Some food for thought on R-Day
25 Jan 2013 5:23 AM IST
‘Are we really free to express our views in this independent nation? The question has bogged me down on various occasions like it has bogged others,’ says Atul Satya Koushik, president, Film and Theatre Society.
With Republic Day just two days away, the society is reconsidering the perception of freedom, democracy and republic through two of its classic plays — Animal Farm and Wo Lahore.
‘The event, titled 1940s, is a series of plays set in the pre-Independence era. They question the conventional perceptions of freedom, republic and democracy and try to present that face and form of these ideologies which they have attained against the initial aspirations,’ explains Atul.
‘Today the Republic of India still remains a work in progress and the gap between the haves and the have nots is widening with each passing day. Both my plays show the flip side of the sad state by questioning our responsiblities as citizens of India,’ he adds.
Animal Farm is an adaptation of George Orwell’s classic novel of the same name. The 110 minute Hindi play shows a hypothetical village miles away from India where Britishers have gained control over some farms. It uses rural languages, folk songs and incorporates various comic situations.
‘It represents how the political leaders gained power after freedom and eventually India remained a slave forever. The play tries to bring the concept of Animal Farm to Indian struggles for freedom and the developments after that,’ says Atul.
It’s a musical satire about how and why India as a country has not been able to progress due to certain miscreants involved in power making, adds the director.
Wo Lahore, on the other hand, is a play based on a short story written by Atul himself. It is the story of an ordinary woman, Jamuna, a mother of three sons who tries to keep her family intact in spite of everything that is happening around. The play has been set in the mid 20th century India which is the most talked about period in its history.
‘Wo Lahore is based on internal conflicts and turmoil prevailing in an ordinary Indian family with the struggle for freedom, social beliefs of those times with the Partition serving as the backdrop. It’s a story of a family in Lahore in the backdrop of the freedom struggle and Partition. What happened during the time of Partition is both traumatic and heartbreaking,’ says Atul.
Go check out the plays as the word ‘republic’ gets reinvented.
DETAIL
At: Open Air Theatre, Pearey Lal Bhawan, BSZ Marg, near ITO
When: 26-27 January
Timings: 7 pm onwards
Cost: Rs 300
With Republic Day just two days away, the society is reconsidering the perception of freedom, democracy and republic through two of its classic plays — Animal Farm and Wo Lahore.
‘The event, titled 1940s, is a series of plays set in the pre-Independence era. They question the conventional perceptions of freedom, republic and democracy and try to present that face and form of these ideologies which they have attained against the initial aspirations,’ explains Atul.
‘Today the Republic of India still remains a work in progress and the gap between the haves and the have nots is widening with each passing day. Both my plays show the flip side of the sad state by questioning our responsiblities as citizens of India,’ he adds.
Animal Farm is an adaptation of George Orwell’s classic novel of the same name. The 110 minute Hindi play shows a hypothetical village miles away from India where Britishers have gained control over some farms. It uses rural languages, folk songs and incorporates various comic situations.
‘It represents how the political leaders gained power after freedom and eventually India remained a slave forever. The play tries to bring the concept of Animal Farm to Indian struggles for freedom and the developments after that,’ says Atul.
It’s a musical satire about how and why India as a country has not been able to progress due to certain miscreants involved in power making, adds the director.
Wo Lahore, on the other hand, is a play based on a short story written by Atul himself. It is the story of an ordinary woman, Jamuna, a mother of three sons who tries to keep her family intact in spite of everything that is happening around. The play has been set in the mid 20th century India which is the most talked about period in its history.
‘Wo Lahore is based on internal conflicts and turmoil prevailing in an ordinary Indian family with the struggle for freedom, social beliefs of those times with the Partition serving as the backdrop. It’s a story of a family in Lahore in the backdrop of the freedom struggle and Partition. What happened during the time of Partition is both traumatic and heartbreaking,’ says Atul.
Go check out the plays as the word ‘republic’ gets reinvented.
DETAIL
At: Open Air Theatre, Pearey Lal Bhawan, BSZ Marg, near ITO
When: 26-27 January
Timings: 7 pm onwards
Cost: Rs 300
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