Students of Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya stage the Mughal Taamasa in Bhubaneswar. Pictures by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, Feb. 11: Mughal Taamasa, a dying form of folk theatre, has drawn maximum attention at the annual event of Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya.

The play begins with a high-ranked Mughal official called Mirza Sahib visiting the province to collect revenue where he gets smitten by a village girl from the milkmen community.

He attempts to get her but local people exhibit tough resistance. The play depicted the opulent lifestyle of the Mughals, their superstition and misrule in the interiors of the country. Nurtured in Bhadrak over 300 years ago, Mughal Taamasa is a testimony of the imprints that the Mughal rule left on Odia culture. Based on the script originally written by Bansiballav Goswami, the play, where students of the drama department essayed various characters, was adapted by Lalatendu Mohanty. Mohanty’s effort must be complimented as he brought in contemporary elements to make the play interesting and also highlighted the relevance of the fading form of art. The distinct feature of the play was that it used five languages — Parsi, Hindi, Urdu, Odia and Bengali.

By showcasing the tale of the interaction of a Mughal noble with the local people, the play was a tool to underline the Hindu-Muslim unity in the past.