Need to reduce divide between rich and poor theatre productions, says Keerti Shiledar

With escalating inflation, even the middle-class theatre-lover is facing a financial crisis while paying for highly priced tickets.

Veteran singer and theatre actor Keerti Shiledar has been unanimously elected as the president of the 98th all-India Marathi natya sammelan. The meeting will be held in Mumbai from June 13 to June 15. Excerpts fromher interview with Hindustan Times.

As the president of the sammelan, what are your areas of focus?

It is an honour to be elected as the president of the ninth all-India Marathi natya sammelan. My mother, Jayamala Shiledar, was the president for the 83rd sammelan and now, her daughter, is stepping into her shoes. I am excited and it feels good. The entire system of theatre production is under threat and needs a revolutionary change. Theatre is losing its popularity due to the influence of other entertainment mediums such as television. Equipment, such a TVs, are available ar everyone’s house, further negatively affects the popularity of theatre. Now, even a theatre enthusiast will think twice before heading out to watch a play.

Why do you think theatre is losing its popularity?

Theatre enthusiasts are struggling with the rise in the prices of tickets. With escalating inflation, even the middle-class theatre-lover is facing a financial crisis while paying for highly priced tickets. Now a day, plays have celebrities acting, which makes it much more expensive than usual. TV channels, which have already captured the audience, are now also trying to invade theatre with extravagant embellishing sets and doling out free tickets of theatre productions.

As the president of the sammelan, how can you help the theatre industry?

I feel that there needs to be an exchange of new ideas and discussions, where theatre producers and actors come together to find solutions to help theatre survive better and give audience meaningful theatre. We need to bring about a new set of rules which everyone will abide by to run a good theatre business. Right now, there is a strong divide between rich and poor productions.

Do we have enough theatres for productions?

Yes. Pune is a cultural capital and it boasts of many good theatres for new commercial and experimental plays. But the only problem is that these theatres are owned by the Pune Municipal Corporation, who buckle under political pressure and even cancel shows without any notice. This does not help the upkeep of new plays.