A scene from Kathak’s play. Picture by Anup Bhattacharya

lA one-day theatre festival was organised by Paschim Banga Natya Sangha and Howrah Samabeta Prayas to commemorate World Theatre Day that fell on March 27. Since it was Holi on March 27, the festival was shifted by three days and was held on March 31 at Bholagiri Kalamandir.

Seven theatre groups under the Sangha staged short plays that were innovative both in content and approach. Theatre group Kathak used Sukumar Ray’s characters like Baburam Sapure and Ramgarurer Chana to highlight some of the social ills that are prevalent in villages like lack of education, poor heath and other issues.

Sutanuka, another group, used different narratives to highlight women’s plight. Actors read out scripts from behind an imaginary curtain that told the stories of different women, their sufferings and exploitations.

Bauria People’s Repertory Theatre (PRT) staged a part of Tagore’s Phalguni where the king was in conversation with his court poet.

Dalia Mukherjee