Jaishankar Bhudhardas Bhojak, (30 January 1889 – 22 January 1975) better known by his theatre name Jaishankar Sundari , was an Indian actor and director of Gujarati theatre. Starting at the young age, he rose to fame for his roles of female impersonator in early Gujarati plays. He retired from acting in 1932 but returned to theatre direction and teaching in 1948. He directed and acted in several successful plays. He was awarded the Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1951 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1971.
He was born in the family of Bhojak,[1][2] in Undhai near Visnagar on 30 January 1889 to Bhudhardas and Krishna. However, his family members were traditionally involved in performing arts and singing. He studied up to second standard. He was trained in performing arts and singing by his grandfather, Tribhuvandas who himself was trained by Ustad Fakhruddin. He was also trained in music by Pandit Vadilal Nayak.[3][4] His father conducted rituals and performed in Jain temples.[5]
Careeredit
Bapulal Nayak (left) and Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari' in the play Kamlata, at Gaiety Theatre, Bombay, 1904Bapulal Nayak (left) and Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari' in a play Sneh-Sarita, 1915
He started his career by joining Dadabhai Thunthi's Urdu performing art company in Calcutta in 1897. He worked in a chorus of girls for a salary of six rupees a month.[6] He returned to Bombay and joined Chotalal Kapadia's Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali in 1901. Along with Gujarati, he also performed in Hindi and Urdu languages. He mainly performed as a female impersonator as females were not allowed in theatres in those times.[3][4] He played role of Desdemona as a female impersonator in Saubhagya Sundari, an adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello by Parsi theatre in Bombay. It was successful and Jaishankar received his sobriquet Sundari (lit.'beautiful lady').[7][8] He performed female lead opposite Bapulal Nayak several times including in Jugal Jugari (Jugal the Gambler), Kamlata (Lovestruck Girl, 1904), Madhu Bansari (Sweet Flute) and Sneh Sarita (River of Affection), Vikrama Charitra (Vikrama's Life, 1902). He along with Bapulal brought Govardhanram Tripathi's Saraswatichandra, Nrisinh Vibhakar's nationalistic plays and plays of Mulshankar Mulani to stage. He retired in 1932 and returned to Visnagar.[3][4][6] In Vikrama Charitra, he played a character of Rambha, a dairy-maid. This play continued for three years and was performed 160 times, on every Saturday night.[9]
He was active in Ahmedabad from 1948 to 1964 as the director and teacher in theatre. He joined Gujarat Vidhya Sabha in 1948 in Ahmedabad to perform in Ramanbhai Neelkanth's Raino Parvat in 1950 on the occasion of its centenary. Later he organised a performing troupe and theatre school, Natmandal with Rasiklal Parikh and Ganesh Mavlankar. He revived Bhavai, the traditional performing art form, by directing Mithyabhiman (False Vanity, 1955), a satirical play by Dalpatram. They produced several plays like Mena Gurjari (Mena of Gujarat) in 1953 which he synthesized Bhavai and Beijing Opera. He trained several actors including Jaswant Thaker, Dina Pathak, Pransukh Nayak and Kailash Pandya.[3][4]
His autobiography Thoda Aansu, Thoda Ful in Gujarati was in part written and in part dictated to his son Dinkar Bhojak and Somabhai Patel over a period of four years. It was first published posthumously in 1976. It was adopted as part of the syllabus at the Master of Arts course level at the Gujarat University.[11] It was reprinted in 1989 in an expanded version in the birth centenary year. In 2002, the first edition was translated into Hindi as Kuchh Aansu, Kuchh Phool by Dinesh Khanna and published by the National School of Drama.[12] In 2011, it was translated in English as Some Blossoms, Some Tears.[13][14][15]
Jaishankar Sundari Natyagruh - a drama theatre - was named after him in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.[16] The Bhavai Government Museum in Vadnagar, North Gujarat has an exhibition and description of his works.[17] His oil painted portrait was unveiled by the Kala Mandal of Morbi and adorns the halls of the Kala Mandir in Saurashtra.[18]
A play Sundari : An Actor Prepares based on his autobiography was produced in 1998.[14]
Referencesedit
^Risley, Herbert; Crooke, William (1999). The People of India By Herbert Risley, William Crooke. Asian Educational Services. p. 457. ISBN9788120612655. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
^Enthoven, Reginald Edward (1990). The Tribes and Castes of Bombay, Volume 1 By Reginald E. Enthoven. Asian Educational Services. pp. 219–220. ISBN9788120606302. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
^ abcdefLal, Ananda (2004). The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195644463.001.0001. ISBN9780195644463 – via Oxford Reference.
^Stages of Life, Indian Theatre Autobiographies, Kathryn Hansen, 2013, p. 171]
^ abHansen, Kathryn (1999). "Making Women Visible: Gender and Race Cross-Dressing in the Parsi Theatre". Theatre Journal. 51 (2): 134–135. doi:10.1353/tj.1999.0031. JSTOR 25068647. S2CID 192100757.
^Poonam Trivedi, Dennis Bartholomeusz (2005). India's Shakespeare: Translation, Interpretation, and Performance. Pearson Education India. p. 50. ISBN9788177581317.
^Anshu Malhotra; Siobhan Lambert-Hurley (12 October 2015). Speaking of the Self: Gender, Performance, and Autobiography in South Asia. Duke University Press. p. 245. ISBN978-0-8223-7497-8.
^Hansen, Kathryn (29 August 1998). "Stri Bhumika Female Impersonators and Actresses on the Parsi Stage". Economic and Political Weekly. 33 (35): 2294 – via EPW.(subscription required)
^. Sangeet Natak Akademi. Archived from the original on 31 March 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
^Khanna, Dinesh (2002). Kuchh Aansu, Kuchh Phool: An autobiography of Jaishankar 'Sundari' (1st ed.). New Delhi: Rashtriya Natya Vidhyala.
^Kapoor, Anuradha (6 November 2011). "Translation as cultural mediation". The Hindu. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
^ abRay, Bharati (2009). Women of India: Colonial and Post-colonial Periods/Part 3 of History of science, philosophy, and culture in Indian civilization: Colonial period. SAGE Publications India. pp. 492, 500. ISBN9788132102649.
^Hansen, Kathryn (2011). Stages of Life: Indian Theatre Autobiographies. Anthem Press. pp. 170–245. ISBN9780857286604.
^"Auditoriums in Gujarat, India". www.narthaki.com. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
^Attractions. . Gujarat Tourism. Archived from the original on 26 July 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
^Panchotia, B. B. (1987). Jayashankar Sundari and Abhinayakala (1st ed.). Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.
jaishankar, bhojak, jaishankar, bhudhardas, bhojak, january, 1889, january, 1975, better, known, theatre, name, jaishankar, sundari, indian, actor, director, gujarati, theatre, starting, young, rose, fame, roles, female, impersonator, early, gujarati, plays, r. Jaishankar Bhudhardas Bhojak 30 January 1889 22 January 1975 better known by his theatre name Jaishankar Sundari was an Indian actor and director of Gujarati theatre Starting at the young age he rose to fame for his roles of female impersonator in early Gujarati plays He retired from acting in 1932 but returned to theatre direction and teaching in 1948 He directed and acted in several successful plays He was awarded the Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1951 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1971 Jaishankar Bhojak Sundari Jaishankar Sundari right in conversation with Mama Warerkar left and C G Kolhatkar centre at the presentation of Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards in New Delhi on 31 March 1957BornJaishankar Bhudhardas Bhojak 1889 01 30 30 January 1889Undhai near Visnagar GujaratDied22 January 1975 1975 01 22 aged 85 VisnagarOther namesJaishankar SundariOccupation s Theatre actor and directorYears active1897 1932 acting 1948 1964 direction Known forSaubhagya Sundari 1901 Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Recognition 4 Legacy 5 References 6 Further reading 7 External linksEarly life editHe was born in the family of Bhojak 1 2 in Undhai near Visnagar on 30 January 1889 to Bhudhardas and Krishna However his family members were traditionally involved in performing arts and singing He studied up to second standard He was trained in performing arts and singing by his grandfather Tribhuvandas who himself was trained by Ustad Fakhruddin He was also trained in music by Pandit Vadilal Nayak 3 4 His father conducted rituals and performed in Jain temples 5 Career edit nbsp Bapulal Nayak left and Jaishankar Bhojak Sundari in the play Kamlata at Gaiety Theatre Bombay 1904 nbsp Bapulal Nayak left and Jaishankar Bhojak Sundari in a play Sneh Sarita 1915 He started his career by joining Dadabhai Thunthi s Urdu performing art company in Calcutta in 1897 He worked in a chorus of girls for a salary of six rupees a month 6 He returned to Bombay and joined Chotalal Kapadia s Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali in 1901 Along with Gujarati he also performed in Hindi and Urdu languages He mainly performed as a female impersonator as females were not allowed in theatres in those times 3 4 He played role of Desdemona as a female impersonator in Saubhagya Sundari an adaptation of Shakespeare s Othello by Parsi theatre in Bombay It was successful and Jaishankar received his sobriquet Sundari lit beautiful lady 7 8 He performed female lead opposite Bapulal Nayak several times including in Jugal Jugari Jugal the Gambler Kamlata Lovestruck Girl 1904 Madhu Bansari Sweet Flute and Sneh Sarita River of Affection Vikrama Charitra Vikrama s Life 1902 He along with Bapulal brought Govardhanram Tripathi s Saraswatichandra Nrisinh Vibhakar s nationalistic plays and plays of Mulshankar Mulani to stage He retired in 1932 and returned to Visnagar 3 4 6 In Vikrama Charitra he played a character of Rambha a dairy maid This play continued for three years and was performed 160 times on every Saturday night 9 He was active in Ahmedabad from 1948 to 1964 as the director and teacher in theatre He joined Gujarat Vidhya Sabha in 1948 in Ahmedabad to perform in Ramanbhai Neelkanth s Raino Parvat in 1950 on the occasion of its centenary Later he organised a performing troupe and theatre school Natmandal with Rasiklal Parikh and Ganesh Mavlankar He revived Bhavai the traditional performing art form by directing Mithyabhiman False Vanity 1955 a satirical play by Dalpatram They produced several plays like Mena Gurjari Mena of Gujarat in 1953 which he synthesized Bhavai and Beijing Opera He trained several actors including Jaswant Thaker Dina Pathak Pransukh Nayak and Kailash Pandya 3 4 He died on 22 January 1975 at Visnagar Gujarat 3 4 Recognition editHe received the Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak in 1951 which is considered the highest literary award in Gujarati literature In 1957 the President of India Rajendra Prasad presented him with the highest Indian recognition given to practicing artists the President s award now called the Sangeet Natak Akademi award for drama direction 10 In 1963 he was elected chairman for the Department of Arts at Gujarati Sahitya Parishad He was felicitated by Gujarat Rajya Sangeet Nrutya Akademi in 1967 He was awarded Padma Bhushan the third highest civilian award by the Government of India in 1971 3 4 Legacy editHis autobiography Thoda Aansu Thoda Ful in Gujarati was in part written and in part dictated to his son Dinkar Bhojak and Somabhai Patel over a period of four years It was first published posthumously in 1976 It was adopted as part of the syllabus at the Master of Arts course level at the Gujarat University 11 It was reprinted in 1989 in an expanded version in the birth centenary year In 2002 the first edition was translated into Hindi as Kuchh Aansu Kuchh Phool by Dinesh Khanna and published by the National School of Drama 12 In 2011 it was translated in English as Some Blossoms Some Tears 13 14 15 Jaishankar Sundari Natyagruh a drama theatre was named after him in Ahmedabad Gujarat 16 The Bhavai Government Museum in Vadnagar North Gujarat has an exhibition and description of his works 17 His oil painted portrait was unveiled by the Kala Mandal of Morbi and adorns the halls of the Kala Mandir in Saurashtra 18 A play Sundari An Actor Prepares based on his autobiography was produced in 1998 14 References edit Risley Herbert Crooke William 1999 The People of India By Herbert Risley William Crooke Asian Educational Services p 457 ISBN 9788120612655 Retrieved 27 August 2014 Enthoven Reginald Edward 1990 The Tribes and Castes of Bombay Volume 1 By Reginald E Enthoven Asian Educational Services pp 219 220 ISBN 9788120606302 Retrieved 27 August 2014 a b c d e f Jaishankar Sundari Gujarati Sahitya Parishad in Gujarati Retrieved 20 July 2014 a b c d e f Lal Ananda 2004 The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 acref 9780195644463 001 0001 ISBN 9780195644463 via Oxford Reference Stages of Life Indian Theatre Autobiographies Kathryn Hansen 2013 p 171 a b Hansen Kathryn 1999 Making Women Visible Gender and Race Cross Dressing in the Parsi Theatre Theatre Journal 51 2 134 135 doi 10 1353 tj 1999 0031 JSTOR 25068647 S2CID 192100757 Poonam Trivedi Dennis Bartholomeusz 2005 India s Shakespeare Translation Interpretation and Performance Pearson Education India p 50 ISBN 9788177581317 Anshu Malhotra Siobhan Lambert Hurley 12 October 2015 Speaking of the Self Gender Performance and Autobiography in South Asia Duke University Press p 245 ISBN 978 0 8223 7497 8 Hansen Kathryn 29 August 1998 Stri Bhumika Female Impersonators and Actresses on the Parsi Stage Economic and Political Weekly 33 35 2294 via EPW subscription required Sangeet Natak Akademi award Sangeet Natak Akademi Archived from the original on 31 March 2016 Retrieved 20 July 2014 Bhojak Jayashankar Sundari Bhojak Dinkar 2005 Thoda Aansu Thoda Ful 3rd ed Asait Sahitya Sabha Khanna Dinesh 2002 Kuchh Aansu Kuchh Phool An autobiography of Jaishankar Sundari 1st ed New Delhi Rashtriya Natya Vidhyala Kapoor Anuradha 6 November 2011 Translation as cultural mediation The Hindu Retrieved 20 July 2014 a b Ray Bharati 2009 Women of India Colonial and Post colonial Periods Part 3 of History of science philosophy and culture in Indian civilization Colonial period SAGE Publications India pp 492 500 ISBN 9788132102649 Hansen Kathryn 2011 Stages of Life Indian Theatre Autobiographies Anthem Press pp 170 245 ISBN 9780857286604 Auditoriums in Gujarat India www narthaki com Retrieved 30 December 2014 Attractions Bhavai Government Museum Gujarat Tourism Archived from the original on 26 July 2018 Retrieved 1 December 2014 Panchotia B B 1987 Jayashankar Sundari and Abhinayakala 1st ed Bombay Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Further reading editAutobiography Bhojak Jaishankar Bhojak Dinkar 1976 Thoda Aansu Thoda Phool in Gujarati Ahmedabad Shivji Asher Vora amp Co Other Panchotia B B Jayashankar Sundari and Abhinaykala Bhavans Book University External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jaishankar Sundari Jaishankar Bhojak in Gujarati Vishwakosh Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Jaishankar Bhojak amp oldid 1189832050, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
