The Marriage of Art and politics : Montréal’s Teesri Duniya theatre
Theatre has been around for much longer than Shakespeare unlike what many think- the first traces of theatre actually date all the way back to Minoan Crete! Dramas and plays like Oedipus Rex written by Sopphocle were the height of culture and entertainment- and held messages of identity and personal discovery, even sometimes stories of immigration. In modern times, television shows and movies have drawn the public away from in-person theatre, but Montreal’s own Teersi Dunya Theatre carries a team of very talented individuals and passionate artists.
It was in 1981, Rana Bose and Rahul Varma co-founded the Teesri Duniya Theatre, their goal was to give minorities a chance to have a say in culture- to fill the void of representation in Quebec’s theatre scene. The company embodies a marriage between art and politics, healing wounds left behind by violence, war and genocide.
“In Québec, white and francophone art was the presence. And anything else was the absence” – Rahul Varma
I had the chance to speak to Mr. Varma after the presentation of the company’s plans for this season. I asked about his background and his reasons for the creation of this wonderful company.
Rahul Varma came to Quebec from India in 1976, and as he entered the theatre scene- he noticed an absence of people and of content who deserved to have their voices heard. So he and his partner made sure to stray away from the colonial narrative, and to represent those without representation in white, francophone, quebecois theatre. Violence against women, racism, immigration struggles and war were all intersected and showed the complexities of humanity- and they needed to be seen. “These issues had a finer- a sharper edge- and we needed to go get it to really show what the world is dealing with” he said to me.
A question that kept nagging at me while I was speaking to him was “does it ever get heavy to constantly think about and explore these themes in the art process?” As we all know, it can be exhausting to constantly listen to the news, to read death tolls or even to just see a struggling homeless immigrant in our local cities, his response was simple though : “No, I think that we have to believe that theatre allows a conversation from the battlefield to come onto the stage. That’s where the art comes in. It encourages dialogue, not conflict… we try to show people that difficult issues can be resolved with simple conversation… and it gives hope.”
“We want to include, honour, and love those who immigrated. Often they didn’t do it by choice, but we have the choice to cherish them.” -Rahul Varma
The plans for the season:
Teesri Dunyia gave the Vanier Insider the chance to hear their plans for this next season at their season premiere, here are a few pieces happening soon that truly give an idea to how accurately and passionately this company’s work embodies art and politics in one.
Behind the Moon is a play where three men who are in different stages of the process of immigration from India meet. It’s a story about the complexities of these men, their love and their emotions. It is a story about men taking care of men.
Wine and Halva is a show where an immigrant says what she actually wants to, not what she’s expected to. She is not trying to be liked. Immediately she is seen as aggressive, and the local political party tries to teach her and other immigrants how to behave.
There are many more and more details are on their website! I personally will definitely be going to see one, if not multiple, of the productions held by Teesri Duniya theatre. The values and messages shared by this family-like company are refreshing and welcoming and I highly encourage everyone to look at their website to find a play that would suit them best to go see, because it is important. Art is political and humans are political, so theatre like this is very relevant especially at a time where the world needs hope.
