Lalit Gupta
JAMMU, Dec 20: Shivani Cultural Society’s presentation ‘Pishach Yatra’ marked the conclusion of 14-day long annual drama festival organized by Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, at the Abhinav Theatre, here today.
Written and directed by Vikram Sharma, ‘Pishach Yatra’ in a dialect of Uttar Pradesh, is about Kaya, a young female form low caste who marries an upper cast young man and becomes widow on the very first night of her marriage. During the next 13 days of mourning and rituals, she is made to cut her hair and is sexually exploited by village headmen and others. About to commit suicide, she with help of a cripple flees the village and land up in a whorehouse. There she meets her first client, a teacher who later becomes her mentor and helps her to become educated. So much so she qualifies the All India Administrative Services competition and is selected to become deputy commissioner in her native area only. The play ends with Kaya offering anything to her mentor as guru-dakhshina. The teacher proposes to marry her and thus absolves her form ghosts of past life.
The script of the play while raising many questions about the male dominated conventions, gives expressions to the inner yearnings and psychological reflections of female gender who given opportunity can open up new frontiers in life.
Neha Lakhotra as Kaya was at her histrionic best, while Vikram Sharma’s as eunuch Talkhan-the master of the whore house, who seeing an opportunity for absolution of Kaya allows her to flee away with the ‘teacher’-was impressive in the way he maintained the dance-like rhythmic stance in all shades of emotion. Dr Amit Gupta as Teacher and George Sabarwal as Vishnu Prasad and later his ghost, gave notable performances. Others members of the cast were Danish Bhardwaj as Bhudrva, Nitika Ketan Gupta as Kalavati, Sonam Sharma as Puniya and Naina Bhagey as Bindri.
Despite the technical glitches and miscuing of lights and background music, the audience appreciated the play which was also witnessed by the chief guest Choudhary Lal Singh, Minster for Health.
Aziz Hazani, Secretary Cultural Academy thanked the audience and promised regular theatre activity at Abhinav Theatre. Arvinder Singh Amn, Additional Secretary and Sudhir Mahajan, Senior Drama Instructor, were also present on the occasion.
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