The Legitimate Desk
On Friday, July 13, the renowned theatre artist Shadi Lal Kaul passed away after a brief illness. Following his death, the messages of condolences poured in from various quarters. The demise of the renowned actor was widely condoled given to his immense contribution to the local art and culture. Kaul had worked in over 1000 serials and played various roles. He was instrumental in highlighting the social, economic and cultural issues that Kashmir is facing for decades.
He, however, shot to fame when his one serial Begum Salal, che kyaz gaye Malaal, turned an overnight hit not only in Kashmir but also in Pakistan. Kaul had also worked with Bollywood actor Om Puri and director Shyam Benegal. Kaul was possessing a great sense of humor and is widely respected in Kashmir for giving them a reason to smile amid turbulent times.
“When Kashmir was reeling through the restive times in 1990’s, there were no modes of entertainment. His serials appearing on Doordarshan was the only stress buster,” says, Ruksana Hameed, a local artist.
“We would get glued to our television screens and his facial expressions and body maneuvers were enough for us to laugh and relive ourselves,” says Ghulam Ahmad.
Shadi Lal Kaul passed away in Jammu and his son Vijay S Koul announced it on facebook.
“After the most difficult week fighting to survive my loving dad Mr Shadi Lal Kaul has passed away. He breathed his last today morning @2: 45am.Family friends has stayed by his side caring for him. We held his hands and walked with him to the end,” Vijay put an emotional post on father’s facebook wall.
The young theater artists of Kashmir termed Kaul as an institution of acting in himself.
“He was an institution in himself,” says Rayees Wathoori, a young and promising theatre artist of Kashmir.
“He had potential to change the somber scene of any gathering with one joke that would burst others into laughing,” said Manzoor Ahmad, a journalist.
Known as Shams Ud Din in his characters, Koul was born in 1954 in Chota bazar Srinagar. He had no family background in acting but Kaul from his childhood days was interested in acting and from the very beginning he proved his mettle in the field. Kaul, in 1973 set up a drama club in Srinagar under the banner, Yasmeen Drama Club. However, it failed in the beginning. Later he again set up another drama club “Kali Das” along with another renowned theater artist Ayash Arif and created its space in the art and culture of Kashmir. The drama Asiv te lasiv produced under the same banner was an overnight fame and Shadi Lal never looked back. His another milestone in the theatre industry was another drama “Tasruf” widely watched serial in Kashmir. Kaul is probably the only theater artist in Kashmir who achieved such milestones. His contribution to the culture and art of Kashmir will be remembered for times to come.
