On a recent afternoon in Delhi's fiery heat, a group of people sat huddled under an amaltas tree, while it gently shed its yellow leaves, listening to a story in rapt attention.
Barring the occasional spurt of chuckles there was was a stoic silence. Even the generally restless mobile phones went silent under the spell of the young raconteur.
As the evening descended, the spell broke in a series of claps at the end of a session of 'Dastongoi' as the young raconteur, or the 'Dastango', donned in a white kurta pajama and a muslin cap, took a polite bow and left the stage.
'Dastangoi', explains Mahmood Farooqui "is an art of improvised storytelling where the roles of author, narrator, performer and poet are all fused into one."
Critically acclaimed writer-director Farooqui, who directed the 2010 film "Peepli Live" is the point man behind attempts to revive the ancient art of storytelling, presenting it in a very contemporary fashion.
Elaborating on the nature of this art form, Farooqui says, "It doesn't require any props other than the performer's expressions and voice, no music, no visuals, nothing."
Derived from Persian word Dastan, which means a story, and goi, meaning to tell a story, Farooqui says he came across this art form at a fairly young age, owing to his uncle, renowned poet and leading Urdu theorist, Shamsur Rahman.
Faruqui who owned an entire collection of one of the most popular dastans, Dastan-e-Amir Hamza. Running into 46 volumes, it deals with the life and adventures of Amir Hamza, believed to be the largest fictional narrative in Urdu.
It is a fantastical tale characterised by the copious presence of magic, sorcery, chicanery and seduction.
The glory days of Dastangoi in India, at its zenith during Akbar's reign, came to an unceremonious end with the death of legendary Dastango, Mir Baqar Ali in 1928 followed by the onset of new forms like the novel and new media like the modern stage, the Parsi theatre, and cinema and radio.
But Farooqui holds the "disparaging attitude of modern Urdu writers and critics" most responsible for the gradual loss of its status and popularity.
"Indians everywhere learnt to disparage their own cultural heritage because of the colonial encounter in the nineteenth century and to uphold a narrow view of morality. It was this narrow view of morality and literature that led to these traditions being cast aside," he says.
Originally meant to entertain, the political undertones in Dastangoi in its present form adds to its contemporary relevance.
