Theatre troupes staged street theatre productions to pay tribute to the martyred intellectuals of 1971 at a programme organised to observe the Martyred Intellectuals Day at the Mukta Bedi in Mirpur on Saturday.
Most of the six plays staged by the troupes featured the atrocity of the Pakistani army and its local collaborators during
the war of independence.Some, of the plays addressed the trial of the war criminals and other contemporary social issues.
Bat Tala, Dhaka Padatik, Opera, Padatik Natya Sangsad, Swattik Natya Sampraday, Manas Natya Angan staged plays at the open stage in front of the former Town Hall in Mirpur.
A Mirpur-based theatre troupe named Opera has been observing Martyred Intellectuals Day at the venue for the past six years.
Hundreds of audience enjoyed Bat Tala’s production Jatugreeha, written and directed respectively by Samina Luthfa Nitra and Muhammad Ali Haider.
The play addressed the heartrending tragedy of the Tazreen apparel industry, where over one hundred apparel workers were burnt alive, in a realistic manner. The emotional dialogues uttered by the actors touched the hearts of the audience.
Dhaka Padatik staged Madarika Kheil, written and directed respectively by Masum Aziz and Mijanur Rahman.
Through the depiction of a renowned magician, a Pakistani collaborator, the play features the rehabilitation of the war criminals in the society within a few years after the independence.
The host troupe Opera staged Kaiballa, written and directed respectively by late Sanjiban Shikder and Kazi Taufiqul Islam. Kaiballa features the discovery of the skulls of freedom fighters while excavating for a golden treasure.
Padatik Natya Sangsad, Swattik Natya Sampraday and Manas Natya Angan respectively staged Amader Sangram, H-Z-B-R-L and Mrittika Kathan.
A good number of audience, mostly theatre activists of Mirpur, enjoyed the performances. However, they demanded for a proper venue in Mirpur, which is far away from the city centre, and where such performances are regularly staged.
‘We have requested repeatedly to the government to open a modern theatre hall in Mirpur, but till now we haven’t seen any initiative,’ said Mahbub Alam Shahin, a local theatre activist
-With New Age input
