BASAVANAGUDI: Surya Kalavidaru, which turns 36 on Saturday, probably speaks for the relevance of theatre in the age of TV serials.
“Television has changed everything, but theatre has managed to adapt to changes and survive,” says Sanjay Suri, who launched the drama troupe in 1979 as Ravi Kalavidaru.
“We did a few original plays and adaptations in the early days,” says Suri who banks on technology to ensure that theatre finds acceptance.
Today, the entire background is recorded and played during performances since few troupes have the manpower to change sets and costumes during the course of a play, according to Suri.
This is a far cry from the days when Suri started out. He left Tiptur for Bengaluru as a 22-year-old in 1969. “I was drawn to theatre and worked for the Gubbi Veeranna studios, Benaka and Spandana,” says Suri, who made a living as a booking clerk first at Nanda Cinema in Jayanagar and Sanjaya on K R Road. “With my frequent absence, my employer sent me a notice asking me to decide whether I wanted to continue as a booking clerk or join theatre. I then got an offer to play a part in Ondanondu Kaaladalli and Girish Karnad. And after a letter from Karnad, I was relieved and thus made my film debut,” says Suri, who has acted in several movies, plays and tele-serials.
Today, Surya Kalavidaru boasts of more than 30 permanent members including his sons Vikram, Nandakishore and Raghavendra, wife Shakuntala, daughters-in-law Namitha Rao and Meena and grandchildren Shweta and Sanketh. It has performed at several venues in the country and abroad, including the Gulf and AKKA events in the USA.
Having started as a theatre troupe, Surya Kalavidaru even presents dance ballets today. “I introduced my son Vikram to dance at an early age and as he became part of the troupe, we began to perform ballets too,” says Suri.
“My father introduced me to theatre very early in life and the drama workshops at Prema Karanth’s Benaka were an annual feature for us. It helped us learn every aspect of theatre, from sets to lighting to make-up,” says Vikram, who with his wife Namitha performs various styles of ballet depending on the organisers’ preferences.
At the 36th annual function on Saturday, the troupe has dedicated a performance, Bhima Vijaya, to T V Gopinath Das, Harikatha vidwan and founder of Prabath Kalavidaru, in his birth centenary year.
* 36th anniversary of Surya Kalavidaru, today, 6pm, ADA Rangamandira