The eight-day studio theatre festival organised by Northern Theatre, a Northern University based troupe, was inaugurated on Friday at the Studio Theatre Hall through staging of Selim Al
Deen’s play titled Putra.
Professor emeritus Anisuzzaman was present at the programme as chief guest. Secretary general of Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation Jhuna Chowdhury was present as special guest.
‘I really appreciate the large initiative taken by a university based troupe, professor Anisuzzaman said.
More encouragement was waiting for the private university based troupe. ‘We will consider their BGTF membership,’ Jhuna Chowdhry said.
The discussion session was followed by Putra, staged by Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy.
Al Deen’s emotional narrative features pain of a couple, who lost their only son at an early age. Al Deen’s close associates describe that the playwright had written Putra from his personal bitter experience – his short-lived son survived for just 15 minutes.
The play ‘Putra’ centres on a couple named Siraj and Abchha, whose son Manik committs suicide two years ago at an early age.
In a cold winter night, the couple collects and burns some trunks of a mango tree where Manik committed suicide. In fact, the smoke of the mango trunk leads the couple to recall bitter memory that takes them to a surrealistic world.
Director Mohammed Jasim Uddin had successfully created the surrealistic world on stage. Spontaneous performance by Bakar Bakul in the role of Siraj and Enamtara Saki in the role of Abchha could touch the emotion of the audience, especially in the scene in which the woman recalled the bitter experience that no imam had agreed to attend Manik’s janaza.
The couple’s emotion reaches the peak when they regret the death of their son again on the very day after burning the mango trunk where Manik’s body was buried.
Abchha becomes so frustrated with the incident that the crazy woman leaves her house, husband and everything.
‘I really enjoyed the show,’ Shamim Ahmed, an audience, told New Age.
New Age is the media partner of the festival.
-With New Age input
