‘To act, you must do’
By: Manjunatha Baburao
We glean a few gems of working principles from the conversation that thespian Naseeruddin Shah had with Rangabhoomi, the Theatre Interest Group of SAP Labs India
When Naseeruddin Shah holds forth, people listen. In Bengaluru to perform as part of the India Inclusion Summit, a community initiative supported by SAP, he held forth on acting. Hard work, integrity, and an ability to look beyond yourself are common to all jobs — whether on stage or in the boardroom, we find.
Excerpts:
“I do not believe in in-born talent” What it means: Try, try, try Try it once (laughs). I do not believe in in-born talent. If you believe in God, then you should also believe that God created everyone equally. Most of us lose our talent as we grow. As babies, we know how to swim but then we forget and have to learn swimming again. As babies all of us can sing, most of us forget this but a few people hold onto it and hone their skills. A study has revealed that an Olympic-trained athlete cannot swim like a new born baby. So everyone is born with talent, it is up to you to put in hard work and sharpen your skills. It comes easily to some and to others it might take a little work but there is no substitute.
“Do not recreate a moment” What it means: Be true to whatever you do Every audience and performance is new. A joke which works well in one show might not get any applause in another. So you should never try to recreate a moment which you think will work. How is a moment created? Is it because of the way an actor can express, his voice or body language? All you can hope for is be true to the script and be in the moment. Magic moments will then be created without any planning. There is no need to worry that a joke or a moment does not work. It has happened to everybody, including me.
“To be an actor means ‘to do’” What it means: To be good at something work on your craft Have you looked up the meaning of the word ‘act’ in the dictionary? Does it mean to express, emote, learn lines, put on disguises? No. It means ‘to do’. You need to do something to act. If you feel like doing this then do it. You need to work on your craft, your instrument. Listening is a big part of acting. Try out some exercises for concentration before rehearsals. You should always do what the director asks you to do, even if there is a conflict.
“The play is more important than any individual” What it means: Look at the bigger picture. There are no tips and tricks (to be a good actor). There are only two rules: 1) Don’t forget your lines. 2) Don’t bump into the furniture.You also need to remember that your co-actor is more important than you. Sometimes we get caught in our own lines. The play is more important that any individual. Even if you play Hamlet — the protagonist — in the scene when the messenger comes, he is more important that Hamlet. If he was not, the writer would not have written his role.
“Keep your body flexible” What it means: Don’t follow the herd Yes, as long as you are dedicated,work hard and have a healthy mind and body. Sometimes, your physical appearance might prevent you from doing certain roles. If you are muscular, you might not get the role of a feeble, thin person. But is it always good to keep your body flexible and not muscular like most people do.
(The author is a senior developer at SAP Labs India, and is the co-founder of Rangabhoomi)
We glean a few gems of working principles from the conversation that thespian Naseeruddin Shah had with Rangabhoomi, the Theatre Interest Group of SAP Labs India
When Naseeruddin Shah holds forth, people listen. In Bengaluru to perform as part of the India Inclusion Summit, a community initiative supported by SAP, he held forth on acting. Hard work, integrity, and an ability to look beyond yourself are common to all jobs — whether on stage or in the boardroom, we find.
Excerpts:
“Inspiration doesn’t strike…” What it means: Preparation is key When I take up a role, I read the script many times to understand its intricacies. Inspiration doesn’t strike on stage...there is no spontaneity in acting; it should just seem spontaneous. Everything is bound by the script. Have you read acting books Stanislavski, Peter Brook and the likes? I feel all these try to portray acting as a great philosophical, cosmological phenomenon, which it is not. Acting is much more easier and natural than that.
“I do not believe in in-born talent” What it means: Try, try, try Try it once (laughs). I do not believe in in-born talent. If you believe in God, then you should also believe that God created everyone equally. Most of us lose our talent as we grow. As babies, we know how to swim but then we forget and have to learn swimming again. As babies all of us can sing, most of us forget this but a few people hold onto it and hone their skills. A study has revealed that an Olympic-trained athlete cannot swim like a new born baby. So everyone is born with talent, it is up to you to put in hard work and sharpen your skills. It comes easily to some and to others it might take a little work but there is no substitute.
“Do not recreate a moment” What it means: Be true to whatever you do Every audience and performance is new. A joke which works well in one show might not get any applause in another. So you should never try to recreate a moment which you think will work. How is a moment created? Is it because of the way an actor can express, his voice or body language? All you can hope for is be true to the script and be in the moment. Magic moments will then be created without any planning. There is no need to worry that a joke or a moment does not work. It has happened to everybody, including me.
“To be an actor means ‘to do’” What it means: To be good at something work on your craft Have you looked up the meaning of the word ‘act’ in the dictionary? Does it mean to express, emote, learn lines, put on disguises? No. It means ‘to do’. You need to do something to act. If you feel like doing this then do it. You need to work on your craft, your instrument. Listening is a big part of acting. Try out some exercises for concentration before rehearsals. You should always do what the director asks you to do, even if there is a conflict.
“The play is more important than any individual” What it means: Look at the bigger picture. There are no tips and tricks (to be a good actor). There are only two rules: 1) Don’t forget your lines. 2) Don’t bump into the furniture.You also need to remember that your co-actor is more important than you. Sometimes we get caught in our own lines. The play is more important that any individual. Even if you play Hamlet — the protagonist — in the scene when the messenger comes, he is more important that Hamlet. If he was not, the writer would not have written his role.
“Keep your body flexible” What it means: Don’t follow the herd Yes, as long as you are dedicated,work hard and have a healthy mind and body. Sometimes, your physical appearance might prevent you from doing certain roles. If you are muscular, you might not get the role of a feeble, thin person. But is it always good to keep your body flexible and not muscular like most people do.
(The author is a senior developer at SAP Labs India, and is the co-founder of Rangabhoomi)
