Ajitesh Bandopadhyay — the man who ate, slept and breathed theatre and perhaps in his veins ran theatre more thickly than blood. It requires a lot more time and research to evaluate the genius of this actor/director of such stature. The man who was part of the evolution of group theatre movement in Bengal, nurtured it fondly and then ruled the roost during its heyday with his baritone voice and acting prowess, never really hankered for publicity. It was just the other way round — the media hovered close by for some attention from this man. But unfortunately for all theatre lovers, Bandopadhyay’s disdain for publicity has been an impediment to his evaluation. As a result, soon after his death, no serious effort was undertaken to preserve and carry forward the rich mantle of legacy and the vast void was created. It is heartening to know that new theatre groups like Bhumica are trying to revive Ajitesh’s legacy. This evening Bhumica has organised a special programme, Ajitesh Pronaam, to commemorate Ajitesh’s 70th birth anniversary. Beginning with a lecture by Ranjan Gangopadhyay and discussion by Dipendra Sengupta on Ajitesh’s student life and a group recitation of Abi Sarkar’s poem, Jeebon Jemon, the members of Bhumica will stage Prostaab. Based on Anton Chekov’s The Proposal, this one-act play was originally translated and adopted by Ajitesh Bandopadhyay.

When: Today at 6.30 pm

Where: Muktangan Rangalaya