On the opening day of Dhaka Lit Fest, Aly Zaker and Asaduzzaman Noor took part in a panel discussion in which the two veteran actors discuss a life in cultural space. Bonya Mirza, a TV actor who comes from a theatre background as well, moderated the panel, gathering the theatre enthusiasts with full of life.
At the very beginning, Asaduzzaman Noor located Harold Varmus in the audience and requested someone to interpret for him. From the audience, singer Armeen Musa stepped up to brief the Nobel laureate on the panel.
Mirza started the discussion, raising a question to both panellists, “Why does the contemporary generation seem to lack a moral obligation compared to the older generation?”
Noor replied, “For this large population, I don’t reckon that the greater portion is suffering from lack of moral obligation that we frequently mention. People concentrate more on personal development rather collective, while they consider economic advancement is more imperative than to become a complete human being.”
In an elaborate way, Noor spelled out that elders of the society have failed to perform as a parental body, which he experienced in his childhood, could have been a reason behind the lack of moral obligation of the present generation.
Aly Zaker sheds a different light on the matter. He feels that society has failed to ensure the values which was prime motivation to carry out the Liberation War in 1971 through a bloody war. Restoring values of the Liberation War would be the only remedy, as per this freedom fighter’s advice.
At this stage, Mirza asked the actors to elaborate how this great collaborative journey between them spanning more than 40 years, took place.
In response, Zaker said that recently they’ve taken initiative to re-stage Dewan Gazir Kissa, directed by Noor, often visiting rehearsals, instructs the troupe and even sorts out mistakes in acting of Aly Zaker, the role he first played in 1977. This is how their collaboration works. They always make time for theatre, no matter which important position they have to fill in.
Noor narrate an event from his life when he went from prompter to actor. Due to an accident in rehearsal, actor Abul Hayat became unavailable for a show and eventually Noor filled Hayat’s shoe for the show, and turned regular stage actor from then on. He “blames” Aly Zaker for the incident, as Noor went to take an interview of Aly Zaker and ended up being the prompter for his play.
Noor added, “Recently, an audience member told me that he couldn’t find a better play after Aly Zaker’s Galileo. Theatre in the country no doubt has developed in many aspects including context, presentation and technical qualities, but what I really miss in the arena is absolute acting.”
Talking about differences in literature and theatre Zaker said, “While reading Shakespeare, every character and interactions seem significant to me but when I told to portray a specific character, I do my utmost to look through the character, and try to portray only the truth I’ve found in it.”
Both veterans, from their experiences in life, indicate that the scope of cultural practices have increased over time; now it’s the duty of individuals to put more effort in the arena by seriously taking part in it.
They both agreed upon the view that government and people should do work hand-in-hand to restore cultural values in the society which seem have been faded away.
