(From top) Jatra posters in Khandagiri, Mu Naveen Babunka Stree and Chhata Chinhare Vote Dia being performed at Khandagiri Jatra Festival. Telegraph pictures

Bhubaneswar, Feb. 12: Jatra is reflecting the state’s political mood ahead of the second round of panchayat polls. Groups at the Khandagiri Jatra Festival are enjoying great footfall by lending political titles to their productions.

Plays such as Congress Kania BJD Bara (Congress bride and BJD groom), Mu Naveen Babunka Stree (I am Naveen babu’s wife), Chhata Chinhare Vote Dia (Vote for the umbrella symbol), Sarkar Mate Phasi Dia (Hang me, oh government!) have received great response from the audience. Some of these plays are being performed for two or three days successively owing to popular demand.

Nearly 25,000 people have been visiting the Khandagiri Jatra Festival each day, where 15 popular troupes are performing on the six stages. While lottery tickets are distributed to woo the audience, giving distinctly political names to the plays is a sure shot way of ensuring footfalls, feel veterans associated with the business.

However, in most cases, such titles are only meant to draw the people’s attention and are not representative of the storyline.

Director and writer of several plays Hara Barik said these political titles attract the viewers and the response to these plays was huge as compared to family melodrama titles. “These days everything is closely associated with politics and the young viewers are also keen about it. So writers of jatra intentionally bank on titles that hint at spicy political gossip even though the actual story may be quite different,” said Barik.

“The titles are only meant to make the productions commercial successes. There are hardly any plays that deal with contemporary politics,” said the owner of a reputed jatra troupe.

The play Chhata Chinhare Vote Dia is based on the reservation policy in contemporary politics. The play Sarkar Mate Phasi Dia depicts issues plaguing the present educational system and also portrays the subject of women empowerment.

Despite being limited to the titles, political themes in jatras have made news in the recent past. Plays such as Good Morning Uncle, Sahe Ghoda Ku Sahe Hati, Eka Ladhiba Maharathi, Sari Nahin Rajaniti, Hari Nahin Maharathi that have been staged by jatra troupes over the past five years, received grand response and there were even instances of certain politicians opposing to these titles.

A few days ago, while Chhata Chinhare Vote Dia was being performed at a remote village of Jagatsinghpur district, local residents protested and the troupe was forced to change the title.

The viewers accept that rural theatre names with political flavours are intriguing. “The catchy titles draw you to visit the play though the titles have no real connection with politics,” said Minati Behera, a resident of Khurda who is at Khandagiri to watch a play.

However, senior jatra artistes said the culture and value of plays had eroded over the years. “Earlier, when we performed plays based on political themes, we also conveyed a message and actually portrayed some current issues,” said general secretary of Odisha Jatra Mailk Mahasangh Nayan Kumar Acharya, who has been associated with the business for 40 years.