Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Feb 3: Governor N.N. Vohra inaugurated an international theatre festival, “18th Bharat Rang Mahotsav 2016” at Abhinav Theater here today.
He was accompanied by Usha Vohra, First Lady. This festival has been organized by J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL) with support from the National School of Drama (NSD). Renowned theatre personalities from America, Italy, Sri Lanka, Rwanda, Bhopal, Hyderabad, Kashmir and Jammu are taking part in this 6 days ‘Bharat Rang Mahotsav’.
The Governor complimented Dr. Aziz Hajini, Secretary JK Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL) for providing an opportunity to people of the State to appreciate theatrical performances through a series of plays to be presented in this festival. He said that such events should be a regular feature in the State and the JKAACL should develop state of the art infrastructure and facilities for promotion of local art and artists in the State.
Expressing his happiness on reopening of the Abhinav Theatre, the Governor hoped that it would again produce such high quality performances and plays in local and other languages which it used to before it shut down for repairs. The Governor also lauded the efforts of NSD in producing highly professional and quality artists.
K.K. Raina, Film Maker, and Guest of the Honour; Lateef Khatana, Senior Faculty Member, NSD, in their addresses spoke about the journey of Bharat Rang Mahotsav and present scenario of theatre in the country and the State.
Dr. Aziz Hajini, Secretary JK Academy of Art, Culture and Languages presented the Welcome Address while Mitali Gupta gave brief about the Play and presented a Vote of Thanks on the occasion.
The Mahotsav kicked off with play in English, ‘Dear Children, Sincerely …’., which was performed by Stages Theatre Group, Sri Lanka and Mashirika, Rwanda.
Directed by one of acknowledged contemporary female theatre directors, Ruwanthie de Chickera and, the play script is a joint theatre project devised through interviews conducted with a cross section elders of both the countries born in the 1930’s and turning their stories and experiences into several stand-alone performance pieces.
The play representing a shift away from traditional text centered proscenium based drama was woven as a collage of three stories which examine key events in the two countries. The novel experimentation at level of script was also complemented with an equally innovative language that successfully unleashed the magic of a theatre form created without many words.
The play in which first-hand accounts of horrors of ethnic conflicts and attendant mass killings, heinous rapes and atrocities against woman and children, were enacted by group of young actors/dancers with such a masterly display of evocative acting; a mix of fluent body movements and magic of mime that it left the audience spell bound.
The play not only poignantly brought to fore the suffering of masses in countries worn down by years of conflict and tragedy but it also came out as a testimony to the inherent power of creative arts to present a unique overview of history that is seldom achieved by conventional narratives.
Today’s play that challenged the notion of conventional drama and offered a new experience in seeing was a fresh gush of creative expression which will remembered for long by Jammu audience.
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