Noted dramatist Gopal Sahu, who donned the role of Kansa in Bargarh’s Dhanu Yatra, passed away on Tuesday. He was 70. He had been ailing from diabetes for the past several years and was admitted to a private hospital in Jharsuguda town on Monday after he fell sick. During the treatment, he breathed his last, leaving behind his rich contribution to the world of drama in Odisha.
Sahu played Kansa in the world’s biggest open-air theatre, the Dhanu Yatra, for 23 long years in his life. He first appeared in the role in 1984 and continued to regale their minds until 1998, before making an entry again back on the stage from 2001-2008. Over an area of five square kilometers, the Dhanu Yatra is the biggest culture in Odisha. Here, Sahu had an institutional advantage in the role of the tyrannical king because he commanded great presence, a powerful voice, and a unique physique.
But, in 1999 he was offered to be replaced by Bhubaneswar Pradhan who was located by the organizers within a week not up to the mark and hence in 2001 for continuation as Kansa, he was asked to comeback and the joy of the fans had no bounds. And due to ill health, Sahu bade adieu to the character in 2009.
Loss of the role and the “kingdom” was too much for Sahu, and he would never come out of it. His famous quote “Raja thili, praja heli” (“I was a king, now I have been reduced to a mere subject”) is a witness to what strong emotional attachment he had with the character which he had been playing all these years.
It was his wife, who knew his potential and due to her influence, he accepted to be the Kansa. So she must be said as the pillar behind Sahu’s success in theater. His nephew, too continued the Tatwa cultural trust legacy from the k family, by being the Krishna’s character, from 2005 to 2008. Sahu received the Sangeet Natak Academy Award in 1994 even. He even got a lifetime achievement award regarding this art also. The death of Gopal Sahu means the end of an era for Bargarh Dhanu Yatra. However, his contribution toward the cultural enrichment of Odisha is priceless and unerasable.
Noted dramatist Gopal Sahu, who donned the role of Kansa in Bargarh’s Dhanu Yatra, passed away on Tuesday. He was 70. He had been ailing from diabetes for the past several years and was admitted to a private hospital in Jharsuguda town on Monday after he fell sick. During the treatment, he breathed his last, leaving behind his rich contribution to the world of drama in Odisha.
Sahu played Kansa in the world’s biggest open-air theatre, the Dhanu Yatra, for 23 long years in his life. He first appeared in the role in 1984 and continued to regale their minds until 1998, before making an entry again back on the stage from 2001-2008. Over an area of five square kilometers, the Dhanu Yatra is the biggest culture in Odisha. Here, Sahu had an institutional advantage in the role of the tyrannical king because he commanded great presence, a powerful voice, and a unique physique.
But, in 1999 he was offered to be replaced by Bhubaneswar Pradhan who was located by the organizers within a week not up to the mark and hence in 2001 for continuation as Kansa, he was asked to comeback and the joy of the fans had no bounds. And due to ill health, Sahu bade adieu to the character in 2009.
Loss of the role and the “kingdom” was too much for Sahu, and he would never come out of it. His famous quote “Raja thili, praja heli” (“I was a king, now I have been reduced to a mere subject”) is a witness to what strong emotional attachment he had with the character which he had been playing all these years.
It was his wife, who knew his potential and due to her influence, he accepted to be the Kansa. So she must be said as the pillar behind Sahu’s success in theater. His nephew, too continued the Tatwa cultural trust legacy from the k family, by being the Krishna’s character, from 2005 to 2008. Sahu received the Sangeet Natak Academy Award in 1994 even. He even got a lifetime achievement award regarding this art also. The death of Gopal Sahu means the end of an era for Bargarh Dhanu Yatra. However, his contribution toward the cultural enrichment of Odisha is priceless and unerasable.
