Shah Rukh Khan, Kangana Ranaut, and Manoj Bajpayee are some of the biggest stars in Bollywood. However, do you know that the man who taught them acting once used to sell newspapers, worked at the factory, and now runs his own acting studio?
The man we are talking about English-born Indian theatre director, actor, and acting coach. He is none other than Barry John. As we celebrate Teacher's Day today, here's all you need to know about Bollywood star's teachers.
Born in 1944 in Coventry, Warwickshire (now in the West Midlands), England, Barry John's father was an engineer and joined the navy during World War II. By the age of 12, he had started selling newspapers and pursued theatre in the evenings. At 15, his father fixed up a job for him at the factory where he worked. After finishing his schooling, he moved to London, but unable to find a place in acting schools, he joined Leeds University, where he trained to become a theatre teacher.
After that, he shifted to India in the 1970s and started his journey to transform several budding artistes into trained theatre professionals. After arriving in Delhi in 1970, he joined the Yatrik theatre group, staying at the YMCA hostel and working as a freelance teacher in schools and colleges. He later founded the Theatre Action Group with Siddharth Basu, Roshan Seth, Lilette Dubey, Mira Nair, Manohar Singh, Pamela Rooks, Surekha Sikri, and Pankaj Kapoor, among other. The group performed various forms of drama until 1977, when John joined the faculty of the National School of Drama, Delhi.
He also appeared in a few films, like Satyajit Ray's Shatranj Ke Khilari (The Chess Players), Richard Attenborough's Gandhi and Massey Sahib. Apart from Shah Rukh Khan, Barry has been a teacher to several Bollywood stars including Manoj Bajpayee, Sushant Singh Rajput, Frieda Pinto, Richa Chadha, Arjun Kapoor, Varun Dhawan among others.
Talking about Barry John, Shah Rukh Khan once said, "The days when I was doing theatre in Delhi was an interesting time. Barry (John) was a great support when I was doing theatre in his group. Barry is a great teacher and above all, he is a great human being. I have learned so much from him both on stage and off it. I have always remained indebted to everybody with whom I have come in contact with at any point in my life. And that includes Barry, who’ll always have a special space in my life. Most of my friends even now laugh at me that I have become a film star. Besides the fact that I work hard, God’s blessings, and all those people who have been kind (like Barry) to me."
Meanwhile, in 2007, Barry John started his own acting school by the name of Barry John Acting Studio and he continues to nurture new talent and prepare them for the entertainment industry. Not just Bollywood, but Barry John's students like Param Singh, Shabbir, Paras Kalnawat, and more have also made a mark in the television industry.
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