| Zarganar | |
|---|---|
Zarganar reading the letters that he wrote in prison for his friends at his home in Yangon on October 13, 2011. |
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| Native name | ဇာဂနာ |
| Born | Thura 27 January 1961 Rangoon, Burma |
| Alma mater | Yangon University of Dental Medicine State High School No. 1 Dagon |
| Occupation | director, actor, comedian, satirist |
| Years active | 1981- |
| Spouse | Lwin Mar Oo |
| Children | Myat Kaung, Nge Oo Mon |
| Parents | Aung Thein (Nan Nyunt Swe) and Hla Kyi (Kyi Oo) |
Maung Thura "Zarganar" (also called Zaganar (Burmese: ဇာဂနာ; also Zargana; pronounced [zàɡənà]; born 27 January 1961) is a popular Burmese comedian, film actor, and a film director as well as a fierce critic and often political prisoner of the Burmese military government. Known for his wicked puns against the government, Zarganar, whose name translates to "tweezers", is widely considered to be the most popular comedian and satirist in Myanmar.
In September 2006, Zarganar was banned indefinitely from performing publicly or participating in any kind of entertainment related work. He was arrested on 4 June 2008 for speaking to foreign media about the situation of millions of people left homeless after a cyclone devastated the Irrawaddy delta.[1] In November 2008, he was sentenced to 59 years in prison, convicted of "public order offenses", under four sections of the criminal code—17/2, 32 (b), 295 (a) and 505 (b), much more than the anticipated maximum of two years.[2][3] On 16 February 2009, following the appeals by the family, Yangon Divisional Court reduced the prison sentence by "up to 24 years", bringing the sentence down to 35 years.[4] In December 2008, Zarganar has been sent to Myitkyina Prison in Kachin State in the country's far north,[5] from which he was freed on 11 October 2011 in a mass amnesty of political prisoners.[6]
Zarganar was awarded the Lillian Hellman and Dashiel Hammett Award, given by the Fund for Free Expression, a committee organized by New York based Human Rights Watch.[7] In October 2008, Zarganar was awarded One Humanity Award by PEN Canada of which he is an honorary member.[8]
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Zarganar was born Thura (သူရ, [θùɹa̰], also [θùja̰]) in Yangon to a political and intellectual family of well-known writers Hla Kyi (who went by the pen name of Yuwaddy Kyi Oo) and Aung Thein (pen name: Nan Nyunt Swe). Thura was the youngest of three sons, brother of Wunna and Teza.[9] The young Thura accompanied his parents on speaking tours where he used to entertain people by giving talks and doing imitations, and earned himself the nickname "Mimic".[10]
Thura graduated from Yangon's elite State High School No. 1 Dagon in 1977 and received a degree in dental surgery from Rangoon Institute of Dental Medicine in 1985. While in dentistry school, he worked as a volunteer literacy teacher in Chin State and wrote about his experiences in a book, published by the Sape Beikman, the country's official literary publishing house.[10]
Thura first found success while still in college, performing amateur stage comedy shows at Yangon's universities under his stage name Zarganar (tweezers). He banded together with students from various colleges and institutes and formed a dance-troupe called Mya Kyun Tha. Later, he formed a drama group called Moe Nat Thuza which performed at student gatherings.[10] Zarganar soon became a household name when his troupe began appearing on Burmese television in broadcasts of anyeint (a type of traditional Burmese theater) shows.
After completing his dentistry studies, he took to the stage full time. In 1986, he formed the Mya Ponnama Anyeint troupe whose shows frequently appeared on television.[10] He quickly became known for his expert ability to concoct double entendres. And his willingness to use them in farcical routines highlighting the failures of the government delighted millions of awe-struck audiences.
That all changed in 1988. Zarganar was arrested for participating in the nationwide uprising in 1988. He would be in and out of prison for next five out of six years. After his release from prison in 1994, Zarganar was prohibited from performing on stage but allowed to participate in video productions, working as producer, director, scriptwriter and actor. But his work was closely scrutinized by the censors and military intelligence, in a cat-and-mouse game in which Zarganar and his audiences took delight in sidestepping the authorities.[7]
In 1997, Zarganar soon ran afoul with the authorities for his movie Lun, and was promptly banned for another three years from the show business. He was allowed to do films in 2000 (but still no comedy shows or stage theater). Since May 2006, Zarganar has again been banned from the show business indefinitely, for giving an interview to the BBC.
Zarganar's contributions to the revival of popularity of ''anyeint (also spelled anyein) among the younger generations of Burmese cannot be overstated. Anyeint shows are a form of traditional theater combining dance, music and comedy that has come to play a central role in Burmese society—performed at a wide range of secular and religious events, from weddings to pagoda festivals.[11] The shows are traditionally led by one or more female performers who dance and sing playful songs, and a troupe of comedians (usually 4 or 5) provide comic relief between the sing-dance routines of the female performers. Before Zarganar came along, the popularity of anyeint shows had been in long decline (especially in urban areas).[11]
Zarganar helped to revitalize the art by changing the format upside down. By using humor to push the envelope against government censors, his anyeint shows generated immense interest among Burmese of all backgrounds, and in the process attracted new generations of fans to anyeint shows. Zarganar did not invent the art of using puns and double entendres, which had long been part of traditional Burmese humor but in many ways he perfected it in the Burmese language. (The tonal monosyllabic Burmese language with many homophones seemed particularly suited for double talk.) People were drawn to his vaudevillian routines filled with seemingly innocent silly banter among comedians not only because they were bitingly funny but also because they cleverly highlighted the failures of the government.
In the mid-1980s, Zarganar and his comedians were the main draw to their anyeint show. People went to see the comedians first, and the pretty female performers second. Today, Anyeint shows are still nominally led by female performers but the comedians-cum-social commentators are what most people go to see.[11] The most popular shows are led by the comedians such as Thee-Lay-Thee who are willing to poke fun at the government.
During the 1988 uprising, Zarganar was arrested for being an "instigator" and sent to the notorious Insein prison for a year. After his release he was arrested again during the 1990 elections for giving political speeches and sentenced to another four years in prison. (His father, also a political activist, at one point gave a speech at the home of Aung San Suu Kyi, leading to a ban by the state censors. His mother Kyi Oo was also elected as an independent candidate.) In 1991, the Fund for Free Expression, part of the Human Rights Watch organization, awarded him a Lillian Hellman and Dashiell Hammett Grant.[12]
Soon after Cyclone Nargis devastated vast swaths of the Irrawaddy delta in early May 2008, Zarganar organized a group of an estimated 400 Burmese involved in the entertainment industry to provide volunteer disaster relief aid in the cyclone-damaged areas.[13] He divided the volunteers into groups of helpers, who took aid to 42 villages, some of which had until then received no help at all after the cyclone.[1]
In January 2012 the British Foreign Secretary William Hague is due to meet Zarganar to discuss political reform as part of the first visit by a British Foreign Secretary to Burma in over fifty years.[14]
In 2008, Zarganar was awarded the Freedom to Create Prize for Imprisoned Artists. Amnesty International named him a prisoner of conscience and called for his immediate release.[22] In May 2011, Zarganar was awarded Honorary Life Membership in Equity, the UK performers' union, in recognition of his struggle for artistic freedom in Burma.[23]
Zarganar has been featured in This Prison Where I Live, a documentary film by British filmmaker Rex Bloomstein and German comedian Michael Mittermeier, who had traveled secretly to Burma to make the film.[24]
Between 1985 and 1988, Zarganar starred in four films and eight video movies as the lead actor. He took on supporting actor roles in his movies since 2001. He also tried his hand at directing. In 2004, with the aid of local non-governmental organisations, Zarganar directed three short videos and a film for the purpose of raising awareness of HIV and AIDS in the country.[25]
| Year | Film | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Mintha Daw Mintha | |
| 1985 | Lu Naut | With May Win Maung |
| 1986 | Sein-Lai-Lay Kya Tha-La Lo | |
| 1986 | A-Sa-Ga-Daw Mohn De Hso | |
| 2001 | Datkhe | Supporting actor |
| 2001 | Ponna Ba Kun | With Kyaw Thu, Htet Htet Moe Oo |
| 2002 | La-Min-Go Sein-Khaw-Gya Thu-Mya | |
| 2002 | Yindwin Zaga | |
| 2002 | Chit-Pa-Naw Maung-Go | |
| 2002 | Padauk Pinlè | |
| 2003 | Karyan A-Lwè | |
| 2003 | Pyauk Pyauk Myauk Myauk | |
| 2003 | Pawpaw Papa Pyon | |
| 2003 | Style | |
| 2004 | Ba A-Yay-Kyi Zohn-Lè | |
| 2004 | Balu (Ogre) | |
| 2004 | Kyepwint Lay-Mya | |
| 2004 | Ngo-Ah-Htet Yi-Ah-Than | |
| 2005 | Mingalaba | With Sai Sai Kham Hlaing |
| 2005 | Yadana | With Kyaw Thu, Htun Aeindra Bo |
| 2005 | Model A-Chit-Mya | With Lwin Moe, Yan Aung, Eindra Kyaw Zin |
| 2010 | The Prison Where I Live | British Documentary |
These video films are direct-to-video VCDs intended strictly for the home market, akin to straight to DVD and are never screened in theaters.
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