(From top) Balasore-based group Nayaka performs the Oriya play Mansara Milap while Trinayan Sangeet Vidyalaya of Mangaldoi stages the Assamese play Two wicked boys. Pictures by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, Sept. 23: The Oriya play — Mansara Bilap (Moaning of Flesh) — was staged on the third day of the Indian Theatre Olympiad being held at the Kala Vikash Kendra.

Some of the people who watched the play felt the presentation by Balasore-based drama group Nayaka was “touching’ as well as “striking”.

Oriya film critic Pradip Sahu (47) said: “The exploration of the inner animal instinct of a civilised man in the play was striking.”

Mansara Bilap revolves around two pet animals — a dog (Dora) and a baby deer (Jolly) — who stay at the house of a zamindar. An unusual bond of affection grows between them. The two animals are seldom seen without each other.

The story takes a tragic turn when the zamindar gets Jolly slain for being served in dinner to his friend. Dora feels the absence of Jolly and leaves the food untouched. Later Dora leaves the house and goes to the nearby jungle in search of Jolly.

“What was most touching was the expression of Dora’s intense bond of affection for Jolly through the dog’s refusal to eat the flesh of the baby deer,” said Shivkumar Gupta, a person from the audience.

“The main objective of the play was to show how the erosion of love, affection, kindness and divine qualities in man is resulting in violence, cruelty and pretension in the minds of the people,” said director of the play Susmita Rana.

Mansara Bilap is based on a short story written by Kalindi Charan Panigrahi.

A Bengali play Swarnaprasu by Anami Theatre Center of Jalpaiguri and an Assamese play Mohbandhan in satirical style by Mayeng Art Repertory Group of Udalguri were also presented.

Swarnaprasu, written by Saumitra Basu and directed by Pralay Bhattacharya, is based on the life of a couple — Nidhiram and Annakali — who strive all day for their livelihood in a small and obscure village in Bengal.

The other play, Mohbandhan, carried the message that “every human is capable of any evil deeds and an evil spirit like ghost is not necessary for such wrong doings”.

It’s based on the original story of Dr Ratikanta Pathak and dramatised by Saurav Kumar Das.

Trinayan Sangeet Vidyalaya of Mangoldoi presented another Assamese play Two wicked boys.

Earlier Agnibh Nitryakala Pratisthan of Gohpur in Assam had presented Aakhora, which was written by Niranjan Saikia and directed by Tilak Dhingia.

While Bayanar Khool, written by Jugal Das and directed by Simanta Sarma, was presented by Dais of Mangaldoi (Darrang) in Assam.