When Chinese Yung Van Liu breaks into Urdu verse, his chaste accent and precise pronunciation cause in his audience ripples of admiration.Reportedly the only Urdu poet of Chinese origin in India, Yung says: "I am an Indian by birth and by heart." A dentist by profession and settled in Jamshedpur, Yung, 74, has bagged the Firaq Gorakhpuri award for his linguistic talents.
"When World War II broke out, my family had to shift to Jamshedpur from Kolkata for security reasons. My parents faced tough times and could not afford to send me to school. That was how I attended an Urdu school where no fee was charged. Initially I found it difficult to learn the Urdu alphabet, but gradually I mastered it. After six months, my family’s financial condition improved and they shifted me back to an English school." "But by then I had developed a love for Urdu," says the poet who never considered moving to China. When the India-China border war broke out in 1962, Yung criticised the Chinese invasion through Urdu poetry.
According to Yung, Urdu, a language that played a vital role in India’s freedom struggle, was not the language of a particularly community. "Urdu originates in the hearts of the people," he said.
Chinese man recites Urdu poetry
January 10, 2006, 9:45 amNSD festival to stage 62 plays from 11 countries
December 30, 2005, 9:35 am
The stage is set for a great theatrical event in the capital. The National School of Drama (NSD) is organising its annual festival "Theatre Utsav, 2006," which will be held from January 2-14.
The school’s eighth annual festival, would bring to centrestage 62 productions from 11 countries, which will be staged at five venues: Kamani Auditorium, Sri Ram Centre, and three halls at the NSD namely Abhimanch, Bahumukh, and Sammukh.
The festival has been broadly divided in five sections: The Indian presence, Emerging Talent, Theatre Training and Asian and Arab windows.
The first section brings together the best Indian productions of last year and the next two categories incorporate fresh theatrepersons who are making their presence felt across the country and works from other theatre institutes. The Asian and Arab windows give a glimpse of the evolution of theatre in these parts of the globe.
Devendra Raj Ankur, director, NSD, says, "In the festivals held earlier, the focus invariably was on regional theatre in India. This year, however, we have laid enough emphasis on the participation of troupes from South Asian countries. Besides, there will be a three-day seminar (January 6th to 8th) on issues relating to theatre in which eminent scholars from the region will participate." The symposium will be chaired by veteran American theatreperson Richard Schechner, who is credited with having started "environmental theatre" in the US.
Some of the issues to be discussed, says Ankur, are traditions and morality in theatre.The other highlight of the theatrical extravaganza would be the simultaneous staging of some selected plays in Bangalore on January 4-7. "This is being introduced for the first time. But we aim to continue this in the subsequent festivals. Next year, we’ll stage some plays in Kolkata," informs Mr Ankur.
Amal Allana, chairperson, NSD, says, "The focus of this festival will be on the section called Window on Asia, which features plays from countries like China, Japan, South Korea, Nepal and Sri Lanka." Theatre, says Allana, is an important part of culture. "It should be made part and parcel of young people’s lives. Incorporating theatre into the syllabi of schools and universities is long overdue. The festival is a celebration of performing arts as an important part of our lives," she says.
She further adds, "We want the NSD to be connected with good works from other institutions. We don’t want it to be isolated in training field."
The school’s eighth annual festival, would bring to centrestage 62 productions from 11 countries, which will be staged at five venues: Kamani Auditorium, Sri Ram Centre, and three halls at the NSD namely Abhimanch, Bahumukh, and Sammukh.
The festival has been broadly divided in five sections: The Indian presence, Emerging Talent, Theatre Training and Asian and Arab windows.
The first section brings together the best Indian productions of last year and the next two categories incorporate fresh theatrepersons who are making their presence felt across the country and works from other theatre institutes. The Asian and Arab windows give a glimpse of the evolution of theatre in these parts of the globe.
Devendra Raj Ankur, director, NSD, says, "In the festivals held earlier, the focus invariably was on regional theatre in India. This year, however, we have laid enough emphasis on the participation of troupes from South Asian countries. Besides, there will be a three-day seminar (January 6th to 8th) on issues relating to theatre in which eminent scholars from the region will participate." The symposium will be chaired by veteran American theatreperson Richard Schechner, who is credited with having started "environmental theatre" in the US.
Some of the issues to be discussed, says Ankur, are traditions and morality in theatre.The other highlight of the theatrical extravaganza would be the simultaneous staging of some selected plays in Bangalore on January 4-7. "This is being introduced for the first time. But we aim to continue this in the subsequent festivals. Next year, we’ll stage some plays in Kolkata," informs Mr Ankur.
Amal Allana, chairperson, NSD, says, "The focus of this festival will be on the section called Window on Asia, which features plays from countries like China, Japan, South Korea, Nepal and Sri Lanka." Theatre, says Allana, is an important part of culture. "It should be made part and parcel of young people’s lives. Incorporating theatre into the syllabi of schools and universities is long overdue. The festival is a celebration of performing arts as an important part of our lives," she says.
She further adds, "We want the NSD to be connected with good works from other institutions. We don’t want it to be isolated in training field."
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