The just-ended exhibition of paintings by Kanak Chaki and Ujjal Das, and sculptures by Madhusudan Chaudhary, at the Gaganendra Pradarshashala were competent figural works dealing with the aspects of daily life and the emotions surrounding them. Chaki’s impressive offerings included Man and Woman Before Steps and Midday Sky Through the Window. Chaudhuri, a product of the Government Art College, works deftly in the bronze medium. His human figures are roughly constructed; the typical ruggedness marks his works in plaster and terra-cotta as well. Chaudhuri’s sculptural acumen is best captured in the bronze creation Monk, while Das seemed to deviate from his usual academic style in Death of Green (oil) and Unknown Arrow (water colour).
Samir Dasgupta
Tapan Theatre offered a stimulating experience last Saturday (July 2). All the colours of popular Bengali music, starting from Rabindranath Tagore to the latest FM hit were featured in Bibhabari’s programme. It was reassuring to discover that the magic of the 1950s is showing no sign of waning in spite of the Band onslaught. The Hemanta and Shyamal hits continue to charm the seniors, while the juniors align readily with the likes of Lopamudra. There are takers for S.D. Burman hits as well. Only the music of the 1990s remained absent. Among the performers Papia Nandan, Shyamapada Roy Chowdhury and Uma Bhattacharya deserve mention. Children were not left out. They brought much cheer to the audience, reciting Sukumar Ray poems, dancing merrily to juvenile ditties.
Anshuman Bhowmick
Odeon 2005 theatre festival presented My Words...Your Story ...Our Past, a dance-theatre, choreographed by Sohini Chakraborty at the Town Hall on July 1. Violence against women and child exploitation were the central themes of the production. Dressed in black costume with white sash, the dancers of Sanved, revealed pain, guilt, sufferings and trauma with agile movements. Small music pieces were chosen from the compositions of Bikram Ghosh and Tanmoy Bose. The concluding item was based on Imagine, the unforgettable creation of John Lenon. The dynamics of several bodies, the most exciting part of a group choreography, which leads to a whole new vocabulary, was missing.
Sharmila Basu Thakur
