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Clowning disturbs the comfortable: Rupesh Tillu
In an interview with HT, actor and independent filmmaker Rupesh Tillu speaks on why it is a good time to bring out the clown in every one of us.
This lockdown, actor and independent filmmaker Rupesh Tillu is asking us to invoke the clown within. The actor believes theatre is an intrinsic part of our lives and clowning or physical comedy, a significant branch of theatre, thrives to “comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable”.
Watch the trailer of Shakuntalam- Agar Pura Kar Paye Toh - written and directed by Rupesh Tillu
Ask him how meting out treatments cardinally opposite to states of being can help one beat lockdown blues and he says, “With so much to do while being at home and knowing we are headed towards uncertainty, it is only normal to feel frustrated or repressed.” He adds that if our personal clowns could call on us from one time to another, unconscious extreme reactions get tackled. The actor who played the character of Bhola in the OTT series Laakhon Mein Ek (2017), feels the art form is a way to cleanse our fears and incapacities; it is also cathartic. “That red nose ensures uniformity. As actors, while playing a part, you still bear the threat of judgement, but as a clown, it vanishes. An audience doesn’t know who you are and your expression is, therefore, uninhibited,” he explains.
Speaking about the re-telling of Indian classics by clowns Rupesh shares, “Literature should always go through change or else, it could die. The same applies to classics. Seeing classical characters as clowns help artistes explore relatability in the realm of godhood”. He goes on to say that the experience of chairing a session online is very new and enjoyable. As per the actor, the feedback regarding his masterclasses on the Internet has been positive and extremely encouraging. Rupesh concludes saying that clowning should be a way of life and not only a fanciful performance art.
