Winning Streaks at Play

When Baghdad came to the theatre stage of Kamani Auditorium in Delhi,one did not just hear the sounds of bombs and guns.

When Baghdad came to the theatre stage of Kamani Auditorium in Delhi,one did not just hear the sounds of bombs and guns. There were scenes of flamboyant living and bacchanalian evenings. A play written by London-based Iraqi molecular biologist Hassan Abdulrazzak,and directed by Akarsh Khurana of Mumbai-based theatre group Akvarious Productions,Baghdad Wedding scored a hat trick at the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META). At the ceremony on Wednesday,the play bagged awards for Best Supporting Actor (Female),Best Ensemble and,ultimately,Best Play. After being nominated three times at META previously for Best Play,this is my first win in this category, said Khurana with a laugh.

The other play that had reason to celebrate was Santaap,by Rangashram,a group from Bengal. A poignant tale of a eunuch whose relationship with her adopted son comes to a traumatic end when the latter abandons her,won the lead actor Sandip Bhattacharya the Best Actor (Male) award. A few minutes later,Sandip was back on stage this time to pick up his the Best Supporting Actor (Male) award for his brother Aniruddh.

Veteran stage actor Lilette Dubey,looking her glamourous best,lifted the statuette for Best Actor (Female) and said,I have been in theatre for 36 years. Adhe Adhure is my first Hindi play. This is only the second time in the past seven years that I am contesting for an award. In Adhe Adhure,she plays the lead role of Savitri,a working woman married to an unemployed man. If Adhe Adhure drew attention to a womans sociopolitical identity,Samjhauta focussed on the existential concerns of a young man. The play won National School of Drama,Delhi,graduate Praveen Kumar Gunjan the coveted Best Director and Best Original Script awards.

Sometimes,tears said what acceptance speeches could not. Theatre activist Ashim Kumar Sharma welled up and choked as he received the award for Best Choreography and Costume Design for Sup-Ek-Prahashan,an Assamese play which used a traditional form of drama called Ankiya Nat. On the other hand,a comic tribute to Alfred Hitchcocks classic 39 Steps by the four actors of Evam Entertainment,won the awards for Best Lighting and Best Sound Design.

It was also an evening that remembered a doyen of theatre Khaled Choudhury,a stage designer. The award had been delivered to his

home in Kolkata earlier,and a video recording played his responses for the META audience.

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