Behind the Scene: Tropa Majumdar

Tropa Majumdar

Tropa Majumdar, balances her time between working as the creative director at a reputable ad agency and performing on stage and TV. Coming from a family that has made immense contributions to our contemporary culture, Tropa has made a mark in plays such as “Madhobi”, “Meraj Fakirer Ma” and “Spordha”. A look at Tropa behind-the-scene.
The Daily Star (TDS): With well-known actors as parents (Ramendu and Ferdausi Majumdar) was it easy to set foot in the media?
Tropa: It was harder than one might imagine! Far from being a piece of cake! I had to convince two parties for any role -- the director and my parents. There were times when my parents didn't allow me to play certain roles simply because they thought people might think that I'm getting an extra edge not because of my merit but because of my family's "influence."
TDS: How do you balance your time between office, theatre and TV?
Tropa: That's easy. I work on a very limited number of TV plays, that too, if the shooting takes place on weekends. As for theatre, the rehearsals are held mostly in the evenings when I'm usually free. I dub for TV commercials every now and then as well. However, I am more into creative direction and I enjoy every bit of it.
TDS: What is the most outrageous thing you have done so far?
Tropa: Outrageous is probably the last adjective I would use to describe myself! During my Bachelors and Masters exams, I had to burn the midnight oil to make sure I didn't fail. It came as a shock when I learnt that I had secured a first class in both and had topped the list in Masters from the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism.
TDS: The real Tropa is...
Tropa: I'm basically a nervous wreck and an introvert. To some extent, I'm a perfectionist. I even worry how my co-artistes would perform on stage and other trivialities. I think my directors would have a fit if they knew how many times, minutes before taking the stage, I had thought of quitting!
TDS: Memorable goof-up during a play?
Tropa: During stage plays, giggling is regular; nothing unusual about it. But during the staging of “Antigone,” my co-actor Khairul Anam Shobuj totally forgot his lines and looked blankly at me. It was a 45-minute dialogue and we were standing very close to the audience.
It seemed that time stood still as he was struggling to remember his lines. After a while I heard him faintly say in a pure Barisal dialect, "kissu hoibo na, kaw." (Just say the lines). Amidst pin drop silence even the viewers could hear him. I uttered a few lines and he was back on track.
TDS: Are you selective about the characters you play?
Tropa: Very much so. Even with so many TV channels, we don't have enough scopes to do quality work. I feel that our predecessors were more fortunate. There were fewer plays and only one channel. Quality was the prerequisite. Now because of over-exposure, the audience hardly remembers a certain TV character.
TDS: Dreams ahead...
Tropa: I live in the present. I like to take into my stride what comes naturally.