A theatre actor who has acted in more than 725 theatre shows and also has a Bollywood film to his credit named ‘MOM’ starring Sri Devi. Many of his theatre plays have been invited in prestigious venues like the Parliament House and theatre festivals of National magnitude like Bharangham organized by National School of Drama, Bharatendu Natya Utsav, 75 Azadi ka Amrit mahotsav, Hunar Haat.
He has transformed the Indian theatre scene and taken it to a different level altogether. He has successfully contributed towards theatre which has been achieving accolades and rounds all over the country astonishing the audience with his outstanding performance in popular plays.
Dadasaheb Phalke Award and Bharat Global Icon Awardee actor and founder and president of Felicity Theater Rahul Bhuchar. He plans to take Indian theatre scene into the next level. His vision was to take this form of entertainment to a whole new level and in the process he has produced top class plays of different genres. Felicity Theatre is an initiative to promote Indian Theatre & Culture, Nurture Creative Brain & give them a platform to display their creativity/ acting talent.
A renowned theatre organization which produces plays like JAB WE SEPARATED, WRONG NUMBER starring many Bollywood actors like Avtar Gill, Rakesh Bedi, Shweta Tiwari, Minissha Lamba, Kishwer Merchant etc.
What does the applause on the stage mean to you?
Applause on stage means the world to any actor. This cannot be compared to any monetary compensation. The applause is a report card for any actor. When the curtains are pulled and an actor takes a bow, the applause one receives is the most prized possession.
This also helps in reviewing one’s performance for any actor. Let’s say, if the same show is being conducted multiple times, the actor can figure out his performance by the applause he receives during the show or at the end whether the applause is the same, or it has increased or decreased. I personally keep pushing myself to increase the applause and that is how I keep improving.
The actor should also judge his own performance over a period of time as he does multiple shows of the same play. If the reactions continue to increase, this means that there has been a continuous improvement in his performance. This is like an instant report card and this is what stage is all about. My audience is very close to my heart, the bond I share with them is beyond words and I find myself extremely lucky to have been bestowed with so much love and adulation which can never be experienced by any amount of money.
This is sheer merit of your performance and can only be achieved with years of disciplined hard work and passion. There have been moments when a celebrity appears on stage and initially gets a lot of attention and applause, as I believe that a majority of our audiences are star-struck and they love their celebrities. However, when the initial euphoria fizzles out, the celebrity is then rated according to his performance.
Any special incidents which are close to your heart?
The most memorable incident was when I was playing Lord Shiva, I had to learn the Tandava, which in itself is a very fine art and a difficult dance form. As I was a non-dancer, I had to hire a coach but everything that I used to learn in the evening, I was blank again the next morning. Then I had a word with my director about the same and he was affirmative and said that it has to be done by me and nobody else. Even though I expressed how challenging it was for me and I had almost surrendered. It was then the master advised me to meditate at the Shiv temple and seek his blessings while exercising the rituals of Rudrabhishekam. I followed his advice for next four days like a humble student and to my surprise when I went for my rehearsals I could perform each and every step with ease and perfection. My coach was equally surprised as me and tagged me as an expert dancer. This incident is nothing less than a miracle and a blessing for me by The Almighty.
We did more than fifty shows of that play all over India and my Tandav dance was the highlight which the audience was delighted to see. Another incident I remember is when. My co-actor suffered a heart attack on stage. The show was suspended midway, and we rushed him to hospital but during that time also he kept saying that the show must go on and since we had a shadow cast available that day, we continued the show and completed it. Though we could not save him, we honored his last wish which was, “The show must go on!”
What kind of preparations are needed when portraying a larger than life character ?
When one is supposed to play a larger than life character, we start by reading about the character and we try to gather all the related information available in print or digital. You then align your thought process to the character and start figuring out how the character used to live his life and behavioural patterns in different situations. If the performance is kept limited to only learning and delivering the dialogue, it will end up as a poetic recitation but if we have prepared well by digging deep into the character, the audience will be able to make out the minute details in your performance. To grow as a natural performer, one needs to learn about the character’s traits like, his way of thinking, walking, his psychology, in other words an actor needs to get into all the layers of the character. It is only then, that you can do justice to the character and win over your audience.
Do these characters also have an implication on you as an individual?
Yes, it does impact you. If one is performing a larger than life role, of say Lord Ram or Karna, it does affect you mentally and one will refrain from any wrongdoing from the day of performance. If you get into the skin of the character, then these things do impact you. If you live the character and you are completely devoted to it then these things are bound to impact you individually it is not easy to come out of it.