Theatre Festival at Bangalore

Festival dedicated to legendary theatre artistes

VINAYASHREE JAGADEESH

The coming week holds a special treat for theatre enthusiasts, with ‘Amoda’, a four-day theatre festival, being organised in the city from July 9.

The festival, being organised by a troupe called Panchamukhi Natara Samuha (PNS), will feature plays from five theatre troupes — Kalashikhara, Ranga Vishesha, Sambhrama, Siri Sambhrama and PNS — on various themes.

“‘Amoda’ means celebration of an event, and we decided upon this name as we feel that this festival is a way for us to celebrate theatre in our own style,” said president of the PNS, Madhusudhan Kanekal.

Variety of events

The festival will showcase plays from each of the participating teams and will also include a seminar — ‘Kannada theatre’s response to the present cultural and political scenario’ — street plays, poetry rendition and story-reading sessions to honour legendary artistes such as Habib Tanvir, Safdar Hashmi, Badal Sircar, M.P. Prakash, C.G. Krishnaswamy, and Gudigeri Basavaraj.

On all days of the festival, there will be a photography exhibition by Lokesh, Murali Mohan Kati and Kantaraju, and the theatre teams.

“The festival is dedicated to such great personalities,” Mr. Kanekal said.“Sometimes, the competition among the groups becomes very intense, but we should not forget the true spirit of theatre,” he said. The five troupes were coming together to demonstrate and uphold a united spirit, he added.

New talent

The participating troupes are relatively young, and have tried to make a mark in the field of theatre.

The members of the troupes believe that theatre is not just about following the old techniques that have been present for generations, but also about encouraging new talent that can bring in innovations in the field.

Social message

PNS was formed in 2006 and has competed in various State- and national-level competitions. While the themes of its plays are varied, its intention is to convey a social message through all of them.

The team’s speciality is that many of its members are multifaceted. Several actors also handle other aspects of the stage such as lighting, set design, choreography and music.

“I believe that it is not just the actors but even other members of the team, including backstage members, who make a successful team,” said Mr. Kanekal.

The venue for all the performances is the Ravindra Kalakshetra. Entry is free. For details, call 9916733461 or 9916733463.

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