Usha Ganguli (1945 – 23 April 2020) was an Indian theatre director-actor and activist, most known for her work in
Hindi theatre in
Kolkata in the 1970s and 1980s. She founded ''
Rangakarmee
Rangakarmee – A Tradition, A Culture, A Movement is a noted Indian theatre group, based in Kolkata. The theatre group was founded in January, 1976 by Usha Ganguly. They spearhead Hindi theatre in Kolkata, they have also staged Bengali plays. ...
'' theatre group in 1976, known for its productions like ''Mahabhoj'', ''Rudali'', ''Court Martial'', and ''Antaryatra''.
Apart from thespian
Shyamanand Jalan of ''
Padatik'' (established 1972), she was the only other theatre director to practise
Hindi theatre in Kolkata, which is largely
Bengali speaking.
She was awarded the
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi
Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in Englis ...
for Direction, given by the
Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama in 1998. She was also honoured by the
West Bengal Government as the best actress for the play ''Gudia Ghar''.
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]
Early life and education
Born in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, into a family from the village of Nerva in Uttar Pradesh, Usha Ganguly learnt Bharatanatyam dance and later moved to Kolkata, where she studied at Shri Shikshayatan College, Kolkata and did her master's degree in Hindi literature.
Career
Ganguly began her career as a teacher at Bhowanipur Education Society College, Calcutta, an undergraduate college affiliated with the University of Calcutta, in 1970. Also in the same year, she started acting with ''Sangit Kala Mandir'' and also started work for her first play ''Mitti Ki Gadi'' (based on '' Mrichchakatikam'' by Shudrak) (1970), where she played the role of Vasantsena.[ Initially, since she was trained as a dancer, the group invited outside directors, like M.K. Raina, who directed ''Mother'', Tripti Mitra directed ''Gudia Ghar'', an adaptation of ]Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
's '' A Doll's House'', besides Rudra Prasad Sengupta and Bibhash Chakravorty, before she started directing herself, having trained under Tripti Mitra and Mrinal Sen.
Ganguly started directing in the 1980s and soon her energetic style and disciplined ensemble work with young, large casts brought a resurgence of Hindi theatre in the city. Her important productions included ''Mahabhoj'' (Great Feast) in 1984, based on Mannu Bhandari novel, Ratnakar Matkari's ''Lokkatha'' (Folktale) in 1987, ''Holi'' by playwright Mahesh Elkunchwar
Mahesh Elkunchwar (born 9 October 1939) is an Indian playwright and screenplay writer in Marathi language with more than 20 plays to his name, in addition to his theoretical writings, critical works, and his active work in India's ''Parallel Cin ...
in 1989, and ''Rudali'' (1992), her own dramatised version of a story by Mahashweta Devi, ''Himmat Mai'', an adaptation of Brecht's '' Mother Courage'' and notably ''Court Martial'' written by playwright Swadesh Deepak
Swadesh Deepak (born 1943) is an Indian playwright, novelist and short-story writer. Deepak has been active on the Hindi literary scene since the mid-1960s and is best known for ''Court Martial,'' a 1991 play. Deepak's most recent book is ''Maine ...
.[ She wrote a play ''Kashinama'' (2003), based on a story, ''Kaane Kaun Kumati Lagi'' from the Kashinath Singh's classic work, ''Kashi Ka Assi'' and an original play ''Khoj''.
She also worked on the script of '' Raincoat'' (2004) a Hindi film based on O Henry's '' The Gift of the Magi'', directed by Rituparno Ghosh.
In the coming years, she also translated and adapted plays into Hindi. Rangakarmee started its education wing in the 1990s, today it regularly takes its repertoire on tours across India and undertakes education extension activities in theatre with underprivileged people.
In 2005, Rangkarmee was the only Indian theatre group to perform at the Theatre der Welt Festival in Stuttgart, Germany.][ It staged the play ''Rudali'' at "Punj Pani festival" at Lahore in 2006. The group staged its first multilingual production, ''Bhor'' about the minds of inmates of a drug rehab centre in August 2010.
]
Plays
* ''Mahabhoj'' (The Great Feast) (1984)
* ''Lok Katha'' (Folk Tale) (1987)
* ''Holi'' (1989)
* ''Court Martial'' (1991)
* ''Rudali'' (The Mourner) (1992)
* ''Himmat Mai'' ( Mother Courage) (1998)
* ''Mukti'' (1999)
* ''Shobhayatra'' (2000)
* ''Kashinama'' (2003)
* ''Chandalika''
* ''Sarhad Par Manto''
* ''Manasi'' (in Bengali) (2011)
*
Works
* ''Rudali'' (play based on Mahashweta Devi's story), Radhakrishna Prakashan, 2004. .
Works
* ''antarmahal'',
Further reading
* ''Rudali: from fiction to performance'', by Mahashweta Devi, Usha Ganguli, Anjum Katyal. Seagull Books, 1997. .
References
*
External links
Rangkarmee, website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ganguly, Usha
Indian theatre directors
Indian stage actresses
Actresses from Rajasthan
1945 births
2020 deaths
Actresses from Kolkata
Indian women activists
Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
Hindi theatre
Shri Shikshayatan College alumni
University of Calcutta alumni
University of Calcutta faculty
Indian women theatre directors
20th-century Indian actresses
21st-century Indian actresses
People from Jodhpur