A Vanishing Theatre Art Form Of Kashmir Valley

Bhaand Culture Is Disappearing.

- Maharaaj K. Koul

A lesser-known casualty of conflict in the Kashmir Valley is the Bhand Pather a dramatic art form performed for centuries by the wandering troupes of actors across the Valley. After closing down the cinema theatres and forcibly shutting wine shops, terrorists in the Valley decreed that acting was “un-Islamic”.

On the evening of 17 June 1993, Shameema, a TV artiste and news anchor in her early 30s, was found murdered on the banks of the river Jhelum in Srinagar, killed by terrorists. When her body was lowered into her grave, there were fewer than 10 mourners to offer the funeral prayers. Terrified, the old Bhaands (performers) were pushed into penury while the younger ones started working as daily-wagers and small traders. Thus, after the closure of cinema theatres Bhand Pather, the only other medium of entertainment of art, was silenced by the gun-wielding terrorists and marauders.

A Delhi-based Kashmiri Pandit theatre personality, actor and director M. K. Raina, has been tirelessly working for the revival of this ancient art form of Kashmir. He held a workshop in collaboration with the India Foundation for Arts in Srinagar in 2005. “I was working for a small opening to bring back Kashmiri culture,” says Raina.

That month-long workshop was followed by several initiatives down the years including a major play by Raina --- Baadshah Pather, the first bhaand adaptation of William Shakespeare’s King Lear, whose folly in dividing his kingdom left a trail of misfortune and pain. It cast several bhaands and was staged in Delhi and across Kashmir Valley. The public performances, mostly held in the open, were packed with Kashmiris standing on surrounding hill slopes to watch the performance in Akingam village, 70km south of Srinagar in 2011.