Bhanu Bharti
Encyclopedia
Bhanu Bharti is an eminent India
n theatre director and playwright, and the founder-director of Aaj Rangmandal theatre group. Most known for his theatre productions and choreographies with tribal and folk artists, including Pashu Gayatri by K.N. Panikkar, Kaal Katha and Amar Beej all based on rituals of the Bhil tribe
of Mewar
region of Rajasthan
, apart from Chandrama Singh urf Chamku Das, Yamgatha and Aks-Tamasha, counting to over 70 plays in a career spanning nearly four decades.
, Rajasthan
. He graduated from National School of Drama
in 1973, bagging the Best all Round student and the best Director awards. Later he studied traditional theatre of Japan at the University of Tokyo
. He is also the younger brother of theatre director, and former Director of NSD
, Mohan Maharishi
.
.
Bhanu Bharti headed the Drama Department of Rajasthan University, Jaipur, from its inception in 1976 till 1978. He has also taught dramatic literature, scenic design, and acting in many renowned institutions, including NSD. He has served as the Director of the Shri Ram Centre for Performing Arts, Delhi, and headed Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal
, Udaipur
and worked with Bhil
tribesmen of the Gogunda belt near Udaipur. He was also the Chairman of Rajasthan Sangeet Natak Akademi and the Rajasthan Sahitya Akademi.
An artist who is perceptive enough to reveal inner psychological world of characters and the inherent philosophic and mythical undercurrents of drama, Bhanu had directed number of plays to provide his view point on many relevant social issues and worked with both rural and urban breed of actors and thus, gave Indian Theatre a new meaning altogether.
In 2004, a three-day theatre festival of his plays was held at Tagore theatre, Chandigarh
. His 2010 play, Doobi Ladki brings together three short stories by Russian writer Nikolai Gogol
, including May Night, or the Drowned Maiden, The Overcoat
, and The Nose
in the year 1997 given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi
, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama and Rajasthan Sahitya Akademi Award.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n theatre director and playwright, and the founder-director of Aaj Rangmandal theatre group. Most known for his theatre productions and choreographies with tribal and folk artists, including Pashu Gayatri by K.N. Panikkar, Kaal Katha and Amar Beej all based on rituals of the Bhil tribe
Bhil
Bhils are primarily an Adivasi people of Central India. Bhils are also settled in the Tharparkar District of Sindh, Pakistan. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages....
of Mewar
Mewar
Mewar is a region of south-central Rajasthan state in western India. It includes the present-day districts of Pratapgarh, Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Dungarpur, Banswara and some of the part of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. The region was for centuries a Rajput kingdom that later...
region of Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
, apart from Chandrama Singh urf Chamku Das, Yamgatha and Aks-Tamasha, counting to over 70 plays in a career spanning nearly four decades.
Early life and education
Bhanu Bharti was born in 1947 in AjmerAjmer
Ajmer , formerly written as Ajmere, is a city in Ajmer District in Rajasthan state in India. Ajmer has a population of around 800,000 , and is located west of the Rajasthan state capital Jaipur, 200 km from Jodhpur, 274 km from Udaipur, 439 km from Jaisalmer, and 391 km from...
, Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
. He graduated from National School of Drama
National School of Drama
National School of Drama is a theatre training institute situated at New Delhi, India, established . It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 1959 by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and became an independent school in 1975...
in 1973, bagging the Best all Round student and the best Director awards. Later he studied traditional theatre of Japan at the University of Tokyo
University of Tokyo
, abbreviated as , is a major research university located in Tokyo, Japan. The University has 10 faculties with a total of around 30,000 students, 2,100 of whom are foreign. Its five campuses are in Hongō, Komaba, Kashiwa, Shirokane and Nakano. It is considered to be the most prestigious university...
. He is also the younger brother of theatre director, and former Director of NSD
National School of Drama
National School of Drama is a theatre training institute situated at New Delhi, India, established . It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 1959 by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and became an independent school in 1975...
, Mohan Maharishi
Mohan Maharishi
Mohan Maharishi is an Indian theatre director, actor and a playwright. He was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for 'Direction' in 1992.-Early life:...
.
Career
He has over fifty productions to his credit. His major works are: Chandrama Singh urf Chamku, Ras Gandharva, Azar Ka Khwab, and Yamgatha. His productions like Pashu Gayatri, Kai Katha, and Amar Beej are based on his study of the performances and rituals of the Bheel tribe of the Mewar region of Rajasthan. He has also directed a film on Gavari, the dance theatre of the BhilBhil
Bhils are primarily an Adivasi people of Central India. Bhils are also settled in the Tharparkar District of Sindh, Pakistan. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages....
.
Bhanu Bharti headed the Drama Department of Rajasthan University, Jaipur, from its inception in 1976 till 1978. He has also taught dramatic literature, scenic design, and acting in many renowned institutions, including NSD. He has served as the Director of the Shri Ram Centre for Performing Arts, Delhi, and headed Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal
Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal
Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal is a cultural institution based in Udaipur in Rajasthan state in India engaged in studying folk art, culture, songs and festivals of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh and to popularise and propagate folk arts, folk dances and folk literature. It was set up in 1952 by...
, Udaipur
Udaipur
Udaipur , also known as the City of Lakes, is a city, a Municipal Council and the administrative headquarters of the Udaipur district in the state of Rajasthan in western India. It is located southwest of the state capital, Jaipur, west of Kota, and northeast from Ahmedabad...
and worked with Bhil
Bhil
Bhils are primarily an Adivasi people of Central India. Bhils are also settled in the Tharparkar District of Sindh, Pakistan. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages....
tribesmen of the Gogunda belt near Udaipur. He was also the Chairman of Rajasthan Sangeet Natak Akademi and the Rajasthan Sahitya Akademi.
An artist who is perceptive enough to reveal inner psychological world of characters and the inherent philosophic and mythical undercurrents of drama, Bhanu had directed number of plays to provide his view point on many relevant social issues and worked with both rural and urban breed of actors and thus, gave Indian Theatre a new meaning altogether.
In 2004, a three-day theatre festival of his plays was held at Tagore theatre, Chandigarh
Chandigarh
Chandigarh is a union territory of India that serves as the capital of two states, Haryana and Punjab. The name Chandigarh translates as "The Fort of Chandi". The name is from an ancient temple called Chandi Mandir, devoted to the Hindu goddess Chandi, in the city...
. His 2010 play, Doobi Ladki brings together three short stories by Russian writer Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol was a Ukrainian-born Russian dramatist and novelist.Considered by his contemporaries one of the preeminent figures of the natural school of Russian literary realism, later critics have found in Gogol's work a fundamentally romantic sensibility, with strains of Surrealism...
, including May Night, or the Drowned Maiden, The Overcoat
The Overcoat
"The Overcoat" is the title of a short story by Ukrainian-born Russian author Nikolai Gogol, published in 1842. The story and its author have had great influence on Russian literature, thus spawning Fyodor Dostoyevsky's famous quote: "We all come out from Gogol's 'Overcoat'." The story has been...
, and The Nose
Awards
Bhanu Bharti has been honored with many prestigious National Awards for his contribution to the field of theatre including the Sangeet Natak Akademi AwardSangeet Natak Akademi Award
Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama. It is the highest Indian recognition given to practicing artists. The award consists since 2003 of Rs. 50,000, a citation, an angavastram , and a tamrapatra...
in the year 1997 given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India.-History:...
, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama and Rajasthan Sahitya Akademi Award.