MSU teacher helps Mauritius set up first dramatic arts department

VADODARA: The generation next of Mauritius, one of the favourite locations of Bollywood movies, will be able to get formal training in the field of drama, thanks to a teacher from M S University's Faculty of Performing Arts.
Darshan Purohit, an associate professor of MSU's Department of Dramatics, has been instrumental in starting Republic of Mauritius' very first Department of Dramatic Arts at the Rabindranath Tagore Institute (RTI) at Ilot D'Epinay.
Since October last, 25 students have got enrolled for a diploma course in dramatic arts at the newly started Department - the curriculum for which was designed by Purohit as visiting professor and academic advisor on invitation by the Mahatma Gandhi Institute (MGI) and RTI.
The Republic of Mauritius had started MGI and the RTI as polynodal institutions with the support of Government of India. If MGI's foundation stone was laid by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1970, the foundation stone of RTI which operates under the aegis of MGI and RTI Council was laid by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
"RTI and MGI are centres of excellence dedicated to Indian visual arts, Indian languages and studies and performing arts but there was no drama department. I had started designing the curriculum for the diploma course in dramatic arts in 2010 after I was nominated by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and Mauritius' Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) under the UGC-TEC 4th consortium agreement," Purohit, who has seen the course through its first semester, told TOI on Tuesday.
After the two years semester based diploma course was approved by the academic coordination council of MGI and RTI in September 2010, the MGI-RTI council gave its approval to begin the department in October 2011. The newly started department has lecture theatres with 200 people's capacity, two mirror studios for conducting practical classes and a state-of-the-art auditorium.
"Mauritian cultures are inter-woven as it has populace which speaks 10 languages. Through this course, we will teach students not only the nuances of theatre but also the influences of Dutch, French and English colonies on the Mauritian theatre. While medium of instruction is English, students will be taught plays in four languages - Hindi/Hindustani, English, Creole and French," said Purohit.
A majority of Mauritians live on Indian films and music as Indo-Mauritians form about 70 per cent of the total population.
"We are also talking to the Film Producers' Association of India to ensure that the students who are presently pursuing their diplomas get better avenues once they clear their course. These trained personnel can be provided roles in Indian films by the association," he said.
Purohit, who conducted a series of workshops, lectures and demonstration to promote formal education of drama in Mauritius, was also invited by the World Hindi Secretariat, the Ministry of Education and Human Resource and the High Commissioner of India to perform at the World Hindi Day 2012 celebrations at Indira Gandhi Centre for Indian Culture, Phoenix.