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Book Review
By Arif Waqãr
Annhi Chunnhi di Tikki, Farjad Nabi. Pp:
246, Suchet Kitab Ghar 2011. E: suchet2001@yahoo.com
nnhi Chunnhi di Tikki -Bread of Chaf- is a multilingual but predominantly Punjabi play written
in the tradition of folk storytelling. The play is, in fact, a modern
reworking of the legend of Kunal, the son of Ashoka the Great. The myth has it that Kunal was blinded by his stepmother after which he
roamed the land as a faqir. Interspersed with songs, riddles and juggats
witty repartees, the play is a sharp comment on our times. The main
language of the play is a mix of contemporary and classical Punjabi, which
reflects the layered nature of its narrative. The birthplace of this unusual work can be traced down to 49 Jail Road
Lahore, the residence of Najm Hosain Syed. The inspiration is largely from
a new understanding of what are generally called Punjabi Classical Texts.
The reading and re-interpretation of these texts takes place through
weekly discussions at Syed’s place. Syed is the most generous and loving
teacher anyone can wish for, with a knack for explaining extremely
abstract ideas with surprising ease. The Sangat, as it is generally known,
is open to everyone and welcomes all views. It is here that Najm Sahib
explains and interprets classics like Heer
Waris Shah, Heer Damodar, Nadir Shah di Vaar and Saif-ul-Malook
as narratives of the present times, thereby stripping the cloak of mystery
and misplaced mysticism that surrounds them. These weekly gatherings at his house are reminiscent of the pre radio-tv
era, when such soirees and mehfils
were a major source of education, entertainment and cultural grooming. Farjad Nabi has been a regular and active participant of these weekly
gatherings and feels that when the classical Punjabi texts are read in
this ‘liberated’ atmosphere, one can instantly place history in the
current context, and understand the current times as a continuity of
history. At another level, an unleashing of creative energy takes place
when one re-connects with a language and history, which has been forcibly
relegated to some corner of their unconscious. In the process of this soul searching, Nabi came across another amazing
personality - Mian Kamal Din, a master storyteller in the oral tradition
of Punjab. “When I heard the legend of Kunal, in the fascinating voice of Kamal
Din, I was wonder struck,” exclaims Farjad Nabi referring to the book Kamal
Kahani researched by Saeed Bhutta. “The story on the surface is an
evening’s entertainment complete with valour, romance, humour and songs.
However, within its simplicity is woven another version of history; the
version written by the likes of Mian Kamãl Din and his listeners. For
example, when Kunal is sent to suppress a rebellion in Taxila, instead of
behaving in the approved manner of Brave Men, he offers his own life in a
duel so as to prevent a battle taking place — a battle which would cause
thousands of innocent soldiers to perish. This is a conscious act of
redefining what it is really to be a Brave Man and is part of the wisdom
passed down in these stories”. In Nabi’s play, the fundamental cast of characters is based on Kamal
Din’s version of Kunal’s legend but he has added a host of other
characters, such as the ‘Chuhitri’ (female sweeper), ‘Chaar Punj
Peer’ (Four Wise Men) and ‘Rani Bubbly’. These characters embody a
mix of the modern and the ancient. The legendary Five Wise Men of the
Punjabi folklore change into their own caricatures and get involved in a
slap-stick exchange with the main character. They are four in number but
they are still referred to as “five”. The fifth one remains
conspicuous by his absence throughout the play, and the mystery is solved
only on the last page of the book. After Najm Hosain Syed and Mian Kamãl Din, the third source of
inspiration for the author of this play was Baba Mheeda, a bard par
excellence who can sing entire epics on the strength of memory alone.
“I’ve had the privilege”, says Farjad Nabi, “of spending a lot of
time with him over the years, recording, documenting and conversing with
him. This sounds like a serious ethnomusicology project whereas in fact
every meeting with Baba Mheeda is a grand time.” When Baba Mheeda is singing, say, Sassi Punnu, he can effortlessly glide
into a comment on corruption in Pakistan without missing a beat, and then
continue Sassi as if there is nothing unusual in what he just did. The
audience too accepts this as the most natural thing which, indeed, it is.
In fact, this ‘post-modern’ device has been very common in our epics:
we have a complex understanding of time, space and relationships. Even a
village puppeteer can manage to create a scene in which King Akbar is
having a face-to-face conversation with, say, Chandragupta Maurya (born c. 340 BCE). Time collapses in a similar way in Annhi
Chunnhi so that we have prehistoric characters wistfully reciting
Allama Iqbal and so on. The title of the play, Annhi
Chunnhi di Tikki, is taken from a kãfi of Bulleh Shah, and can be
roughly translated as “a bread of leftover grains”. There are numerous
references to such a roti in the Faqiri tradition, baked from the daan (‘selfless gift’) of various grains collected from door to
door. Mind you, the term ‘Faqiri’ here is used as a conscious way of
life, depending on one person’s daan
to another, which is the Faqir’s answer to a system that encourages
‘to each their own’. All our folk texts are in this sense such a roti. One finds a verse of
Madho Lal in a kafi of Bulleh Shah or a metaphor from Guru Granth Sahib in
Sassi Punnu or a visual from Hir Damodhar in Sachal Sarmast. Texts flow in
and out of each other seamlessly without any consideration for time,
religion, dialects or copyrights. Each ‘new’ author subsequently
renews the meaning of such texts in accordance with his circumstances. In
this way, texts remain alive and current instead of turning into museum
pieces. The play under discussion is written in this very tradition,
interweaving texts across time. This is a conscious effort to place these
writings in a new context thereby changing the way they are read. It also seems to be an effort to re-introduce and re-ignite interest in
these writings to a new audience. Hence, a reader can consult a detailed
glossary giving each direct or indirect reference to a text in the play. The play takes its narrative device from the tradition of Bhands. It uses
satire and parody to make a critique while keeping the audience aware that
such a device is at play. Therefore, when the character of King Ashok says
‘takhlia’ he doesn’t know what it means and is corrected by his
Vizier. Consequently it turns out that King Ashok is learning his royal
manners from the movie Mughal-e-Azam. At one place, there is a debate about Article 82 in Ashok’s
constitution, and the amendments to it and this is where Nabi’s text
touches the borders of pastiche and metafiction. The author himself is
present in the play by the name of Soojhal; basically all the riddles and
some poetry which takes the narrative forward are attributed to a poet
called Soojhal who is the author himself. Since this play is breaking too many moulds simultaneously, it may leave
some readers puzzled but, when presented on the stage, it will certainly
be an excellent show. •
Farjad
Nabi (b1969 Lahore) is
a filmmaker and writer. His work includes the award winning Nusrat has
Left the Building... But When ? on the metamorphosis of Nusrat Fateh
Ali Khan's music and Baba Mheeda - Rooh te But (The Spirit and The Body). He has also produced and
presented a documentary series on the music of Sindh for BBC Urdu (radio
and online) titled Aaj ka Beejal. Apart from Annhi Chunnhi di
Tikki, he has written two plays for children in verse, Jeebho Jani
di Kahani and Choohay di Vaar, which have been widely
performed. Currently his first feature film Zinda Bhaag, co-written
and co-directed with Meenu Gaur is under production.
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