Newmai News Network
IMPHAL, January 28
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he 10-day-long 3rd Khundongbam Brojendro Theatre Festival 2014, held under the banner of Khundongbam Brojendro Trust and which started on January 18 at Maharaja Chandrakirti Auditorium, Palace Compound here, concluded today with Governor Vinod Kumar Duggal attending the event.
Chairperson of the National School of Drama Society Ratan Thiyam and other distinguished personalities attended the closing function of the theatre festival.The festival which is a triennial event held in memory of Brojendro and organized by the Khundongbam Brojendro Memorial Trust in collaboration with the Department of Arts and Culture, is an event eagerly awaited by the theatre lovers of the state. Brojendro was one of the renowned playwrights of Manipur and he conveyed his deep sense of appreciation to his family members for forming the Trust and holding the festival in his memory.
Speaking on the occasion, the Governor said he had learned that two groups, one each from Bangalore and Myanmar, were to participate but the group from Myanmar could not come due to some problems. He hoped that they could join them the next time as the people of Manipur would love to witness their play to learn more about the land and the country, Myanmar. Incidentally, recently when a dance troupe consisting of 27 members from Manipur, organized by the Department of Art and Culture, Government of Manipur, had visited Myanmar and performed at 3 different venues, they received not only rousing welcome there but also huge appreciation from the people.
He said that this year’s festival was all the more to be appreciated as two groups from the tribal community have showcased their production which was warmly welcomed by the discerning audience.
The entire country and even many parts of the world are aware that Manipur has a rich cultural heritage and it is an honour for the people of Manipur as it is the home of Ratan Thiyam (who is presently the president today) and Kanhailal, the two colossus of the present day theatre in the country. Besides, there are other younger directors who have made a name for themselves, experimenting in the different aspects of theatre. Even though proscenium theatre came to Manipur late, it has created its own performances like Gosta Leela, etc which are unique in its own sense, he maintained.
He pointed out to the people that Brojendro is a prolific playwright, having penned 64 stage plays, 8 shumanf Leela plays, 15 radio plays and 4 audio recorded cassette disks. Some of his plays were extremely successful like “Ichasa Ipa Lamboirage (Children! Let me become a mendicant!)” and people still talk about the Rupmahal production.
The Governor further said that this year’s festival has been quite successful with large audiences enjoying the performances. He hopes that the next edition will be even better with more groups participating. He also gave a special welcome to the Bangalore group to Manipur just before the final play by “Little Jasmine” of Bangalore called “The Relating World” was showcased.
The theatre festival which ended today has been participated by a total of 7 theatre centres, among which Bangalore theatre known as “Little Jasmine” is based from outside of the state while the rest 6 are theatres from the state itself. The plays showcased throughout the festival were mostly based on plays written by Khundongbam Brojendro.
