sassertionsare consonantwithhis interpretation
oftheISasanessentiallyawami(people's)phenomenon.However,hefailstoaddressthe
disturbances in Lucknow inthe period 1856-1858,resultingfrom the fallof Awadh and
the 1857uprising,andwhateffecttheymayhavehadonplayproductionandattendance.
Saksena implies that these events caused the migration of the IS. asserting, "With the
depositionanddeportationof \VajidAli Shah festivitiesandfrolicsatQaisarBaghcame
to anend.lnder Sabha (sic]foundnohomeatLucknow withitsturmoilandtribulations
andittravelled forth 10 Bombay."20
Accordingto Abdul Alim Nami,the first Bombay performance was presented by the
Alfred Natak Mandali inits second phase under Nanabhai Rustamji Raninaand Manikji
Jivanji Masterin 186421•This Parsicompany wasoneofthefirst toswitchfromEnglish
and Gujarati plays to Urdu, retaining Muhammad Ali Ibrahimji Bohra as scriptwriter.
They also toured Hyderabad and Madras and began regular tours to Delhi, Agra and
Lahore in 1861. Although Namioffers nodetailsabout the ISperformance,he observes
thattheAlfredwasalsothefirstcompanytoemploymechanicaldevicestocreatespecial
effects22• Another chronicler, Masihuzzaman, does not name the company. but he
confirmsthata 1864Grant Roadperformance wasthefirstinwhichtheISwaspresented
onaproscenium stage with afrontal curtain. lie indicatesthattheplay hadbeenadapted
forthispurposebybeingdividedintofivescenes.ThefirstsceneendedwhenKingIndar
goestosleepafter viewingtheSabzPari'sdanceD.
The next memorable performance was the 1873 Bombay production by the
Elphinstone Dramatic Club under the direction of KunvarjiNazir(aka C.S. or Cooverji
Seth Nazirj>',Lightingadded a new dimension, enhancing the visualeffects.According
toMemuna Dalvi,"Tocreate theeffectof themarvellous,lime light (Eng.]wasused,so
12 KATHRYNHANSEN
that as each fairy entered Raja Indar's court, the entire scene was bathed inthe lightof
that fairy's garments. The spectators were beside themselves and burst into spontaneous
applause." (translation mine) The music also received special attention, with the whole
apparently being performed in one "rag-ragini'to. Gulfam was played by N.N. Parakh,
Sabz ParibyShyavakshRustarnjiMaster, and Indarby Khurshedji BehrarnjiHathirame,
If Somnath Gupta's chronology is accurate, it was in the following year that Nazir
introduced the IS to Calcutta theatre audiences during a tour of the long-lived Victoria
Natak Mandali, one of the most successful troupes of this period. In Bombay, the
companyhad already earned considerable fame by presenting Gujarati plays directedby
K.N.Kabra,butwhenDadiPateltookover in 1871,hebeganexperimentingwithdramas
in Hindustani, often translations from Gujarati prepared by Edalji Khori. The concept
'Urdu opera'achievedpopularitywiththecompany'sproductionofBenazirBadreMunir,
written by Nasharvanji Meharvanji Khan and starring Khurshedji Baliwalaand Pestanji
FrarnjiMadan(1871).In1872,attheinvitation ofSirSalarlang,Dadi Patel ledthetroupe
on aroyally sponsored visitto Hyderabad, which included a special performance inthe
palace harem. In 1873,C.S.Nazir took over the companyat.
Thecircumstances oftheCalcutta performance were the following:
From Lucknowthetroupe arrived in Calcutta, where they stayed in a Parsi family
mansion.Before1874,noParsitheatricalcompanyhadvisitedCalcutta. Nazirjirented
theLewisTheatreonChowringheeRoad,laterknownastheRoyal Theatre.
Bengalisareofcourseextremelyfondofmusic,andtheyawaitedtheParsisingers
withutmosteagerness.Several eminent Bengali singers invited the Parsi singers to
their homes,wheretheydiscussed anumber of matters pertaining to music. At that
timeinBengal,theorgan[Eng.]wascommonly used, whereas in Bombay thetabla
andsarangiwerefavoured,withonlyoccasional useofthefiddle [Eng.].Theeffectof
these discussions was that the Parsi musicians were deemed deficient in their
knowledgeof classicalmusic, leaving a bad impression on the Bengalis. Baliwala
clearlyindicatedthisdeficiencyto KunvarjiNazir, and he became disheartened and
perplexed.ThenhetookthebullbythehornsandbeganpreparationsfortheoperaIS.
Hesenttelegramsto Delhisummoning Dadibhai Ratanji Thunthi, Dr. Narsharvanji
Navroji Parakh, and Dosabhai Dubash. The speciality of these three was that they
couldenact theISanywhere,underanyconditions. They had particular expertise in
thisdrama.
TheISwasperfonned successfullyinCalcutta.The partofRaja Indarwas played
byDadiThunthi,GulfambyDr.Parakh,andLalDevbyDosabhai Dubash. Dadibhai
Thunthi's singing, acting, and attractive appearance impressed the audience
tremendously. But jealousies cropped up among the actors. Dosabhai Mangol and
KhurshedBaliwala,whoordinarilyplayedtherolesofIndarandGulfam respectively,
wereupsetthattheydidnotgetachancetopertorm.ts
(translation mine)
