Gambhira: Mixing folk art with politics

Arindam Sarkar

Never before has a folk culture been used for electoral purpose. Never before has a folk form been so directly satirical of the political and social maladies prevailing in the State and the country; and tried to awaken the people to mitigate and eradicate the ills. The Gambhira of Malda is one such art form.

The Gambhira dialogues are catchy and mocking. “Kelenkari protijogita Olympic e chai. Shona pabe. Maan rakhbe durnitir khelay (Competition for corruption should be introduced in Olympics. We will get gold and make a name in the world of dishonesty)”. “Nana deri nai aar nirbachon. Aamra booth e jaiya, vote diya korbo ongsho grohon (Nana elections are close. We must go the booths and cast our votes)”.

“We talk of contemporary political, social realities and people’s sufferings. Once the elections are declared we don’t do political satires. At the same time, we don’t campaign for any political party. We are the voice of the people and since we present the play in a local dialect and in a comic manner, people like it very much,” said Gambhira Adaito Biswas 

On one hand, while the State Election Commission and the district administration of Malda are using Gambhira to spread awareness among the people to strengthen the democracy, on the other hand the government has been also using the Gambhiras to promote development programmes. But this apart is the personal plays of Gambhiras, which are acidic, caustic and satiric in content.

During the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the innocuous-looking stage erected at the ground level beside the main road with a small shamiana on the top to escape the wrath of sun could appear to be a platform for any political speech or a get-together. But it was the venue for a Gambhira show near Mongolbari rail gate at Old Malda. A group of artistes had gathered for the State Election Commission to spread awareness among the people about the necessity of voting.

“Gambhira plays are a century-old folk culture of Malda. Gambhira is a protest movement. It is a protest song against the social bad. Gambhira has its own style of lyrics and music. Gambhira is a people’s medium which has got a vast reach even today,” said a veteran Gambhira Arun Basak. He said apart from their own issues that they script in their plays, both the Left Front and Trinamool Congress Governments have used them to promote the government activities.

Feudal problems, family disputes, unemployment, poor health facilities, lack of education, terror, political victimization, lack of development, corruption, absence of industry, child marriage, sanitation, 100-days employment, right to vote and right to vote for a good government are some the issues that Gambhiras highlight in their songs and plays.

“Gambhiras since the ages have remained neutral. They have no political affiliation. We don’t want to be coloured. We are actually rural reporters through whom the villagers get a picture of how their country is being run,” said Gambhira Prasanta Seth.

In Gambhira, though there could be three to four characters, the play is centered on God Shiva, who is called Nana. He is dressed like Shiva in the play. The first part of Gambhira is called Shiv Bandana – where a character appeases Shiva and tells him in a satirical manner how his devotees were being exploited by the rulers of the present generation. The second part is called Chariyari, where the characters discuss the principal theme of the play.

The third part is known as taunting, where political satire is the staple and the fifth part is reporting where Gambhiras adopt the role of reporters and inform the villagers about the happening the State. “Each programme lasts for two-and-a-half-hour. There are five satirical songs,” said Arun Basak.

At least six months before the polls, Gambhiras stop political satire. They fear of being targeted by political parties. They maintain neutrality out of fear of being branded and losing their livelihood. “We don’t want to be embroiled in controversy. But before the polls, we do highlight the political and social pitfalls. We are too poor to antagonise the authorities,” said a veteran Gambhira Amar Mondol.  

For this folk artistes of Malda, who are into political and poll satire and poll promotion, Gambhira is a second profession. Passion keeps them going. Most of them are Farmers, shopkeepers, clerks or small-time businessmen who perform Gambhira out of love for this folk culture that begins in the month of Chaitra, Baishakh and Joishtha with the puja of Shiva.

“Initially, Gambhira used to be performed all over Malda. Nowadays it is limited to English Bazar, Old Malda and Kaliachak. The earning is so little that the number of Gambhira artistes is dwindling. There are about 10 to 12 Gambhira groups in Malda today. Each group has 10 to 15 members. In a private show, a each Gambhira earns about Rs 200 and for government programmes, a Gambhira pockets about Rs 550 in each play.

“There is lack of motivation. Youth is not coming into this low-paying profession. Earning is very little and irregular. Women are not coming into Gambhira in a big way. Fear of losing patronage is taking the sting out of Gambhira acts. During monsoon we don’t perform. Rest of the year, On an average, we do four to five shows every month, but that is not enough to sustain a family,” said Gambhira Rabishankar Ghosh.

Most Gambhiras pointed out no matter what the politicians campaigned that in the past, they gave their own views to the people. And being local and familiar, their political and social opinions had a great impact on the rural and town masses. Comedy and satire mitigated their suffering but drove home the point and reflected in the vote-bank. But today fear of being ostracized and suppressed by the politicians, the Gambhiras has mellowed down.

“Truth is we need government patronage. We cannot sustain ourselves through private shows. With Gambhira popularity losing we have to depend on government programmes to earn extra income. And in doing so, many of us are compromising their commitment to this folk culture,” said Rabishankar Ghosh.

Come Chaitra, Baishakh and Joishtha, Jamboli, Hatkhola, Madhughat, Manikpur and Hatkhola in English Bazar and Bachamari and Aiyho in Old Malda and Kaliachak come alive with the plays of Gambhira. Interestingly, general and Hindu backward classes essentially perform Gambhira.

 “We were told that there was a time when Gambhiras of Rajshahi and Bholahat (now in Bangladesh) used to come to Malda before 1971 to perform their plays. But now we don’t get to see them. Unlike in Malda, in Rajshahi there’s no Shiva but Nana is the maternal grandfather and the second important character nati is the grandson. It is the protest dialogue between the two that is very attractive,” explained Rabishankar Ghosh.

With elections knocking at the doors, political satire has taken a backseat. Once over with the husting, Gambhira would once again get back to mocking the politicos and their policies. As a Gambhira said, political satire is in their blood and no amount of pressure would make them give it up because commenting on social and political life and creating awareness of the ills is what their folk art all about.