Artistes of Jhargram Kathakriti Group stage Hayto Kakhono at India Theatre Olympiad in Cuttack. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, Sept. 22: From fiction to the contemporary social issues, theatre lovers are getting ample opportunity to witness a plethora of plays that are now the centre of attraction at the ongoing 19th India Theatre Olympiad.

A total of four plays were staged at the theatre festival at Kala Vikash Kendra yesterday. The play titled Uchek Langmeidong staged by the artistes of the Youth Cultural Artist Association of Manipur earned long rounds of applause.

The story revolves around a small girl Nganbiton, who faces a lot of difficulties in life after the death of her mother. Her life takes a new turn after her father weds for the second time. Nganbiton used to think of escaping the torture at the hands of her stepmother. One day her real mother tells Nganbiton, in her dreams, to follow the birds called Langmeidong (or Uchek Langmei).

“The story is about the girl’s struggle and how she escapes the torture. It is based on a true incident,” said an artiste of the group.

Moreover, another play Hayto Kakhono, based on the issue of suffering of children and women who are falling victims at the hands of traffickers, received a good response. The play, staged by the artistes of Jhargram Kathakriti group of Bengal, deals with a story based on Tirna, an artist, and Padmanabha, member of a theatre group, who want to bring in a change in the fate of women who have fallen victims to prostitution.

“The play was beautifully staged and the artistes tried to send a message to the society regarding the evils of trafficking,” said Ramesh Swain, a viewer. The Indian Theatre Olympiad, organised by the Utkal Yuva Sanskrutik Sangha, is a festival of multi-lingual plays in different languages such as English, Hindi and other regional languages.