Training Intervention   BACK

ROLE OF THEATRE IN : : SELF, GROUP, ORGANISATION AND COMMUNITY

Interventions by Manjul Bharadwaj--- Mahavir Jain

I have been blind about the role of theatre in training process. I was not trained in theatre and hence was not prepared to make any intervention with theatre in my training due to my discomfort, ignorance and inexperience in theatre. The person who has been breaking my head and pursuing me to use theatre was Mr. Manjul Bharadwaj.

Meeting with Manjul was an accident. He came to attend Training of Trainers in Child Labour at V.V. Giri National Labour Institute during 1994. I experienced him full of energy, risk-taker, fighter, aggressor, asserter, over-confident and arrogant. Manjul had potential to influence group and has influenced many participants with his ideology, conviction and approach. His journey had started in the process. In my observation, every day he was making interventions on self and was making group level interventions, In every intervention, I saw Manjul struggling, introspecting, experimenting, owning and learning. Manjul has started his own journey in understanding human processes.

Manjul came repeatedly to this institute (V.V. Giri National Labour Institute) and showed his sincerity, commitment, dedication and ready to experiment. With these qualities, he started changing himself. Manjul’s journey started from arrogance to assertive, task orientation to process orientation, dominance to participation, observant to risk taker. At last, Manjul has become student of process training.

This person started sending me literature on Theatre of Relevance. I was receiving it and keeping it as of no use. He has been talking to me to apply the experiences of theatre in training. I used to listen and postponed whatever he said.

One fine morning I received a call from Manjul that I am in town and ready to be with you. On the same day, I was discussing the strategies on Convergence of Services on child labour at the Institute. We were discussing on various methodologies on training to be adopted in Convergence of Services. Theatre struck to me as one of the methodologies to be adopted in training as part of Convergence of Services. I connected myself with the telephone and called him for discussion. My journey on theatre started from here. Next day I took him to field where I realised the potential of theatre in training, the depth of theatre and relevance of theatre. We collectively made intervention that mobilised the whole block (area). The participants of these interventions have been coming to me and shared that theatre intervention has increased their effectivity. It helped in mobilising government officials, trade union, rural workers, and Panchayati Raj members on child labour.

Manjul has been inducted with the theatre approach in the child labour training. After that he has been coming to V.V. Giri National Labour Institute for training different trainees coming to this Institute from all over India.

The beauty of theatre is that it is integrated with experiential learning in training and has increased the efficacy of training. Manjul’s training of T-group, child labour, and other training’s have multiplied his facilitation skills. He can take the group at any level at any time. Manjul has the capacity to work in small groups and large groups’ (300). He can make intervention in any position. Manjul’s spontaneity to take risk is unbelievable. With this background, he made interventions in training in rural workers organisation, Panchayati Raj members, Project Directors of child labour, government officials, etc.

After working with him for more than five years actively, I am educated on theatre. Even today, I can plunge into training via theatre; I see tremendous relevance of theatre in human processes at individual level, small group and large group. This technique has potential to make prevention and elimination of child in the country. I see Manjul Bharadwaj of the Experimental Theatre Foundation has great success. I wish I had been in place of Manjul.

- Dr. Mahaveer Jain

- Dr. Sri Raman

Dr. Mahavir Jain is at present Senior Fellow and in-charge of training at V.V. Giri National Labour Institute, NOIDA. He is accredited Facilitator of Indian Society for Applied Behavioural Science. His innovativeness in facilitation skill transcends all boundaries. He lives in moment and believes in movement in social sector. He has pioneered training in the field of child labour and is recognised world over in the field of child labour.

He lives at 52A, Pratap Nagar, Mayur Vihar Phase-I, Delhi-110 092.
Telephone: 22750286 & 2275848®; 0120 2412524 (O), Mobile-9810144891.

Dr. Sri Raman is a process student, lives in moment and believes in movement in child labour using innovative skills to make self, small group and large group intervention.

He lives at 1B/23, New Patliputra Colony, Patna-800 013. Phone – 0612-263383®
E-mail: sri.raman@usa.net. .   BACK