The Voice of Chandigarh News
Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Akademi organized a 7-day Theater Festival from June 24th to June 30th, at Tagore Theatre. On the final day of the festival Shri Banwarilal Purohit, the Governor of Punjab and Administrator of UT Chandigarh was the chief guest at Tagore Theatre Sector 18. The special guests included Mr. Rajeev Verma, Advisor to the Administrator, Mr. Hari Kalikat, Secretary of Culture, UT Chandigarh, and Mr. Nitish Singla, Director of Culture, UT Chandigarh, who were also present. Sh. Sudesh Sharma, President of Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Academy, welcomed the chief guest and special guests.
During his speech, Sh. Banwarilal Purohit congratulated the Academy officials and all the artists for the success of the event. He presented Academy Awards to local artists and commended the entire academy for their initiative. Sh. Purohit emphasized the importance of art and literature in our culture, citing the example of ancient figures like Kalidasa. He also shared his own experiences of participating in theatre plays during his youth, underscoring the positive impact it had on him. He urged for the use of plays, theatre, and street plays to combat societal issues. Additionally, the chief guest unveiled the logo of the Academy Awards and the first souvenir issued by the Academy.
Academy President Sudesh Sharma announced that the Academy would be organizing one-month drama workshops in 23 government schools of Chandigarh city from the following month. The workshops will focus on teaching the school curriculum through drama, with topics spanning Hindi, English, Mathematics, Science, History, and more. This approach aims to not only build children’s characters through drama but also help them interestingly engage with their curriculum.
The play staged on this occasion was “The First Teacher”, presented by the Alankar Theater Group, Chandigarh. Based on a book by Russian writer Chingiz Aitmatov, the play was directed by Chakresh Kumar. It intertwines the story of a Russian city with the present-day situation in “Mainpuri”, a city in Uttar Pradesh, India. The play portrays the struggle of a teacher sent by a government organization to a village, where the villagers initially resist his efforts and refuse to send their children to school. The story focuses on a 14-year-old orphan girl named ‘Sangita’, who becomes inspired by the teacher and his knowledge. Despite facing adversity, the teacher works to ensure her well-being, eventually sending her to the city for further education. “The First Teacher” conveys a powerful message about women’s empowerment, girl education, and the fight against ignorance and societal backwardness. The artists who performed in the play were – Chakresh Kumar, Chandra Prakash, Ritika Thakur, Ramneesh Choudhary, Angelica Piplani, Shivam Kamboj, Jyoti Sania, Divyanshi Arora, Harman, Janak Raj Dhull, Mridul K Gautam, Lucky, Charanjit Singh Rathod, Snedden, Lakhwinder, Neha, Komal Sharma, and Ankush.
