INVC NEWS
New Delhi,
Theatre is something that happens inside the heads of the viewers.” This statement by KK Raina makes one ponder upon the point. The Dias today was opened to the directors of Grease Yaka Returns (Nishantha de Silva and Rajitha Hettiarachchi), Peechha Karti Parchhayiyan (K.K. Raina), Chengpung Border (Pranjal K Saikia) and Raja Salhes (Yaduvir Yadav). The plays of yester night were all raising some social issue. While talking about the play Chengpung Border the director expressed that this story is somewhat a scenario that all the families living on the border experience. The focus then shifted to Peecha karti Parchhayiyan where the director expressed that Ibsen’s idea that syphilis is a representation and a metaphor telling a tale about “we sail with a corpse in cargo.”
Master Class:
Today at NSD the audience was in session with ace vocalist and musician, Madhup Mudgal. He shared his wisdom on Raga’s and Music. Madhup Mudgal is an Indian Hindustani classical music vocalist, known for his khayal and bhajan renditions. A disciple of Kumar Gandharva, he is also a composer, conductor of famous Gandharva Choir and has been principal of the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, Delhi, a music and dance school since 1995. Decorated by many laurels Mr. Mudgal is a member of various important committees of government.
Today’s Play
ANDHAYUG
The prevailing fight between power and survival in the world, the wrath of the blind age. Dhrutarashtra and Gandhari crying for their dying sons and eagerly waiting for Sanjay. TheVrudhhaYachak enters with his predictions. Ashwatthama transforms himself into a destructive being and tries to kill Sanjay and Vrudhha. Yachak, Krutvarma and Krupacharya question Ashwatthama’s intentions. Yuyutsu enters Hastinapur after winning battle with Pandvas, and Gandhari dishonours him.
Ashwatthama justifies his intentions, and Krutvarma and Krupacharya join his struggle. The VruddhaYachak explains AndhaYug and the characters give a description of their world. Vidur and Sanjay narrate the details of Ashwatthama’s cruelty to Gandhari. Ashwatthama releases Brahmastra. Sanjay leads Gandhari to the corpse of Duryodhan. Gandhari blames Krishna and curses him. Question – “How to save humanity?”
CONFERENCE OF THE BIRDS
Conference of the Birds is an evening-length movement theatre work, conceived and directed by
Wendy Jehlen and inspired by the epic poem of Faridud Din Attar. It is a tale of a group of birds that
set off in search of the mythical bird, the Simurgh. Many of the birds abandon the quest. When the
remaining birds arrive in the land of the Simurgh, they find themselves reflected… they are the
Simurgh. We use Attar’s text as a frame for narratives gathered from refugees and other migratory
people, symbolizing the journey that we, the diversity that is humanity, take together. It is a story of
found community, of the necessity of difference.
JADU MANTAR
The central character of this story is Madhav, the best student in the ashram. Guruji is very happy with the helpful nature of Madhav and gives him a magic shankh which can fulfill all his wishes and desires. But Guruji puts a condition with this magical shankh that although whatever Madhav asks for himself will be duly fulfilled, but along with that his neighbour will get the double of the same. So Madhav, out of jealousy, does not ask anything from the shankh, so that his neighbour shouldn’t benefit from it. In the end he realizes his mistake. This play compels the audience to see where we are headed in the present society and its degenerating values.
