Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Brunch
BEHIND THE STARS, NOW WITH THEM
Ebrahimalkazimadesomeofindia’sfinestactors. Now he has gone to the great theatre in the sky
When I first interviewed Ompuriin1991,onthe sets of City of Joy, he was an actor to reckon with for his mind-blowing performances. And when I asked him to what or whom he attributed this, he named two people: Richard Boleslawski, whose Acting: The First Six Lessons remained his acting bible; and Ebrahim Alkazi, who taught him those lessons practically… and much more.
When a legend speaks so highly of his mentor, the mentor no doubt isalegend.so,iwasalreadyinawe of Ebrahim Alkazi long before I met him. With his passing, it is truly the endofatheatreerainindia.
ENGLISH VINGLISH
If it hadn’t been for Alkazi saab, Om would have left the National School of Drama (NSD) and wouldn’t have been an actor, and in that case I wouldn’t have got to interview him or meet him. So, I remain indirectly grateful.
NSD was a transforming experience for Om Puri in 1970. But it did not begin with a bang. Coming from a small town near Patiala, he could not follow the lessons in English. Even his Hindi had a heavy Punjabi accent. This left him tongue-tied and he decided to return home after a painful six months, to become an overseer or a clerk. But the person responsible for averting this was Alkazi, who was then the director of NSD.
Instead of asking him directly, he sent a senior student, M K Raina to befriend Om and learn the problem. When Raina reported to Alkazi, the latter called Om and said, “You are hardworking and a good student and if at all you get stuck for words in English, just continue to speak
“IF IT HADN’T BEEN FOR ALKAZI, OM PURI WOULD HAVE LEFT THE NATIONAL SCHOOL OF DRAMA (NSD)”
in Hindi, don’t hold back. But you must read the English paper aloud daily, listen to the English news and talk to friends in English.”
That was Om’s first lesson in acting.
And when his once tonguetied non-english speaking student was awarded the OBE (Order of the British Empire) Queen Elizabeth II, in 2005, for his contribution to British cinema, Alkazi was over the moon. He sent Om a handwritten letter: “I regard you as an actor of great emotional power and extraordinary range. You are an earnest individual, and with the searing intensity of your performances you have raised the dramatic skill in this country.”
For Om, this was the best award.
TEACHER BY PASSION
Born to Saudi Arabian-kuwaiti parents and growing up in Pune, Alkazi’s father was a wealthy merchant with houses in Mumbai and London. After the early days of English theatre with Mumbai’s Theatre Group and Sultan Padamsee in the 1940s, Alkazi was one of the earliest Indians to graduate from RADA (the Royal Academy of Dramatic
Arts) in London.
Passionate about theatre asanactoranddirector,
Alkazi was even more passionate about teaching.