Debshankar Halder as Debabrata Biswas in Ruddhasangeet. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta

The play: Ruddhasangeet

The premiere: Academy of Fine Arts, 6.30pm, March 20

The group: Bratyajon. Steered by actor-director Bratya Basu, Ruddhasangeet is Bratyajon’s maiden production.

The plot: Ruddhasangeet chronicles the life and times of Rabindrasangeet exponent Debabrata Biswas — from his involvement with the IPTA movement to his famous tussle with Visva-Bharati, his bitter-sweet bond with a rival singer to his romantic relationship with an acclaimed Manipuri dancer. The play gets its title from Biswas’s autobiography Bratyajoner Ruddhasangeet.

Why Debabrata biswas: “Because Debabrata Biswas has had a tremendous impact on me during my growing up days. I see him as someone who had the courage to take on the establishment for his artistic freedom, for what he believed in. And I think as an artiste, I too am going through a similar struggle,” says Bratya, who has penned the play.

“But Ruddhasangeet is not just about Debabrata Biswas, it’s also about a time. We are mapping the period from 1948, when the Communist party was banned, to the Left Front’s coming to power. The play ends in the late Seventies, a year before Debabrata’s death.”

The players: Debshankar Halder plays Debabrata Biswas. Salil Chowdhury, Ritwik Ghatak, Suchitra Mitra and Manjusree Chaki Sarkar will appear as characters.

“Of the present generation of theatre actors, I think Debshankar and Sohini (Sengupta) are the most powerful. Debshankar was my automatic choice when I was writing the script,” says Bratya, who too appears in a small role.