Bhubaneswar, Sept. 27: Eminent Odia writer Byomakesh Tripathy's 13 plays and three translated works, covered in a set of five volumes, was recently released here.

Rajat Kumar Kar, eminent playwright and actor was the chief guest at the event, while Odia poet and writer Sanghamitra Mishra was the chief speaker. Theatre personality Anant Mahapatra released the books in the presence of writer Biswakesh Tripathy.

Hugely regarded as a playwright, director and actor, Byomakesh Tripathy had directed almost 68 plays and acted in many of those. He had to his credit compliments that were rarely given to any Odia theatre artiste. He was known for stagecraft techniques never seen before on the Odia stage. He established his versatility when he had ventured into the Odia film industry and acted in a few Odia films. Byomakesh, who passed away in 1997, had also directed a few Odia films. His contribution to Odia movies is etched in films such as Kaa, Bhai Bhauja, Jayadeb, Devajani, Kachaghara.

Professor Raj Kishore Ray, who taught at a college in Puri, described Byomakesh as Odisha's Gordon Craig (1872-1966). Craig was a famous English actor, director and modernist theatre practitioner who had introduced many new concepts in stagecraft.

In his lifetime, Byomakesh had written a number of plays and each play was an experiment in itself. While some of these plays were satirical, a few were critical too. Each of his plays gave a message of truth, honesty and purity of life. His plays dealt with various burning issues such as corruption, prostitution and injustice to women. His works also covered mythological and historical subjects.

The gifted artiste-writer-director had also written scripts for a few Odia films and penned songs for theatre. It is hard to recall an Odia creative personality who had indulged in such a combination.

His younger brother Biswakesh Tripathy took the effort to bring out his works in a five-volume set to give readers another opportunity to relish the works of Byomakesh. The plays that find place in the set include popular ones such as Ek-Duei-Teen, Raja Mukuta and Kansha Kabata.

On the occasion, works of veteran Odia writers Gobind Tripathy, Biswakesh Tripathy and Biyotkesh Tripathy were also on sale and display.