A platter of plays

Macher Jhol and rosogolla may be synonymous with a Bengali, but they provide food only for the body. The mind is as important, and for th...

Macher Jhol and rosogolla may be synonymous with a Bengali, but they provide food only for the body. The mind is as important, and for that there is the rich treasure of literature and cultural activities. And this is where plays or drama comes in. Bengalis have an inherent love for drama and it is that love which prompted a group of six Bengalis to start a cultural organisation eleven years ago.

Dishari8217; was born in 1987 with Capt retd Chakraborty as the founder chairman. One of their first activities was to celebrate Saraswati Puja. Saraswati is the Goddess of Wisdom and it is she who blesses all such cultural activities. This festival is celebrated on the day of Basant Panchami. This was followed by the presentation of a full-length play at Bal Gandharva. The enthusiastic response encouraged them to host their first drama festival in 1988 and this has now become an annual feature.

Groups from all over Maharashtra are invited to perform on a non-competitive basis. Quality is ensured, as the scripts of the participating plays are screened by the organisers a couple of months before the event. Only those who fulfill the requirements are finally given the green signal. The plays have to have either an unusual theme or be related to a relevant topic or carry a strong social message.

Usually six plays are held over a period of three days, in the second week of August. Groups from Mumbai, Nasik and other parts of Maharashtra have taken part in this festival, but Pune seems to have the largest number of entries with host Dishari also putting up a production.

Last year Dishari put up a play Kathuria8217;s Golpo the old story of the woodcutter who drops his axe in the water, but there was a new twist to the story.

They had also organised a Bengali ballet and folk dance relating to drug abuse, in last year8217;s Pune festival. A few years ago, Dishari organised a Jatra festival. Jatra is a traditional form of drama, which is very popular in Bengal. In 1994 they organised the Natya Milan Utsav, where Marathi and Bengali plays were encouraged on the same stage as a means of integration between the two cultures.

Many noted theatre personalities from Maharashtra attend the drama festival. Shriram Lagoo was the chief guest last year. Narayan Dongre, Chandrakant Gokhale, Nilu Phule, Mohan Agashe and many other eminent personalities are regulars at these plays. This year Dishari is holding its annual festival of one-act drama on August 13, 14 and 15. On the first day, the audience will be treated to Tarapadev and Company by Punya Nagari from Pune, followed by Pradhan Atithi Ashchhein Waiting for the chief guest, a comedy by Bangiyo Sanskriti Samsad. Sundar by Bango Bharati, Pimpri, will be staged on August 14, followed by Jadughar Museum.

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The presenters of this play are Dishari from Mumbai and the play is based on an Egyptian story dating back to 2000 BC. On the final day, host Dishari will put up their own production, Ekta Bastapocha Premer Galpo A hackneyed love story which promises to be quite hilarious. The last item will be Phansee, produced by Bassin Bengal Club. It is a story of freedom fighters and depicts how we become united, irrespective of caste and creed when it comes to the defence of our Motherland 8211; quite relevant with the Kargil issue.

The plays will be held at Tilak Smarak Mandir.