Purba Paschim theatre fest to stage play on Girish Ghosh

Good news for theatre enthusiasts in Kolkata. The much-awaited Purba Paschim theatre festival is on till March 5 at the Academy of Fine Arts. For the next four days, seven popular plays will be staged as part of the 13th Purba Paschim theatre fest.

At the inauguration of the theatre fest on Wednesday, thespians Rudraprasad Sengupta, Arun Mukhopadhyay, Ashok Mukhopadhyay, Meghnad Bhattacharya, Debshankar Haldar and Goutam Haldar were present. Actors Sohini Sengupta and Ambarish Bhattacharya regaled the audience with their special programme Natyagaaner Parampara, where they sang songs of Bengali theatre. Theatre personality Poulomi Chattopadhyay was conferred with the Ramaprasad Banik memorial award.

Though the Board exams for Class 10 and 12th are on, Soumitra Mitra, director of Purba Paschim, is happy with the turnout of the audience. “Almost all our shows have more than 90 percent booking. This is indeed a great sign even when the Board exams are going on,” he told Millennium Post.

One of the major attractions of Purba Paschim theatre fest is Ek Mancha, Ek Jibon, a play directed by Mitra on Girish Chandra Ghosh, the doyen of Bengali theatre. By now, the play with Debshankar Haldar has gained cult popularity and at the Purba Paschim theatre fest on March 5, it will celebrate its 90th show.

On March 2 at 6.30 pm, theatre connoisseurs can watch Arun Mukhopadhyay’s famed play Haraner Natjamai. On March 4 at 4.15 pm, a popular play from Purba Paschim titled Patalbabu Filmstar will be staged, directed by Ramaprasad Banik. However, post his demise, the play continues to rule the hearts of theatre aficionados. The solo act of thespian Goutam Haldar in the renowned play Meghnad Badh Kabya on March 5 is a popular draw. To commemorate the 150-year journey of Bengali theatre, an exhibition on women in theatre is also being held