Deeply shocked to know about Prof. KS Rajendran’s sudden passing this morning. Many on my timeline have been his students, as have I. From a teacher of Classical Drama, he had, for me, transformed into a friend over the years, rarely hesitating to speak his mind with me. He was an audience to my first professional theatre work back in 2007, when he decided to accost me right after the show to say, “I have been resisting the onset of the 21st century, but having watched your work, I don’t think I can hold out any longer.” Speaking in his characteristic tone, it was, as usual, hard to tell where his comment had landed —did he say what he said in appreciation of what he saw, or, in a grudging admission of the times in which the work was made?
He taught Classical Performance at the Nsd for over two decades with skepticism and curiosity. He started his lectures with quintessential doubt in the way in which we discover, narrativise, and resurrect the past. It was a delight to hear him admit about how little he really knows, as a professor, about the Classical Arts, where his national colleagues wouldn’t tire painting the past with certainty and glory. He was a prolific writer and a sharp, considerate editor. It was under him that several Nsd publications saw the light of day spanning a decade of rigor and new insight.
His post-retirement years brought us closer, when he expressed his wish to spearhead workshops in theatre direction (an occupation rarely considered an art practice) and I was most happy to help him make it happen.
He was a glamorous smoker, a master of self-deprecating humour, a staunch believer in an institution with an open-door policy, and a reluctant teacher. You will be much missed, Sir.
