Dharamvir Bharati’s Play: Andha Yug

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Playwright: Dharmavir Bharati
Translation: Sukesh Panda
Director: Chavan Pramod R.
Group: Department of Dramatics, M.S. University, Vadodara
Language: Gujarati
Duration: 1 hr 30 mins

The Play
Prologue: The prevailing fight between power and survival in the world, the wrath of the blind age.
Act 1: Dhrutarashtra and Gandhari crying for their dying sons and eagerly waiting for Sanjay. The Vrudhha Yachak enters with his predictions.
Act 2: Ashwatthama transforms himself into a destructive being and tries to kill Sanjay and Vrudhha Yachak, Krutvarma and Krupacharya question Ashwatthama’s intentions.
Act 3: Yuyutsu enters Hastinapur after winning battle with Pandvas, and Gandhari dishonours him. Ashwatthama justifies his intentions, and Krutvarma and Krupacharya join his struggle.
Interlude: The Vruddha Yachak explains Andha Yug and the characters give a description of their world.
Act 4: Vidur and Sanjay narrate the details of Ashwatthama’s cruelty to Gandhari. Ashwatthama releases Brahmastra. Sanjay leads Gandhari to the corpse of Duryodhan. Gandhari blames Krishna and curses him.
Epilogue: Question – “How to save humanity?”

Director’s Note
This piece of work focuses solely on the thematic content of the play, rather than abiding by the conventional structure. It attempts to look beyond the barriers of time and space and emerges subtly and symbolically. The questions raised are regarding human tolerance and the atrocities of war, where women, children and youth are the major victims. “When will the world be peaceful?” is the quintessential quest. I have attempted to depict my perceptions about how various systems drive a region and its inhabitants into insoluble problems of restless society and political turmoil, where the sole sufferers are the common people.

The Director
A recipient of Sangeet Natak Akademi Ustad Bismillah Khan National Award for Theatre Direction, Dr. Chavan Pramod R. is a disciple of Guru Kavalam N. Panikkar, under whose guidance he pursued training of Natyashastra and Sanskrit Theatre. He also underwent the basic training of Kutiyattam at Kalamandalam and worked in-depth on different forms of Kerala. Dr. Chavan Pramod has done Ph.D., Masters and Bachelors in Theatre with 4 gold medals from the Dramatics Department, M. S. University of Baroda. Some of the plays designed and directed by him are Andhayug, Uttararmcharitam, Venisamhara, Ashadh Ka Ek Din, Waiting for Godot, Vikramorvashiyam’s fourth Act, Dak Ghar, Juloos, Hayavadan etc. His book Rang Saptak – An Anthology of Panikkar’s Plays Translated in Hindi has been published by Rajkamal Prakashan.

The Playwright
Dharmavir Bharati was a renowned Hindi poet, author, playwright and a social thinker of India. He was the chief editor of the popular magazine Dharmayug. Bharati was awarded the Padmashri for literature in 1972 and Sangeet Natak Akademy Award in playwriting in 1988. Prominent works by him include Gunahon ka Devta, Suraj ka Satwan Ghoda, Andha Yug etc.

The Group
Department of Dramatics, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda has nurtured a number of aspiring artists wanting to pursue theatre as profession. Along with the academic experience it also creates a platform for art events, festivals, workshops, seminars and research. It has started “Satur Theatre” to inculcate performance skills in the students and orient audiences for the Theatre Movement. It has been conducting the Manch Parva – National Theatre Festival since 2011.

Cast & Credits
Gandhari 1                                     Mallika Lokhande
Gandhari 2                                     Riya Doshi
Gandhari 3                                     Vaidesha Lobiyal
Dhrutarashtra                                 Shashank Jha
Ashwathama                                  Bhavesh Thakarel
Yuyutsu                                          Priyank Gangwani
Sanjay                                           Saket Chouhan
VruddhaYachak/
Western Dance                             Prashanjit Dey
Vidura                                           Mohammad Nawaz Khan
Krutvarma /Western Dance          Akhil Nair
Krupacharya                                 Hardik Soni
Prahari 1                                       Nirav Popat
Prahari 2 /Fashion Show              Himadri Vyas
Vyasa/Fashion Show                   Ivan MD Khan
Chorus 1/Western Dance/
Fashion Show                              Parth Nair
Chorus 2                                      Sanket Chouhan
Garba Dance                               Nupur Thaker, Shweta Jain

Music Composer
& Vocal                                        Vipul Barot
Music Composer
& Instrument                               Manish Barot
Music Arranger                           Birju Kanthariya
Music Operator                           Sanket Chouhan / Riken Chokshi
Light Design                               Rishikesh Karanjgaokar
Make-up                                     Gaurav Chaturvedi

Playwright                                  Dharmvir Bharati
Director                                      Chavan Pramod R.

Contacts
Dr. Chavan Pramod R.
Director, Department of Dramatics
Faculty of Performing Arts
The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda
Opp. Sursagar, Nyay-Mandir, Gujarat
Vadodara- 390001
M: +91 9898822624
E: chavan_pramoduma@yahoo.co.in
chavan.pramod-dramatics@msubaroda.ac.in

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Manohar Khushalani

Manohar Khushalani

Prof. Manohar Khushalani is a former Visiting Faculty at Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi. The courses he taught were: Animation & Graphics, Non-Linear Editing for Film and Radio and Theatre Appreciation.  He has won a total of nine Excellence in Teaching awards for all the courses he has taught at IIITD Earlier he retired from Government of India as Director Environment Management, Central Water Commission and held many senior positions in the Government Based on a Belief that Culture and Environment are the two keys to global sustainability , Manohar Khushalani has launched two portals: A Portal on Environment and Water called One Vorld at url: www.onevorld.org and two Ezines on Culture called Stage Buzz at url: www.stagebuzz.in He has taught extensively in varied subjects such as Dam Safety, Instrumentation, CAD, IT, Animation, Theatre, Newspaper Editing. He has conducted Courses on Environment Management, Water Shed Development, Team Building and Personality Development. He was an Expert Member of Prasar Bharti’s Committee for Grading & Short listing Films for Telecast on all channels of Doordarshan.  He is a Radio Anchor for All India Radio and has moderated several programs for the Rajdhani Channel He is a well-known Theatre Actor/Director and Critic, has been involved in theatre since 1977. He has worked as an actor in over 50 plays with almost every leading director/Actor in the Country including Badal Sircar, Feisal Alkazi, Amal Allana, M.K. Raina, Anuradha Kapoor, Maya Rao, Manohar Singh, Prasanna, Rati Bartholomew and Sushmita Mukherji. He has been active in the social sector as a street theatre activist. As a member of Workshop Theatre, Theatre Union and Prayog, Khushalani has participated in street plays taking up major social issues such as dowry, bride burning, Sati, banned medicinal drugs and communalism. Dario Fo’s Accidental Death of an Anarchist and Can’t Pay Won’t Pay, both directed by him, received rave notices from critics and audiences alike. Other plays directed by him include Badal Sircar’s, Sagina Mahato and Boris Vian’s Empire Builders for Ruchika Theatre Group. Khushalani has also acted in a few films such as Sudhir Mishra's Hazaron Khwaishen Aisi , Shoojit Sircar’s Madras Café and Pradeep Krishan's Annie Gives Those Ones. He is an Animator & Graphics Designer and has directed a number of documentaries. He also held a number of Honorary positions and was President of North India Films Association, He was the Chairman of  Jury for UGC CEC Educational Films Competition and has been on their Preview Committee since last many years. He was on the preview committee of Door Darshan Channel 3, was a visiting Professor at National School of Drama, New Delhi, and Film & Television Institute of India, Pune, AJKMCRR, Jamia Milia Islamia and Professor in Media at FICT, Delhi  He has judged a large number of Drama Competitions and conducted a number of Theatre / Management Games Workshops with Institutions such as AIIMS, NTPC, CWPRS, NWA, Karve Nari Prakshishan Sansthan, FICT, IIT, MAMC, Gargi College, KNC, Tagore International School and Vivekananda School. He is a Theatre Critic for IIC Diary, has also been a Columnist with Midday and Pioneer Daily and wrote Column's Called Culture Cocktail and Footlights Respectively. He was also the Guest Editor for an issue on Folk Theatre of ICCR Journal Horizons. He has written for Times of Indian, Hindustan Times, Blitz, Hard News, Hindu Business Line, Theatre India & Art Times. He has designed dams and hydraulic structures for the Government. He is a programmer and has developed Engineering design software in Fortran. He is a co-author of Irrigation Practice & Design (Vol 1 to5 - 1500 pages) published by Oxford & IBH and sponsored by National Book Trust. He has been a Director, Environment and Sociology, at the National Water Academy, Khadakwasla and Director, Environment Management Directorate, Central Water Commission and Member Secretary, National Environmental Monitoring Committee for River Valley Projects. He was also Director of Instrumentation Directorate in the Dam Safety Organisation. He was Chief General Manager and Head of Water Resources at Scott Wilson and is an accredited consultant with numerous other organizations He is a Delhi Public School, BITS Pilani, IIT Delhi and FTI Pune Alumini. He was also the President of BITS Pilani Alumni Association, Pune.

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