When we talk about ties and the need to
strengthen them, it does not only apply to the bond between people. In a state
of diverse culture like Goa, performing arts took on varied forms, highlighting
different aspects of region and community. in a bid to bring out the bond
between these forms of theatre and bring together the artistes associated with
each of them, noted playwright Pundalik Naik conceptualised and wrote
‘Bahurangi khel’, an experimental play comprising five theatre forms, namely
like natak, tiatr, ranmalle, jaagor and film. The play, produced by eminent
members of Goa’s Konkani drama fraternity, has Vishwas Chari as music director
and noted musician Mukesh Ghatwal as composer.
“We all know Goa has a rich heritage and
culture. To retain the performing arts aspect of our heritage we attempted
‘Bahurangi Khel’ wherein various colours of theatre forms come together to keep
audience entertained for two hours,” says Rajdeep Naik, Director and the play’s
lead actor.
Since, television sets have reached every
household, people seldom step out to watch a play, doing so only if free passes
are available. But this trend hasn’t deterred the passionate people of the
theatre who keep coming up with innovative ways of shaping theatre. “It has
been noticed that TV channels put forth a mixture of edutainment shows, from
stand up comedy shows to award shows, music, drama etc to keep the audience
entertained and increased their ratings. We have introduced something along
those lines for the people of Goa. However, our entertainment programme
comprises top five Goan theatre forms. This keeps you entertained for a stretch
of two hours in which you will find a cantar from tiatr, dance from zaagor,
folk culture from ranmalle, screenplay from drama and music from film. All
these elements make for an unusual treat for the viewers. We have comedy, and
recorded music with live singing each consisting of a 10-15 minute skit,”
informs Rajdeep.
He goes on to add, “We have not lost the
track of the play. There are skits which give social messages. For instance,
we’ve highlighted the crab mentality that many people have. We’ve also shown
other moral evils such as greed, etc.”
Besides these, the play also highlights
serious issues haunting Goa, but through the kid glove of comedy. “We’ve also
addressed social issues like the question of how offshore casinos are legalised
while local madka isn’t, medium of instruction, among others,” he continues.
This ‘Bahurangi Khel’ was released recently
and completed one show successfully. It is now being staged at various Sarvajanik
Ganeshotsavs. Happy with the reception so far as people have really taken to
this unique fusion of theatre, the makers already have plans of staging it in
theatre halls and if the response continues, they would continue staging it for
a year.
