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Bapulal Nayak

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Bapulal Nayak
Bapulal Nayak (left) with Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari' in a play Sneh-Sarita in 1915. They acted in several successful plays together.
Born
Narayan Bhabhaldas Nayak

(1879-03-25)25 March 1879
Gerita, Mehsana, Baroda State, British India
Died4 December 1947(1947-12-04) (aged 68)
Undhai near Mehsana, Baroda State, British India
Occupation(s)Stage actor, director, manager
Years active1890–1946
Parents
  • Bhabhaldas (father)
  • Narbhiben (mother)

Bapulal Nayak (25 March 1879 – 4 December 1947) was an Indian stage actor, director and manager of the early Gujarati theatre. Born into a family of traditional folk theatre performers, he joined the theatre company Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali at a young age. His acting was well received in his initial roles. He was involved in stage planning and managing and later became a partner in the company. He rose to fame and acted in several successful plays with Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari', who played female roles opposite him. He acted in plays written by Mulshankar Mulani, Gajendrashnakar Pandya and Nrisinh Vibhakar. He wrote and directed several plays and eventually bought the theatre company. After a career lasting five decades, he retired after his company suffered heavy loss with the advent of the cinema.

Biography

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Bapulal Nayak (left) and Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari' in the play Kamlata, at Gaiety Theatre, Bombay, 1904

Nayak was born in Gerita near Mehsana on 25 March 1879 and was named Narayan by his parents Bhabhaldas Khemchand Nayak and Narbhiben.[1][2][3] He studied till the fifth standard in the Gujarati school in his native village Undhai.[2][1] He was nicknamed Bapulal by his father.[3] In Februatry 1890, at the age of eleven, he quit the family tradition of performing Bhavai (folk theatre) and farming, and started his stage career with Dayashankar Visanji Bhatt's Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali for a salary of three rupees per month.[1][3][4] He was given a role of Jayant, son of Indra, in a play, Harishchandra (1890). He next appeared in Rajbeej (King's Progeny, 1891), a play written by Mulshankar Mulani specifically for him which premiered at the Geity Theatre in Bombay. It was successful.[4][5][3] His performance as Mularaja in Mularaj Solanki (1895) was well received.[1] In the next decade, he acted Ramcharitra (1989), Raman in Lakshadhipati-no Raman, Jayraj (1898) and other plays, as well as becoming involved in stage planning and the management of a theatre company. In 1899, he and Mulani became partners in the company, each holding a 6% share of the Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali.[4] He also acted in the acclaimed play, Ajabkumari (1899), opposite female impersonator actor Jaishankar Bhojak 'Sundari' who had recently joined their company. The pair soon rose to fame and acted together in several successful plays including Saubhagya Sundari (Fortunate Sundari, 1901),[2] Vikram Charitra (1901, directed by him), Dage Hasrat (1901), Jugal Jugari (Jugal the Gambler, 1903), Kamlata (1904), Sneh Sarita (1915), Madhubansari (1917).[1][4][5] Around the end of the 19th-century, he was guided by Mulshankar and Dayashankar Visanji.[5] He learned direction from Sorabji Katrak.[1] He trained many actors as well.[5]

Nand-Batrisi (1906) was a first play written by him which was well received. He also wrote Chandrabhaga (1909), a farce entitled Navalsha Hirji (1909), Anandlahari (1919) and Saubhagya-no Sinh (1925).[4] When Mulani's three plays failed consequently, he chose to stage nationalistic plays written by Nrisinh Vibhakar. These plays experimented with story and theme but enactment stayed unchanged. During this period, Mahatma Gandhi had arrived in India from South Africa and the Indian independence movement was gathering steam.[4][5] He acquired Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali in April 1922.[1][4][5][2]

Bapulal Nayak started directing his plays and started adapting literature into plays.[5] He chose Ramanbhai Neelkanth's play Raino Parvat written in 1911 and staged it in 1926. The songs of the play were written by Rasiklal Parikh and four shows of it were staged. Later he staged four plays written by Champshi Udeshi, four plays written by Gajendrashankar Pandya as well as many Parsi theatre styled plays. Gajendrashankar Pandya's play College Kanya was staged by Bapulal and it created controversy due to some of its dialogue about females; Narsinhrao Divetia, Chandravadan Mehta and Hansa Jivraj Mehta led the public protests against the play.[4]

With the advent of the cinema, the theatre started to lose its audience. Bapulal was forced to sell his company in 1938 due to it suffering heavy losses. In 1944, he tried to revive his company with the help of a financier. He retired after staging his last play Ladakvayo, written by Prafulla Desai, in 1946. He had acted in more than a hundred plays, directed forty seven plays and written six plays during his career.[1][4][2] He also wrote some poems.[1] He died on 4 December 1947 in Undhai near Mehsana, Baroda State.[2]

Reception

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P. K. Nayyar, a columnist of Sanjvartaman daily of Bombay, called him "one of the best actors in the world" in 1917.[2] Rasiklal Parikh, Chandravadan Mehta and Pragji Dosa have praised the excellence of his directing.[4]

Stage

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Acting career[2]
Date Title Role Writer Theatre company
10 August 1889 Shakuntal Sarvadaman Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
9 August 1890 Harishchandra Jayant Vishwanath Prabhuram Vaidya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
22 January 1891 Rajbeej Beej Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
27 February 1892 Kundabala Chand Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
15 August 1892 Rasikmani Mohan Narabheshankar Manchharam Vyas Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
2 December 1893 Sundar Veni Sundarlal – Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
3 November 1894 Premkala Premrai Vijayshankar Kalidas Bhatt Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
27 April 1895 Mevadno Pratapi Chand Mokal Vijayshankar Kalidas Bhatt Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
19 October 1895 Mularaj Solanki Mularaja Vijayshankar Kalidas Bhatt Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
5 September 1896 Karanghelo Beejkhan Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
14 August 1897 Barrister Shankar Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
8 January 1898 Ramcharitra Ram Vijayshankar Kalidas Bhatt Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
23 April 1898 Pushpasen Pushpavati Pushpasen – Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
27 August 1898 Jayraj Jayraj Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
8 July 1899 Tilakkumar Tilakkumar Vijayshankar Kalidas Bhatt Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
30 September 1899 Ajabkumari Randhir Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
16 December 1899 Veer Mandal Pratapsinh Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
14 February 1900 Mohini Kalyandev Vijayshankar Kalidas Bhatt Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
7 July 1900 Vikramcharitra Rajratan Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
19 October 1901 Saubhagya Sundari Saubhagya Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
26 August 1902 Jugal Jugari Jugal Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
18 October 1904 Kamlata Meenketu Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1906 Nandbatrisi Vilochan Bapulal Nayak Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1908 Sangatno Rang Lalaji – Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
22 May 1909 Chandrabhaga Ratansinh Bapulal Nayak Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
3 November 1909 Navalsha Heerji Navalsha Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
17 December 1910 Vasantprabha Vasantsen Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1911 Devkanya Kishor Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1912 Krishnacharitra Baldev Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
31 January 1914 Prataplakshmi Pratap Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
28 February 1915 Sangatna Fal Kant Mulshankar Mulani Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
19 September 1915 Sneh Sarita Shenchandra Nrisinh Vibhakar Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
5 August 1916 Sudhachandra Chandrakumar Nrisinh Vibhakar Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
28 July 1917 Madhubansari Madhusudan Nrisinh Vibhakar Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
23 November 1918 Meghmalini Meghdoot Nrisinh Vibhakar Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
23 August 1919 Anandlahari Laharikant Bapulal Nayak Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
25 September 1920 Vishwaleela Vishwadev Ambashankar Harishankar Upadhyay Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
25 April 1925 Saubhagyano Sinh Mansinh Bapulal Nayak Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1926 Madandh Mahila Yane Noorjahan Sher Afghan Jayshankar Vaghajibhai Vyas Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1926 Kumali Kali Pranjeevan Shayda Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1927 Jamanano Rang Dhanraj Gajendrashankar Lalshankar Pandya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1928 Tarunina Tarang Padmakumar Gajendrashankar Lalshankar Pandya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1928 Kashmirnu Prabhat Devakar Gajendrashankar Lalshankar Pandya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
21 February 1929 Kudaratno Nyay Kantilal Gajendrashankar Lalshankar Pandya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
29 March 1929 Up-to-date Mavali Sorabji Joseph David Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1929 Swamibhakti Yane Baji Deshpande (Hindi) Heeroji Munshi Mohiyuddin Naza Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
27 January 1929 Kimiyagar Shripatrai 'Manasvi' Prantijwala (rewritten) Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
9 January 1930 Kuldeepak Shantilal Gajendrashankar Lalshankar Pandya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
January 1931 Kutil Rajneeti Shivaji Gajendrashankar Lalshankar Pandya Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
23 January 1932 Karmasanjog Dharmadas Mugatlal Pranjeevan Oza Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1932 Karyasiddhi (Hindi) Duple 'Manasvi' Prantijwala (adaptation) Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
9 September 1933 Kon Samrat? Bhimdev 'Manasvi' Prantijwala (rewritten) Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1934 Kirtivijay Ratnapal 'Manasvi' Prantijwala Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
13 September 1934 Jeenjarna Zankare Ramsinh Champshi Udeshi Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
20 March 1935 Mumbaini Badi Sukhlaji Joseph David Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
1 June 1935 Gheli Guniyal Kanchanlal Champshi Udeshi Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
January 1936 Kiritkumar Vijayvarma Manilal 'Pagal' Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
February 1936 Nepolian Francis Manilal 'Pagal' Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
15 May 1937 Shataranjna Dav Shripal Champshi Udeshi Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
7 August 1937 Gareebna Ansu Varjabhushan Champshi Udeshi Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
19 November 1938 Sukhi Sansar Bhanuprasad Champshi Udeshi Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali
11 March 1939 Kalankit Kon? Bakshi Sheth Chimanlal Trivedi Mumbai Gujarati Natak Mandali

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Bhojak, Dinkar (1990). Thaker, Dhirubhai (ed.). ગુજરાતી વિશ્વકોશ [Gujarati Encyclopedia] (in Gujarati). Vol. X. Ahmedabad: Gujarati Vishwakosh Trust, Ahmedabad. pp. 95–96. OCLC 165832685.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Choksi, Mahesh; Somani, Dhirendra, eds. (2004). ગુજરાતી રંગભૂમિ: રિદ્ધિ અને રોનક (Gujarati Rangbhoomi: Riddhi Ane Ronak) [Compilation of Information regarding professional theatre of Gujarat] (in Gujarati). Ahmedabad: Gujarat Vishwakosh Trust. pp. 38, 219–223.
  3. ^ a b c d Nayak, Suresh (January 1980). Gujarati Rangbhumina Abhinay Shilpi Bapulal Nayak (in Gujarati) (1st ed.). Suresh Nayak. pp. 6, 8. OCLC 7173414.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Baradi, Hasmukh (2003). History of Gujarati Theatre. India-The Land and The People. Translated by Meghani, Vinod. National Book Trust, India. pp. 60–63. ISBN 978-81-237-4032-4.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Baradi, Hasmukh (2004). Lal, Ananda (ed.). The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195644468. OCLC 56986659 – via Oxford Reference.

Further reading

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