📌 Key Points
- Pratik Gandhi believes theatre has great potential and should be considered an exclusive medium.
- He attributes his success to his two decades of theatre experience.
- Gandhi highlights the growing popularity of live shows and the unique personal experience they offer.
- He emphasizes theatre’s role in teaching discipline and providing a deeply satisfying acting experience.
Pratik Gandhi, a veteran of two decades in theatre, celebrates World Theatre Day by highlighting the medium’s untapped potential. He credits theatre for his success and emphasizes its unique power to provide enriching, live experiences to audiences, especially the younger generation.
Theatre: More Than Just a ‘Poor Medium’
Having done theatre for two decades, actor Pratik Gandhi believes this “exclusive medium” has great potential ahead. Dabbling between plays, films and series, he feels that whatever success he has got till now is “due to theatre.”
On World Theatre Day , today the Scam 1992 actor says, “I personally think that theatre should no longer be considered a poor medium. In terms of money, it is an exclusive medium; that is how it should be placed. Theatre has a bright future, and that’s what I feel and want to believe.”
The boom in live shows gives him hope. “The way things are changing, you see all live concerts and all stand-up shows are going housefull. People want to have that personal experience, their life experience. And, theatre or any live performance is going to be so exclusive,” he says.
The Rise of Live Shows and Theatre’s Exclusivity
The 45-year-old believes the audience “will pay five times more” than for any virtual experience. “The younger generation is curious about exploring live experiences, and theatre is the only place which can give you that experience.”
He contrasts this with the West, “where play tickets are significantly priced higher ($85 or around ₹ 8,000) than film tickets ($15 or around ₹ 1,400). Also, the theatre stays at one place for months and people travel from all over, whereas the theatre travels here.”
“We’ll have to go naked, completely! Nothing can support you on stage. No jing bang music. No major lights. No major sets. Beyond a point, it’s an actor who will have to pull it through. That’s the reason theatre is always called an actor’s medium. It has zero space for errors. But, it gives you so much soul, energy, experience and satisfaction. And, that is why we see outstanding performances happening as you are always hitting the ball out of the park. Whatever I’ve got till now is due to theatre.”
Theatre’s Power: Actor’s Gym and Soulful Experience
He adds that theatre is a great teacher as, “It teaches you discipline and makes you human! It makes you understand that nothing is permanent – one day it can be a standing ovation and the next day nothing might work!”
The actor will be next shooting for Rajesh Krishnan’s film Mess and he is awaiting the release of Tigmanshu Dhulia’s film Ghamasaan and Rahul Dholakia’s Hum Hindustani .
Gandhi champions theatre as the ultimate training ground for actors, offering invaluable experience and discipline. He believes the audience’s appetite for live experiences positions theatre for a vibrant future, contrasting it favorably with virtual alternatives.
