CALCUTTA, Sept.4. - Is Tagore a prisoner in his own house?

A series of correspondence between the Vice-Chancellors of the two Universities has given rise to these questions. The authorities and faculty members of Rabindra Bharati University (RBU) are sore over the way the Visva Bharati University (VBU) Vice-Chancellor has objected to some of their activities "to promote and disseminate" Tagore's heritage.  

At the center of the controversy is an invitation card printed by RBU to mark Tagore's death anniversary last month. On the card was inscribed an eleven-line poem the poet wrote a few days before his death.  

The VBU V-C, Mr Dilip Sinha, shot off a letter on 10 August to his counterpart in RBU, threatening legal action if it "did not refrain from undertaking printing that infringes the law."  

Mr Sinha's letter said: "You have been printing Tagore's pictures and writings without permission and acknowledgment. We have already exchanged letters on this issue. yet, you haven't shunned this habit."  

The letter has not just "hurt the sentiments" of RBU teachers and the rest of its staff; it also claims it has kept within the bounds of law.  

The activities under dispute are: 

• Printing greeting cards with a portrait by Tagore; 
• Badges and brooches for RBU students with a line from Tagore's poems engraved on each; 
• Printing a portrait of Tagore browsing through a book; 
• Printing an anthology of Tagore's poems and observations about death; 
• Stickers showing Tagore's face used by the university for any correspondence. 

"This is no defiance of VBU's authority. These efforts are fully in conformance with the RBU Act which enjoins the university to undertake activities to disseminate Tagore's ideas."  

The preamble of the Act says: the university was set up to "encourage in conformity with the ideas and thoughts of Rabindranath Tagore the integration of cultural heritage of the nation consistent with its linguistic and socio-economic history and to enable it to function more efficiently as a university encouraging and providing for instruction, teaching, training and research in various branches of learning and courses of study, promoting advancement and dissemination of knowledge and rearing and extending higher education to meet the growing needs of society."  

Mr Chakraborty and his colleagues clarified that they were not on a collision course with VBU. "But the question is: can't the university, located at Jorasanko where the poet was born and died, have the right to print a few lines from Tagore's works or propagate his ideas in a purely non-commercial spirit?"  

Mr. Dilip Sinha complained in a letter that RBU didn't even have the courtesy to send samples of its productions to VBU.  

Mr Chakraborty refuted the charge, asserting that samples of every such "innovative" work were sent to VBU. "And what is more, all our ventures had the approval of our university court where there is a nominee from VBU. The nominee never raised any questions. 

This is also the time to ask Visva Bharati in turn what good it has done to the publication front as a result of the 10-year extension granted on the copyright in 1991. The best works are out of print and little or nothing has been done to encourage new research to enrich the publications wing. If there is any attempt to further extend the copyright after the year 2001, there is a strong case for it to be nipped in the bud. There are scholars and well-intentioned publishers who can be trusted to do a better job than what Visva Bharati has done. Tagore's memory will be better served if Visva Bharati puts it own house in order - like cleaning up the mess in the music board in line with the inquiry commissions'recommendations - instead of coming up with flimsy objections to what others are doing. The ultimate question relates to the motive which seems beyond doubt in the present case. Objections can only be valid when the Tagorean spirit , not just the letter of the copyright law, is seen to be willfully violated. Even then, let the people judge.

A broad outline has been drawn up for the Rs 1.5 crore project. The university's executive council yesterday authorized its vice-chancellor to prepare a comprehensive plan.  

The V-C, Mr Shubhankar Chakraborty, has begun discussions to try and get the information and broadcasting ministry's consent. He has also approached the state government for support.  

The TV center and radio station will both come up at the university's Jorasanko complex, where the poet was born and died.  
"Funds will not be problem," the V-C said today. "A few months ago, we raised Rs 5 Lakhs through our new university-industry linkage. We are confident that the TV channel and radio station will earn enough from advertisements to make the project viable."  

Mr Chakraborty said the project was inspired by foreign universities, in particular Durban University in South Africa, which have their own TV channels.

Sen (extreme left) with members of his group: theater of tomorrow? 
 
... A handful of bright young people are breathing a fresh lease of life into Bengali group theater. Suman Mukherjee's Ganttabya, Amitava Datta and Bratya Basu's Aashaleen, Gautam Haldar's Nagar Kirtan and Jara Bristtitey Bhijechhilo, and Kaushik Sen's Prothom Partho are some of the interesting attempts in the recent past. 

Sen, who also plays the role of Karna in Prothom Partho is quite optimistic about the future. His group Shapnashandhani quite rightly claims, "We at least have the right to 'fail' "! ... meaning that they are not ready to plat it safe. Excerpts from an interview with Sen: 

Q. People involved with theater generally blame TV for their own lack of popularity. But they are the same people who act in TV serials. Isn't it a vicious circle? 

Sen: Are you talking about me? 

Q. Yes! why not? 

Sen: I am aware that I perform for 'bad' TV serials. But I am an actor by profession and I earn my living by acting. Bengali group theater is not financially well-off. So I have to do something else to feed my family and myself. 
I used to make a living out of acting and directing professional theater in Shyambazar. But even three or four years ago I could see it fizzling out. Those plays were just awful! I felt that I couldn't cheat myself while performing on stage. So I decided to quit professional theater and make a living out of acting in TV serials. But I can tell you honestly, that though I am compelled to make certain compromises here [in TV serials] I will never do so in my theater. 

Q. Why is it that Bengali group theater isn't able to attract too many people these days? 

Sen: About 5 years ago, it seemed that we couldn't move out of the rut. No one was daring enough to experiment with forms, techniques ... Bengali plays were a rehash of earlier performances, and extremely slipshod ones too. We were trapped in a place with no way out. But od late, interesting works are being taken up. Though we haven't come out of the crisis altogether, I have a feeling that there are better times ahead. 
Theater has to reach a wider audience, but it shouldn't mean that we will pander to the audience's demands. We should be able perceive that even people have a discerning mind - some of the recent successes have proved that ... 

Q. But what about reaching up to a wider theater audience - beyond that of ant particular place ? 

Sen: Yes, I do admit that we have been rather limited - and honestly I don't know the way out . One of the causes for this limitation is that theater halls in the outskirts of the city are in a bad state. Moreover, we are not really mobile because of our financial conditions. Some efforts are being made though. Nathyashamannay has been set up in order to organize theater festivals in the vicinity of Baranagar. I intend to organize shows along with local clubs outside the city, but only after a year or so. 

Q. So what would make people 'accept' Bengali theater? 

Sen: The most important thing for me is that I must be able to speak the truth whether or not I express leftist ideologies or progressive messages through my plays. The truth that I feel must be relevant to peoples' lives - only then will plays succeed ... 

It is nothing short of a disgrace to Calcutta, home of the film society movement spearheaded by Ray and still said to have the largest number of film buffs, that teachers cannot be found for these specialized courses. This is perhaps due to lack of commitment to purely academic objectives. Practicing film-makers and technicians with careers of their own to look after are not the best choices; which is why Ray himself had declined all offers to take up administrative responsibilities. In the new climate of art getting lost in consumerism , it is perhaps futile to expect old values to prevail. Which is why one film-maker has been virtually compelled to resign from the institute's chairmanship only to be replaced b another who makes no secret of the fact that it will still be some time before justice is done to Ray's memory. A change of guard at the top makes little sense without the resources and the will to raise the institute's level to one comparable with Pune. Guest appearances by celebrities, promised by the new chairman, cannot make up for necessities. Only a whole-hearted effort by full-time administrators with the right kind of artistic sensibilities can rescue an institution set up with great hopes. Enough harm has been done already.