Students of Theatre department of Dhaka University have been staging famous jatra pala Sohrab-Rustam for the last
three days since Monday at Natmandal.
The production is being staged to celebrate the 92th Dhaka University Day and to commemorate prominent playwright Sayeed Ahmed.
The pala has been written by distinguished pala writer Brajendra Kumar Dey. Indeed, it is a very well-known story from the 10th century epic Shahnama (tales of the kings) by Persian poet Ferdausi.
The plot is a tragic one where valiant warrior Rustam unknowingly kills his son Sohrab in a battlefield, as the two warriors fight for two different kings and kingdoms, and they remain unaware of each other’s identity. Only after the fatal blow, Rustam discovers that he has killed his own son after he notices the talisman Sohrab was wearing, which was given to Sohrab’s mother Tahmina by Rustam during his departure for a battle many years ago.
Second year students of the Theatre department of DU did well in rendering the tragic pala. They previously attended a month-long workshop and rehearsal under the guidance of professor Dr Israfil Shaheen who directed the pala.
Most of the actors were convincing in their performance. They had well delivered the ways and postures of jatra actors during their entrances, departures, movements on stage and rendering dialogues. Among the actors Md Ilias, who enacted the characters of Rustam, and Dhiman Chandra Barman who enacted the role of Sohrab stood out particularly due to their performance.
‘Jatra is an old form of not only entertainment but also communication. I have tried to work with my students on how to communicate the tale of a jatrapala,’ said Dr Israfil Shaheen, director of the experimental production.
‘A few actors lacked the original flavour of jatra in their performance, as they are not profesional jatra performers. However, they have learnt a lot from the workshop and their performances have been impressive,’ observed Milon Kumar Dey, general secretary of Jatra Shilpa Unnyan Sangstha, who chiefly supervised the workshop and the rehearsal.
The last show of the pala will be held today at the same venue at 7.00pm.
-With New Age input
