National Rangmanch Utsav kicks off with play directed by Dhaliwal

Advertisement

Amritsar, April 22

Manch-Rangmanch, founded by eminent theatre personality Kewal Dhaliwal, is hosting the 23rd National Rangmanch Utsav from April 21 to April 25 in collaboration with Virsa Vihar Society. The Shiromani dramatist along with other eminent theatre persons from Punjab came together to inaugurate the festival, featuring acclaimed theatre productions from across the country on April 21.

Kewal Dhaliwal said that the festival will feature some of the best plays in Punjabi and Hindi by noted playwrights and directors, bringing the best of talent to the city. The inaugural day had featured the Punjabi play ‘Mahi Mera Thanedar’ written by Vasant Sabnavis and directed by Kewal Dhaliwal. It was staged by the Manch-Rangmanch Amritsar team.

A comedy, adapted from the famous Marathi folk play ‘Vichha Majhi Puri Kara’, written by Vasant Sabnis and later translated into Hindi by Usha Banerjee as ‘Saiyyan Bhaye Kotwal’, the play is designed for urban viewers while retaining its rural essence.

It follows the format of the Maharashtrian folk ‘Tamasha’, as the story revolves around a king and his conniving prime minister. After the death of the Kotwal, the administrative head, the Prime Minister, promptly appoints his incompetent and unworthy brother-in-law to the coveted position. According to the hierarchy, the current Havaldar should have been promoted instead.

The aggrieved Havaldar, along with his sweetheart Mainavati, devises a plan to expose the new Kotwal. Mainavati, a dancer, uses her charm on the Kotwal and persuades him to fulfill her numerous desires (hence the name). The play’s slapstick comedy highlights the underlying political nepotism, resonating with the current system of how things mostly work.

On the second day today, the play ‘Nanga Raja’, written by Alakhanandan and directed by Vishu Sharma, was staged by the Amritsar School of Drama team. Another adaptation of a popular, acclaimed Hindi play, this was a tale of a careless, foolish king, consumed by his obsession with new clothes.

While his obsession makes him easy target for some dacoits, who exploit his foolish pursuits, he easily gets manipulated into thinking he is wearing magical outfits offered by the dacoits. The king, wearing nothing but his pride and vanity, parades naked as his subjects watch, exposing him, literally and metaphorically, to all.