Theatre is one of the powerful mediums to engage, entertain, and educate the youth. As Script Productions is set to stage three iconic dramas under the aegis of Ek Je Chilo Raja for the Calcutta Youth Meet (CYM) today at Gyan Manch, Indulge catches up with the CEO of Script Productions and director-writer of the play Shinjan Mitra to know more.
Why stage Ek Je Chilo Raja at the CYM?
This CYM shall mark the tenth year for Script as a team. Ek Je Chilo Raja opened doors for us in the industry so we wanted to perform it as a tribute and educate the masses about icons of Bangla literature. Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne originally by Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury will be performed by Poulomi Choudhury and team as a dance drama. Moron Bhomra by Saradindu Bandopadhyay will be an audio drama by Himadri Ghosal and team and Kabuliwala by Rabindranath Tagore by Basudeb Mukherjee in the proscenium format.
Why a gap of six years since first the performance?
I relocated and couldn’t gather enough time to direct and coordinate. We also wanted to do more research before bringing it back.
As the scriptwriter what did you keep in mind?
It had to have an essence of tribute and incorporate my adaptations. I kept the stories as is but worked more on the transition in a format that Kolkata had never seen before. I wanted to create something that would serve as an inspiration.
Did you take any artistic liberty while penning the script?
I adapted the stories in a way where the storyline remains unchanged but the situation changes.
Do you think theatre is witnessing a revival?
I do think there are changes and am convinced that Kolkata's theatre circuit which is one of the oldest and best in the country would rise to its glory again. I also feel educational institutions should promote such ventures.
Do live performances in the digital era attract the youth?
There is always a section of the youth who are attracted towards theatre but it’s also true that we use digital mediums to create a noise to pull the crowd.
Any plans to stage the play post-CYM?
I would love to, especially outside Kolkata. Such plays educate a lot and must be staged often.
Ek Je Chilo Raja will be staged at 4:30 pm and tickets can be procured from their official website