Ramu Ramanathan
Ramakrishnan Ramanathan popularly known as Ramu Ramanathan is an Indian playwright-director with acclaimed plays to his credit. His list of plays includes Cotton 56, Polyester 84; Jazz; Comrade Kumbhakarna; and more recently, Postcards From Bardoli. His book 3, Sakina Manzil And Other Plays,[1] is a collection of eight plays, published by Orient Blackswan in collaboration with the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU).[2]
Ramu Ramanathan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 29 December 1967 |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Education | Bachelor of Science, Chemistry, University of Mumbai, 1988 |
| Spouse(s) | Kinnari Vohra |
| Website | placesotherthanthis |
Ramu was editor of PT Notes, a monthly theatre newsletter produced by Prithvi Theatre in Mumbai for ten years. He also co-edited e-STQ (Seagull Theatre Quarterly), and has written columns on theatre for national dailies.[3]
In addition to being counted as one of the best playwrights of today's India, Ramu is also the editor of PrintWeek India and Campaign India magazines[4] He has been associated with the printing industry for 30 years. Ramu helped launch PrintWeek India in May 2008. He has been a driving force in reshaping coverage of the Indian print market through industry specials, awards and survey reports. Under his leadership, PrintWeek has grown into one of the largest teams covering print in India.[5]
Ramu lives and works in Mumbai — the city where many of his plays are situated. Commenting on his relationship with Mumbai in a detailed interview with the Mumbai Theatre Guide,[6] he says, "Mumbai is my lover. I love her and at the same time, I loathe her. To-date, even today, I discover something new in her. And that I’ve poured into the plays." As part of his research on the city and its culture, Ramu has catalogued an exhaustive reading list in form of Literature that Celebrates Mumbai: A List.[7]
Early life
Ramu was born on 29 December 1967 in Kolkata and later moved to Mumbai. He completed his schooling from St. Stanislaus High School,[8] Mumbai. In 1988, Ramu graduated from University of Mumbai with bachelor's degree in Chemistry, and then completed Diploma in Journalism from Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai in 1990.
Publications
- 3 Sakina Manzil and Other Plays (in English), Orient Blackswan (2012) - An anthology of eight plays: Shanti, Shanti It’s A War; The Boy Who Stopped Smiling; Curfew; Mahadevbhai (1892–1942); Collaborators; 3, Sakina Manzil; Shakespeare And She; Jazz.[9]
- Mahadevbhai (in Marathi), Popular Prakashan (2011)
- Tathasthu ("So Be It"), in The Little Magazine (2010)[10]
- Collaborators And Mahadevbhai, Sahitya Akademi (2006)[11]
- Combat, published by National School of Drama (2003)
Theatre experience
The playwright–director's best work is with young people and non-theatre persons. He staged Vaikom Mohammed Basheer’s Me Grandad ‘Ad An Elephant, and later Marguerite Duras’ L’amante Anglaise (both with university students) and Samuel Beckett's Krapp's Last Tape (with Little Prithvi Players). These were unsullied theatrical experiences.
Similarly, his collaboration with a group of architecture students resulted in three plays and one delightfully wicked piece calledPM @ 3 pm. This group hosted an important 7-day workshops on Set Design + Theatre Aesthetics and fabricated four model sets of King Lear, for four language theatres’ directors in Mumbai. He has conducted innumerable workshops and lectures, in which he has tried to reinstate the ideals of good taste, decent humour, intelligence and above all progressive values.[3]
Playwriting
| Title | Year | Acclamation |
|---|---|---|
| Postcards From Bardoli | 2013 | |
| The Diary Of A Word | 2012 | |
| Comrade Kumbhakarna | 2011 | |
| Kashmir Kashmir | 2009 | |
| Jazz | 2008 | |
| Shakespeare And She | 2008 | |
| Medha And Zoombish II | 2007 | |
| Three Ladies Of Ibsen | 2006 | |
| Cotton 56, Polyester 84 | 2006 | Bagged the META best play and best playwright award[12] |
| Chello Ank(in Gujarati) | 2004 | Bagged the best play award for the Bhupen Khakkhar Playwriting Competition organised by Mumbai Samachar, Friends of Bhupen Khakkar, Image Publications and Coffee Mates. |
| 3, Sakina Manzil | 2004 | |
| Medha And Zoombish | 2004 | |
| Collaborators | 2003 | Regional Award Winner of the BBC International Radio Playwriting Competition |
| Mahadevbhai 1892-1942 | 2002 | |
| Combat | 2002 | Premiered at the Kala Ghoda Festival |
| Yaar, What’s The Capital Of Manipur! | 2002 | |
| The Travel Show | 2000 | Premiered at the Prithvi Theatre Festival |
| Curfew | 1999 | Premiered at the Prithvi Theatre Festival |
| The Boy Who Stopped Smiling | 1998 | |
| Shanti, Shanti, It’s A War | 1993 | All India Best Play Award awarded by The Hindu |
| Nothing – A Play Without Words | 1990 | |
| I Am I; What It Is; Gagan Mahal; Etc. | (1987 to 1993) | Award-winning inter-collegiate one-act plays |
Theatrical adaptations
| Title | Year | Adapted from |
|---|---|---|
| A Play About A Painter | 2004 | Edoardo Erba’s Italian drama |
| The Sanjivani Super Show | 2004 | Adaptation of Adya Rangacharya’s Kannada play, SANJIVANI |
| Gandhi Katha | 2003 | |
| The Train To Argentina | 2002 | Theatrical adaptation of play by Thuppatan |
| Steppenwolf | 2002 | Based on Herman Hesse’s novel in German. Staged as part of the Herman Hesse Celebrations at Max Mueller Bhavan, Mumbai |
| L’ Amante Anglaise (In English) | 2002 | Based on French play by Marguerite Duras |
| Translator Of Ded Inch Upar (Into English) | 1997 | Hindi original by Nirmal Verma |
Direction
| Title | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Shakespeare And She | 2008 | |
| Medha And Zoombish II | 2007 | |
| Arabian Night | 2004 | Play by Ronald Schimmelpfennig |
| Medha And Zoombish | 2004 | |
| A Play About A Painter | 2004 | Edoardo Erba’s Italian drama |
| Collaborators | 2003 | |
| The Sanjivani Super Show | 2004 | Staged during the 100th Birth Anniversary of the Adya Rangacharya, at Mysore Association, Mumbai |
| Gandhi Katha | 2003 | Staged reading, premiered at the Gujarati Forbes Sabha’s book launch of Narayan Desai’s four-volume biography on Mahatma Gandhi, in Mumbai on 2 October 2003 |
| The Train To Argentina | 2002 | Premiered at the Varkhari Kerala Theatre Festival in Mumbai, on 25 December 2002 |
| L’ Amante Anglaise (in English) | 2002 | Co-produced by Alliance Francaise, Mumbai |
| Mahadevbhai 1892–1942 | 2002 | Premiered at the Prithvi Theatre Festival 2002 |
| Yaar, What’s The Capital Of Manipur! | 2002 | Co-produced by Kamala Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute of Architecture |
| Time To Tell A Tale | 2001 | Co-produced with Katha Publishing and SNDT, University |
| Angst. Angst. Coontah. Coontah. Boom. Bam. Dhandal. Dhamaal. Kaput. (Concept And Direction) | 2001 | Premiered at TECHFEST, IIT Mumbai |
| Me Grandad ‘Ad An Elephant | 1998 | Theatrical adaptation of the Malayalam novella by Vaikom Mohammed Basheer, into a dramatized presentation (Group co-ordination & direction) 1998-99 |
| The Boy Who Stopped Smiling | 1998 | |
| Credit Titles | 1997 | Playwright: Vijay Padki. A staged play-reading |
| Audience And Mistake (actor &c-Director) | 1994 | Playwright: Vaclav Havel |
| Deathwatch | 1991 | Playwright: Jean Genet |
| Krapp’s Last Tape | 1989 | Playwright: Samuel Beckett |
Ramu Ramanathan's talk at Studio Safdar
Ramu Ramanathan's talk at Studio Safdar
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ramu Ramanathan. |
- "Playing with Words".
- "3, Sakina Manzil and Other Plays".
- "Theatre is most un-wow". The Hindu. 2 March 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
- "PrintWeek India".
- "Ramu Ramanathan".
- "Ramu Ramanathan".
- "Literature that Celebrates Mumbai: A List".
- http://www.goethe.de/ins/in/en/lp/kul/mag/foc/fus/20388142.html
- "3, Sakina Manzil and Other Plays".
- http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/Articles/12/apr/26-book-launch-of-ramu-ramanathans-mahadevbhai.asp
- http://sahitya-akademi.gov.in/sahitya-akademi/publications/english.pdf
- http://metawards.com/metaarchive/cotton-56-polyster-84/