Punjab's open-air theatre, once iconic, now submerged in rainwater

A day before the Teej celebration at Preet Nagar, a village located about 25 km from Amritsar, a group of artists from across Punjab were devastated to find the iconic open-air theatre submerged in rainwater.

They described it as a historic loss, lamenting the absence of any system in place to preserve or restore the theatre. This open-air theatre was established by none other than Gurbaksh Singh Preetlari, the visionary behind India’s first planned socio-cultural township.

Senior theatre artist Emmanuel Singh says this is the very place where generations of young performers learned their craft from ace artists like Balraj Sahni. It was here that Urdu poet Kaifi Azmi penned the script of Heer-Ranjha.

Only last week, popular actors Diljit Dosanjh and Sonam Bajwa, along with the crew of Border 2, were on location in Preet Nagar shooting scenes for their upcoming film.

Despite the theatre’s deteriorating condition, theatre artists continue to visit Preet Nagar to stage dramas and keep its legacy alive. Singh also recalled that another open-air theatre near Guru Nanak Stadium is still used for staging plays and other performing arts events.