Paash-Storms Never Know Defeat

Paash:An Anthology-Paash poetry translated into English by Prof Hari Singh Mohi

Paash in Rebelling:Webster’s Quotations,Facts and Phrases

on page 371

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=uArxJO1hzVkC&pg=PA371&dq=avtar+paash&lr=

Storms Never Know Defeat

Commemoration volume on Paash,  includes his poetic works and contributed articles on his work

Storms never know defeat: in memory of Pash

Ed. Chaman Lal, Sukhchain Mistri

Published by Lokgeet Prakashan, 1990

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=d-c1AAAAMAAJ&q=paash&dq=paash&lr=&pgis=1

A Few Who Made A Difference

http://www.apnaorg.com/articles/rammah-1/

Agan Katha

His poetry relives the pain of Godhra

“Aaj main guzaarunga tumhare saath yeh raat; subah jab pralay hogi dono royenge haath pasaarke…..”Poetry has all elements of a human heart. That is perhaps why Sahib Singh, Director, Adakar Manch, Mohali, resorted to poetry so that he could translate on to stage the pain that defines calamitous events like Godhra and the 1984 riots against Sikhs.

Through his trilingual play, “Agan Katha”, the director dared to speak against the forces that diminish the validity of life. Drawn on the heart-felt verses of poets like Kaifi Azmi, Paash, Surjit Pattar, Swaraj Bir and Dr Jagtar, the script of the play was more than potent. In its heart-rending portrayal of the grisly Gujarat and Delhi riots, the play scored well, thanks to the poetic sequences that wove the difficult script together.

Right in the beginning, the director appears on the stage, reciting the verse that says “Babur plundered the country with all his might, but today we have a Babur in every home.” Seeking power to uproot the evil, the characters occupy their places on the stage, enacting gory sequences from the Godhra tragedy and then from the ‘84 riots, one by one.

The script is all poetry, well remembered, but not as emotionally recited as should have been. Also at times one felt the poetic verses were not so well placed in the scheme of the play and did not quite serve the humble purpose of the production. On the whole, however, the play was well paced and offered a great deal of food for thought. It depicted attempts to rape, arson, looting, death and every other grotesque detail that strikes the mind at the very mention of Godhra.

The play concluded with a couplet from Surjit Pattar: “Lagi je tere kaalje ajeh chhuri nahi… na samajh ki paun khizaan di turi nahi..”

( The Tribune dated 30-01-2004 )

 

Main Gha Haan

Sangeeta does justice to Paash

CHANDIGARH — The verses of Punjabi poet Paash have seldom failed to stir emotions of his readers. Even when performed on stage, his compositions certainly have the quality to arouse these. This was what the audience experienced today during the Punjabi play ‘Main Gha Haan’ staged at Tagore Theatre.

The one-character play, directed by Dr Atamjeet Singh, was presented by the Roopak Kala Manch in the memory of young theatre artiste Rajiv Firani. He was a product of Punjabi University Patiala who had worked with the likes of Kewal Dhaliwal, Shekhar Vaishnavi, Balraj Pandit and Dr Atamjeet.

Based on the poems and compositions of Paash, ‘Main Gha Haan’, was about fighting the evils of the social and political systems. The unvarnished candidness of Paash’s poetry was highlighted by an energetic performance by Sangeeta Mehta, who is known for her work with slum children.

Everything that the lovers of the poetry of Paash would imagine the poet be, was brought out well by Sangeeta, whether it was his passion, isolation or whimsical enthusiasm about life. The way letters and poems were penned by Paash, popular verses “Asi Ladangey Saathi” and “Chidian Da Chamba Ud Ke Kitey Nahi Jayaga”, were interwoven between various scenes by script writer Rana Ranbir. He did not let the fast-paced tenor slack at any place.

The set, which included four Nek Chand-like dolls made by Ranjit Singh, was interesting and helped Sangeeta in keeping the interest of the audience alive while delivering her monologue. With dialogues like “I am what I was made out to be by the system” and “I am a dog who wags his tail”, the play was an interesting experience.

Loveleen Kaur’s production and Dr Atamjeet’s directorial venture, needs to be commended for starting on time, but it did not have many takers. The light drizzle in the city seemed to have taken its toll on the play.

( The Tribune 13-05-1999 )

Capturing hues of Paash’s poetry

                          

Capturing hues of Pash’s poetry

 

The Roopak Kala and Welfare Society staged a Punjabi play ‘Mein Ghaa Haan’ at the Tagore Theatre today in association with the Chandigarh School of Drama. As solo theatrical performances are a rarity in the region, the elite city audience relished the captivating performance by acclaimed actor Ms Sangeeta Gupta. The play, based on the writings of revolutionary Punjabi poet Avtar Pash and scripted by noted actor Rana Ranbir, turned out to be peerless production under the directorial elegance of Dr Atamjit.A humanitarian and resolute reformer ‘Pash’ was a poet of conscience who fought for the rights of the credulous masses, articulating their pain in his poetry. Dr Atamjit had delved deep into the profound depth of the poetry of Pash for its vivid dramatisation. Moods varied from grief , nostalgia, dismay and revolt as the play progressed to see Sangeeta bringing alive the poet’s protest against anti-human forces, social evils, metaphysical dogmas and anti-human prejudices.

Sangeeta, with an immaculate dramatic narration and eloquent stage movements spelt magic keeping the audience glued to their seats. Her mastery over Punjabi dialect augmented the level of performance, structured in the pastoral ambience.

She demonstrated the courage and conviction of the legendary poet seeking resurrection of an ideal society and governance when terrorism had assumed threatening dimensions.

Sangeeta, the acclaimed actress of 15 TV serials, 35 plays and assistant director of four feature films, an alumnus of the department of Theatre and Television had staged this play 17 times seven years ago. “But today’s performance and appreciation was very satisfying, she said. The chiaroscuro effects by Jaspal Singh and soothing music by Vevel Sharma, Subhash and Deepak enhanced the level of production.

Earlier, Dr Sahib Singh while speaking about the achievements and sacrifices of Pash maintained that Pash and his poetry were immortal and no one knew his terrorist killers. Thespian Gursharan Singh and Parampal K. Sidhu, chief guests paid tributes to Pash and honored the artists.

 

( The Tribune of 23-08-2005 )

 

Udaas Pehar Ki Shan Shan

Paash’s poetry comes alive

Patiala

‘Udaas Pehar Ki Shan Shan’ a solo performance based on revolutionary poet Paash’s poetry was today presented at the Theatre and Television Department of Punjabi University. Staged at the department’s intimate auditorium, the solo was performed by Kulwant Sidhu, a second-year student at the Department of Theatre here and directed by Mr Ranvir Rana, a technical assistant in the same department. The thematic fibre of the play depicted the contemporary socio-political conditions and their consequent impact on the conscience of an individual, his frustrations and disgust for a system which seems to cater and exist only for the elite.

Giving the message through Paash’s poetry and attempting to bring alive the thoughts of poet, the whole fabric of the play, not only commented on the common man’s plight but also focussed on the essential question of existence of an individual in face of an atmosphere of insecurity, confusion, political opportunism, religious fundamentalism and corruption. Although written decades ago, the poems managed to correlate the poet’s times with the present.

Kulwant Sidhu’s sensitive portrayal of a poet desperately seeking answers from a relatively passive common man and realistic acting made the one-hour performance a treat for the audience.

Intelligent direction by Mr Rana made sure that the performance did not turn out to be a monotonous poetry recital session but a spellbinding performance treating the audience not only with some of Paash’s best poetry but also an interesting script with delicately-handled verse and fractured prose.

Sans costumes, music and any set, ‘Udaas Pehar ki Shan Shan’ proved that a powerful script accompanied with good acting and sensitive handling of the theme could do wonders to an almost nil-budget production. 

(The Tribune, 25-05-2002 )

Paash: Man and Poet

An article by Prof Tejwant Singh Gill, Professor of English Literature at Guru Nanak Dev University Amritsar, Punjab, India.

To download the article click here