 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Usha Ganguly" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(April 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Usha Ganguly | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1945 (1945) |
| Died | April 23, 2020(2020-04-23) (aged 74–75) Kolkata,West Bengal, India |
| Occupations | theatre director, actor, activist |
| Years active | 1970–2020 |
| Known for | Founder-directorRangakarmee theatre group (1976) |
Usha Ganguli (1945 – 23 April 2020) was an Indian theatre director-actor and activist, most known for her work inHindi theatre inKolkata in the 1970s and 1980s. She foundedRangakarmee theatre group in 1976, known for its productions likeMahabhoj,Rudali,Court Martial, andAntaryatra.[1][2][3] Apart from thespianShyamanand Jalan ofPadatik (established 1972), she was the only other theatre director to practiseHindi theatre in Kolkata, which is largelyBengali speaking.[4][5]
She was awarded theSangeet Natak Akademi Award for Direction, given by theSangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama in 1998.[6] She was also honoured by theWest Bengal Government as the best actress for the playGudia Ghar.[1]
Born inJodhpur, Rajasthan, in 1930, into a family from the village of Nerva inUttar Pradesh, Usha Ganguly learntBharatanatyam dance and later moved to Kolkata, where she studied atShri Shikshayatan College, Kolkata and did her master's degree inHindi literature.[7]
Ganguly began her career as a teacher at Bhowanipur Education Society College, Calcutta, an undergraduate college affiliated with theUniversity of Calcutta, in 1970. Also in the same year, she started acting withSangit Kala Mandir and also started work for her first playMitti Ki Gadi (based onMrichchakatikam byShudrak) (1970), where she played the role of Vasantsena.[8] She continued teaching as a Hindi Lecturer at Bhowanipur Education Society College, until her retirement in 2008 and practised theatre all the while.[9]
She formed a theatre group,Rangakarmee, in January 1976.[8] Initially, since she was trained as a dancer, the group invited outside directors, like M.K. Raina, who directedMother, Tripti Mitra directedGudia Ghar, an adaptation ofIbsen'sA Doll's House, besides Rudra Prasad Sengupta and Bibhash Chakravorty, before she started directing herself, having trained under Tripti Mitra and Mrinal Sen.
Ganguly started directing in the 1980s and soon her energetic style and disciplined ensemble work with young, large casts brought a resurgence of Hindi theatre in the city. Her important productions includedMahabhoj (Great Feast) in 1984, based onMannu Bhandari novel,Ratnakar Matkari'sLokkatha (Folktale) in 1987,Holi by playwrightMahesh Elkunchwar in 1989, andRudali (1992), her own dramatised version of a story byMahashweta Devi,Himmat Mai, an adaptation ofBrecht'sMother Courage and notablyCourt Martial written by playwrightSwadesh Deepak.[9] She wrote a playKashinama (2003), based on a story,Kaane Kaun Kumati Lagi from theKashinath Singh's classic work,Kashi Ka Assi and an original playKhoj.
She also worked on the script ofRaincoat (2004) a Hindi film based onO Henry'sThe Gift of the Magi, directed byRituparno Ghosh.
In the coming years, she also translated and adapted plays into Hindi. Rangakarmee started its education wing in the 1990s, today it regularly takes its repertoire on tours across India and undertakes education extension activities in theatre with underprivileged people.[10]
In 2005, Rangkarmee was the only Indian theatre group to perform at the Theatre der Welt Festival inStuttgart, Germany.[8] It staged the playRudali at "Punj Pani festival" atLahore in 2006.[11] The group staged its first multilingual production,Bhor about the minds of inmates of a drug rehab centre in August 2010.[12]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
