Naatshala: Amritsar’s nursery of artists

On weekends, most Amritsarians’ go-to place is Punjab Naatshala. Opened on March 27, 1998, this open air theatre is no ordinary stage.

It is located opposite Khalsa College on the GT Road. I was in Class X, when I first went there to watch a play on its revolving stage, though that first outing did not turn me into a theatre lover, that came much later. But, I still remember the name of that play “Paydan” written by the founder of this theatre, Jatinder Brar, who is now in his 80s. The performance was so powerful that I ended up writing about it in my school magazine, and also as an essay in Punjabi exam that fetched me good marks.

Over the years, like many locals, I also introduced Punjab Naatshala to several relatives, friends and neighbours, who, too, got hooked. Many of us have watched the same play more than once, especially Naatshala productions such as ‘Kudesan’ and ‘Faasle’.

Naatshala was also the first stage for many well-known comedy artists from the city —Bharti Singh, Chandan Prabharkar, Rajeev Thakur and Kapil Sharma. Bharti’s character in ‘Faasle’ as a funny wife was hilarious and many of us continue to miss it.

Many Naatshala artists have earned a big name in Punjabi cinema as well such as Neha Dyal, Anita Devgan and Hardeep Gill, to mention some. Most of them like to visit Naatshala whenever they visit Amritsar.

It is to Naatshala’s credit that it has made many Amritsarians into true theatre lovers.

Rameshinder Singh Sandhu, Amritsar