On World Theatre Day, actors reveal secret of stage-film crossover
Times of India | 27 March 2025
Kolkata: When Bratya Basu faced the camera at the Sarcarina theatre for Aditya Vikram Sengupta's ‘Mayanagar', he perhaps had an idea that his portrayal of ‘Bubuda' would garner acclaim for its mellow and naturalistic approach. Ahead of World Theatre Day, a look at the performances of stage actors like Basu and Satrajit Sarkar in ‘Mayanagar', Sudipta Chakraborty in ‘Bariwali', and Chandan Sen in ‘Manikbabur Megh' serves as a reminder for the need to know the secret recipe for achieving consummate artistry across both platforms.
Uttam Kumar, Tulsi Chakraborty, Rabi Ghosh, Gyanesh Mukhopadhyay, Bhanu Bandyopadhyay, Jwahar Roy, Soumitra Chatterjee, Manju De, Madhabi Mukherjee and Sabitri Chatterjee belong to the list of stalwarts who have simultaneously excelled in both media. Explaining how a stage actor can prepare for cinema, director Atanu Ghosh quoted film-maker and theatre director Elia Kazan, who had said, "Whereas you can get away with faking, posturing, and indicating emotions on stage, it's difficult, if not impossible, to get away with anything false before the camera. That instrument penetrates the husk of the actor; it reveals what's truly happening — if anything, if nothing."
Basu said the fundamental challenge stems from the insufficient comprehension that theatrical and cinematic acting necessitate distinct approaches due to their inherent medium differences. Excessive reliance on dialect and physical acting is a big problem, too, Basu added. "In cinema, I modify my performance based on the specific lens utilised for filming," Basu said. When asked why his style of acting in ‘Mayanagar' is distinctly different from that in most other movies, he elaborated, "I initially delved into the character's psychological realm. Rather than ranting as a depressed man in ‘Mayanagar', I connected with the character's despondency stemming from his powerlessness to safeguard a theatre. I employed an identical analytical approach whilst preparing for Suman Mukhopadhyay's ‘Asamapta'."
Sawon Chakraborty, who started on stage before garnering acclaim for his role in Anjan Dutt's ‘Chaalchitra Ekhon', said directors lacking comprehensive understanding of the craft occasionally depend on actors to pull off scenes. "Consequently, actors resort to exaggerated eye movements or delivering dialogues boisterously to receive accolades. At times, actors receive vague instructions to ‘do something'. When will they understand that not delivering dialogues is also acting? Another prevalent misconception revolves around ‘underacting'. In reality, there exists only good or bad acting. The notion of underacting is non-existent," he said.
In Sengupta's case, direction or making a film is "representation of reality, people, interactions, reactions, images, and emotions from memory". On being asked how to avoid the loud, melodramatic performances that are often passed on as ‘good acting' by theatre actors on screen, he said: "That's possible by holding on to the memories of life and experiences and going to any length to recreate what we treasure. Empathy is the key. Memories can be loud, based on what a person has experienced and with whom. Loud here refers to dramatic and melodramatic, which are basically ornamentations of storytelling. But it has been toned down according to my experience and memory from where I recreated it."
According to Sarkar, wisdom of an actor is an asset. "Cinema is a more difficult medium than stage. The plot gets lost because of lack of education. A stage actor needs to have a free mind to be educated properly about cinema before facing the camera," Sarkar said.