VIZIANAGARAM: It may be a little easy for a male actor to impress the audience in a female character. But it is not the same with a female to portray a male character that too in mythological dramas, and more particularly when it is a stage performance.
Be it the role of Satya Harischandra or Lord Rama or Arjuna, 41-year-old Koppara Mangadevi of Balagudaba village in Parvathipuram mandal of Vizianagaram district plays it to perfection. Though folk arts like Harikatha, Burrakatha, Tappeta Gullu and theatre art have lost their sheen in other parts of the State, they enjoy a good patronage in Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts of North Andhra.
Mangadevi has been playing the lead character of Harichandra in mythological drama Satya Harichandra for quite a long time and mesmerising the audience with her performance and voice.Though it is difficult to sing poems in mythological drama in male voice, her practice, hard work, commitment and interest towards the theatre have enabled her steal the show. She has given more than 3,000 stage shows across the country so far.
Mangadevi started acting in plays ever since she was in Class VII. Her first role was that of Chandramathi, wife of Harischandra. However, on her father Chinnam Naidu’s insistence to play the role of Harischandra, she donned the character and won accolades from the audience.
Later on, she started playing male lead characters Rama in Sri Ramanjaneya Yuddham and Arjuna in Gayopakhyanam dramas. She had also acted in a movie based on the story of Satya Harischandra directed by her mentor Yadla Gopala Rao. However, the movie has not been screened yet.She used to give 20 to 25 stage shows a month before the outbreak of Covid-19.
Now, she is giving three to five stage shows per month.Speaking to The New Indian Express, Mangadevi said, “I played Harischandra role as per my father’s wish in childhood. I have been donning male characters for the past two-and-a-half decades with the support of my family members. My father and husband have played a key role in my success in male characters in mythological dramas.”
Mangadevi went on to add, “Sometimes I wonder as to how my voice changes as a male when I come on to the stage. I feel it is God’s gift.” “There were several instances when the audience expressed surprise on knowing that the lead male character in the drama is played by me,’’ she said.
Further, the stage artiste said that she recently got an offer from a film producer to act in his movie as he was impressed by my performance. Now, there is no support from the government to stage art. “Theatre art will flourish only when it gets total support from the government,’’ Mangadevi opined.