In her we find the amalgam of the richness of Manipuri performance art and the integrity of Manipuri women.
Outspoken, dedicated and inspired, Sanabam Thaninleima is the first woman from Manipur to pass out from the country's prestigious academy of theatre, the National School of Drama (NSD) at New Delhi which has produced the likes of Ratan Thiyam, Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta and Om Puri.
Undoubtedly the first Manipuri woman to go into direction with a professional degree in the world of Manipuri drama, she is at present the founder president of her own theatre group, Khenjonglang.
Thanin, as she is known to her close friends, is the third child of Sanabam Tombi, a former teacher turned businessman, of Wangkhei Pukhrambam Leirak, and S Tombimacha, a housewife. She has three siblings – a sister and two brothers.
A bright and inquisitive student, Thanin did her early schooling at Wangkhei Girls High School. After passing her high school leaving certificate exam from the school, she did her Pre-University studies at Oriental College, and graduated in Bio-Chemistry from Dhanamanjuri College of Science, Imphal. After that she completed her Masters in Linguistics from Manipur University.
In 1990, Thanin started involving herself in theatrical activities under the tutelage of one of Manipur's creative director, L. Dorendra.
She was still in college then. It was during this period that she won the Best Actress award thrice in the same year (in 1994) in different national level drama competitions in Shimla, Guwahati and Tripura.
At Shimla and Guwahati she played the lead role in the production Draupadi while at Tripura it was Mangal Yaodraba Numit (A Sun Without Its Shine). In 1997, she underwent a rigorous one year residential training under the internationally renowned Ratan Thiyam. Thanin had also worked with Heisnam Kanhailal, another leading figure in Manipuri theatre.
In 1998 she was selected for training at NSD. "I was so happy when I got the admission; it was something I had never expected since the intake into NSD is very difficult process. Little did I know that on reaching there my problems would start.
The teaching in NSD were all in Hindi language-based and hence the first block – then I knew very little Hindi, forget being able to pronounce it fluently," she recalls.
"I was also unable to adapt very quickly to the kind of cosmopolitan atmosphere in and around the campus. I had come from a semi-urban traditional society and suddenly I was in the midst of a very free metropolitan society.
It became my utmost priority to retain my individuality and keep intact my traditional values," she said and added, "Compounding my problems was my mongoloid features and my culture which was alien to them."
In her striving, Thanin sought refuge in the NSD library. "I read a lot and kept myself busy always. It was good in a way as the books were a great source of knowledge for me and I learnt all about the different theatre trends in the world," she continues.
It was after much heart-searching that she decided to major in direction in her Post Graduate Diploma from NSD. After passing out she has directed as many as eleven productions shown in and outside the state.
Some of these include
- Ei Ngaoba Natte (I'm not mad),
- William Shakespeare's Macbeth,
- Ima Lingjel which is an adaptation from Bertolt Brectch's Mother Courage and her Children, and
- Ngairi Amakhak (Waiting for something).
The first two — Ei Ngaoba Natte and Macbeth – had been part of the National Theatre festival Rang Mahotsav in New Delhi organized by NSD and Sangeet Natak Akademi.
The multi-faceted and multi-talented Thanin is also a playwright. She has the scripts of five plays to her credit, which were made into productions during 2001-2005.
These are
- Ei Ngaoba Natte,
- Ngairi Amakhak,
- Nongleisina Lepkhragadi (If this storm abates),
- Maithihoure Nongban Ei (I, Nongban, am defeated) and
- Kadomdano Chatlisibu (Which is this path I'm going?)
But her path hasn't been strewn with roses. "I am very hard working as a woman director as I am working within the confines of societal norms – norms which don't look very kindly at a woman working late into the nights, and working with men," she said.
"In my opinion, the lack of women directors in Manipur could be attributed to the lack of societal support, from both men and women, and even from those in the same field. It is only intellectuals outside our field (of theatre) who appreciate our hard work," she adds.
Thanin has also been the recipient of a Junior Fellowship by Department of Culture, Government of India during 2003-2005. She was awarded a fellowship by the NSD in 2005.
She visited Japan as an Indian delegate during the international theatre Conference and Tokyo art market, 2003 organised by Japan Foundation.
She is also at the last legs of her PhD work on "Contemporary Manipuri Theatre" at Manipuri University under Dr Nongmaithem Tombi.
Thingnam Anjulika Samom wrote this article for The Sangai Express .
You can contact the writer at thingnam(at)yahoo(dot)com .
This article was webcasted on December 22nd, 2006
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