Journalism of Courage
Theatre groups in the city are reaching out to a wider audience through independent theatre festivals.
Local theatre group Dhyaas is best known for its play The Last Colour,a moving tale about the spirit of the last tiger on earth,told in a spellbinding display of physical theatre using dance,music,drama and visual art. The play,with its experimental format and effective storytelling,captured the audiences imagination,and in the past one year,has travelled all across India and even to Turkey. Consequently,the groups other plays seem to lie in its shadows.
The inspiration came from his trips to other cities that host theatre festivals. Several people come to watch a play that they have heard of,or have watched and liked in the past,such as The Last Colour. But this way,we can show the audience other plays as well and give them the bigger and better experience of a festival, says Bhide. He adds that there is just something different about a big theatre,huge audience and a festival of plays.
Dhyaas is not the only group that has discovered the benefits of an independent theatre festival. Long known for its theatre circuit,Pune has several national and state-level theatre events and over the years,many independent groups have begun to organise their own drama festivals in search for newer and bigger platforms. The Natak Company hosts a festival in September every year,combining some of their best productions and staging them through the weekend at Bharat Natya Mandir.
While each of our plays get an audience of about 200-300 people,when we host a festival,the audience grows several times and can go up to 600-800, says Soumitra Gapchup,treasurer of the group. Apart from garnering publicity and potential business,the festival is also a chance for the Natak Company to introduce more plays to the audience. The audience can watch the plays at a stretch,in one place and throughout the weekend, says Gapchup.
Swatantra Theatre had organised an independent festival in 2009,when it staged some of its more popular Hindi plays. There arent many platforms for Hindi drama in the city,and thats why we decided to organise our own festival, says Abhijit Choudhary,founder of the group. This year,too,the group will host a festival in June,although the theme will shift to social issues. When you organise your own festival,you can choose what to focus on, says Choudhary.
For Progressive Dramatic Association,the festival is an opportunity to bring all its members together on its foundation day,October 19. The group stages a selection of plays that are in production through the year in different parts of the country. Our group stages Marathi plays for audience outside Maharashtra. So when we organise our festival,all the members come together and stage the play for the audience in Pune, says Smita Taware,production in-charge.
Bhide also hopes that next year,Dhyaas will take the festival a step ahead and invite other groups to participate as well. This way,there will be an exchange of ideas and pure theatre,without all the complications and glamour that come with big events. In this fest,undiscovered amateurs will get a chance to show their talent too, he says.
