A final year English literature student of Mumbai’s National College, Nirja Patyal (20) divides her time between attending lectures and rehearsing with the theatre group Josh, which she founded with eight friends in 2005.
“Theatre always fascinated me, but for a long time it remained just a pipe dream. Then during my summer holidays after my class X exams in 2003, I volunteered to work backstage at Mumbai’s famous Prithvi theatre. Luckily one of the actors of a play backed out, so on impulse I auditioned for the role and was selected. There was no looking back and I fell passionately in love with the stage and acting,” recalls Nirja.
Following the end of her summer stint at Prithvi, she signed up with National College’s Spectrum theatre group, and got a chance to act and help with the production of numerous college plays. Simultaneously to develop her acting and emoting skills, she enroled in Deepti Joshi’s theatre group and acquired professional training. The turning point in her stage career came during the summer of 2004, when she was selected for an intensive three month training programme in the reputed London Language and Drama School, UK.
Back home she was promptly selected by a Kolkata-based theatre group — Aabar Dekkbo — which was staging an English play and looking for a lead actress. The play (The Many Names of Darkness) went on to become hugely successful and was invited for a performance in Washington DC in 2005 by the Bengali community.
Since then Nirja has been acting, directing, and scripting the plays of Josh, which actively participates in drama festivals and competitions across the country, and has performed in over 20 cities in India since 2007. In 2008 her group was selected to represent her college for a three-week International Cultural Exchange programme at NAMA — National Academy of Mime and Acting in Stockholm, Sweden.
Last year on the recommendation of the Rotary Club of Mumbai, the National College drama troupe was invited by the Rotary Clubs of Brussels (Belgium) and Rabat (Morocco) to perform at their Youth and Culture Peace, and Cultural Tolerance festivals. “Managing studies and theatre simultaneously requires well-developed time management skills and discipline. It’s a great preparation for life beyond college gates. I’m very glad that I made the time for co-curricular education,” says Nirja.
Neha Ghosh (Mumbai)
Manasvini Pant
A class III student of Dehradun’s Sun Valley School, Manasvini Pant (8), walked into the national spotlight when it was officially confirmed on April 12 that she would be starring in a 150-minute feature film, My Summer Vacation. Already a child star, Manasvini has just wrapped shoots for several ad campaigns for popular brands such as Cadbury Eclairs, Butter Bite Toffees and Parle Poppins.
Directed by Sanjay Mishra and produced by Pankaj Kumar of Tun Tun Promotions under the T-series banner, My Summer Vacation is due to be released early next year. The storyline revolves around an evil magician and a beautiful fairy who protects a group of children. Auditions for the movie were held early April in Mumbai, when Manasvini competed against 100 other child artistes from across the country to finally land the plum role.
During the rounds of the competitive audition, a panel of judges which included Mishra, studied the range of the children’s expressions, dance capability and camera-comfort levels. “Sanjay Sir liked my energy, happy face and confidence. Everyone at the audition complimented me on my camera-friendliness and told me that I was a born actress,” says this charming little star, who is already negotiating with production houses for roles in primetime television shows including Israni Productions of Balika Vadhu fame.
Manasvini’s imminent stardom is the outcome of regular participation in talent hunt, child modeling and dance contests. She heard about My Summer Vacation auditions from Dehradun’s celebrity photographer Aamir Rajpal, who has shot her portfolio.
Twinkle-eyed about singing and dancing since she was two, Manasvini is learning kathak, Bollywood dancing, vocals and harmonium at the Dakshita Institute, Dehradun. She also has plans to enrol for acting classes as soon as she finishes shooting for her movie. “My mom, Manju and dad, Sudhir have encouraged me and don’t keep forcing me to study. So I think one day my dreams will come true,” says this go-getting youngster who, despite hectic co-curricular interests, averages 95 percent in class.
However her location in Dehadrun is a disadvantage as far as Manasvini’s future plans are concerned. “Some directors are not willing to sign me since they feel I might not be able to give them much time. Nevertheless I really want to become a successful model and dancer because the entertainment world is what really interests me. I want to have many fans,” she says.
That’s the lure of Bollywood!
Natasha Pathak (Dehradun)