The Play & Director’s Note
This play has a storyline that could have been based on tomorrow morning's newspaper headlines. Using the wonderful theatrical device of three actors playing the central character of Kartik, we are able to enter his fractured world. We simultaneously see him as he was before the accident that changed his life; we also see him as he is immediately after the accident, recovering in hospital, at home and in school; as well as when he is an adult. The play brings together the present, past and uture in a seamless whole. It has been a fascinating journey with the actors and my own team. We have interviewed teenagers, their parents and teachers; watched their interactions in school, home and on the metro; created improvisations; spent hours mastering the intricate choreography; enjoyed the shopping for clothes that capture today's Delhi; and worked hard at creating over 36 characters,
played by just 14 actors!

The Director
Educationist, theatre director and activist, Feisal Alkazi lives and works in New Delhi. Over the past forty years he has carved his own niche with his group, Ruchika. He has directed over 200 plays with adults in Hindi, English and Urdu. Most recently, two plays, Noor and A Quiet Desire, written by him have been produced. In addition, he has directed over 100 productions for schools all over India. Ruchika also runs a training program in theatre for children since 1997. Feisal has written 24 books as well and is a counsellor with Sanjivani. In the field of disability, he has directed 30 films and produced several plays.

The Group
The Theatre-in-Education Company (Sanskaar Rang Toli) of the National School of Drama was established on October 16, 1989, and is one of the important educational resource centres in the  country. The TIE Co. consists of a group of actor-teachers working-with and performing-for children. The major focus of the company is to perform creative, curriculum based, and participatory plays in school, designed and prepared specially for children of different age groups. The company holds a one month long intensive Summer Theatre Workshop for Children organized in May-June every year. TIE Co. has participated in many international theatre festivals and symposia in countries including Poland, China, Philippines and Japan. Jashn-e-Bachpan and Bal Sangam are biannual festivals
organised by the company where it invites plays by and for the children from different parts of the country.

Cast & Credits
Sutradhar Kartik Manoj Kumar
Old Kartik, Gym Teacher, Shashank Manish Saini
New Kartik Mridul Anand
Mummy Aparna Kapoor
Papa, Changezi, Bhaiji Mahesh Kumar
Raghav Manoj Sharma
Himanshu, New Dancer Tasabber Ali
Nancy Jyoti Bala
Doctor Fatima, Rubina, Announcer Jyotsana
Inspector, Nurse1 Nidhi S Sasthri
Anshika, Nurse2, Vicky Soumita Kundu
Anthony, Shiny Piyush Verma
Drug Peddler, Teacher Kaleem Zafar

All Street Voices & Dancers Jyotsana , Aparna Kapoor, Soumita Kundu, Piyush Verma,

Mahesh Kumar, Manoj Sharma, Nidhi S Sasthri

Choreographer Vishwa Kant Singha
Assisted by Sandeep Kashyap
Costume Design Shaik Sheeba
Assisted by Jyotsana
Set, Poster & Brochure Design Jagan Shah
Assisted by Kamal Kumar
Light Design Mona Chawla
Assisted by Joginder Singh, Dhirender Kumar
Light Design Mona Chawla
Assisted by Joginder Singh, Dhirender Kumar
Music Operation Sheel/Vikram Jeet Singh
Stage Manager & Property Nidhi S. Sasthri
Tailor Saroj Silswal, Akhtar Ali
Sound S. Manoharn, Pratap Singh, Subhanjan
Photography & Videography Deepak Kumar
Assistant TIE Co. B.S Rawat
Administration Staff Pirat Singh Negi, Darmiyan Singh, Shailender Kumar,

Neha Bhatt

Attendant Md. Rashid, Pawan Kumar
Chief of TIE Co. Abdul Latif Khatana
Asst. Director Mona Chawla
Translation & Adaptation Kiran Deep Sharma
Design & Direction Feisal Alkazi

The Play
Dr Shridhar is enjoying a successful, happy and rich lifestyle with his beautiful wife Mita and teenage son Akshay. He wants to build a multi-utility hospital as a future provision for Akshay. He eyes a central piece of land to build his dream hospital. But the land is reserved as children’s playground. He is prepared to use his political influence and monetary powers to acquire the land. And then enters Sada (Sadashiv) in Dr Shridhar’s life. Sada, a schizophrenic patient, was jailed for killing his own wife and son, in his schizophrenic state. Throughout the treatment period, Sada keeps on asking intriguing questions, and throws some challenging situations at Dr Shridhar and Mita. The play finishes on an interesting and unexpected turn.

The Director
Napolian Almeida was born in Vasai, Maharashtra, India in Christian family. Napolian’s father was a teacher in a Marathi medium school. His father always encouraged the children to read books. Napolian developed interest in reading books about drama and plays. He started performing at a very young age. The challenges and difficulties faced during the early years motivated Napolian to study more about acting and acquire formal training from workshops. Napolian’s theatre career then progressed by active participation in dramas for organizations like Nutan
Mandal, Jeevan Darshan, Jeevan Jyoti, St Xavier’s Club and currently in Australia with Marathi Association Sydney Incorporated. Though an engineer by profession, Napolian continued to follow his passion in acting and direction. He
has acted and directed many plays including one-act plays and has won awards.

The Playwright
Abhiram Bhadkamkar is an alumnus of National School of Drama. His acting in films has won him accolades. Abhiram has explored many possibilities of expression in various art forms, and created a niche for himself as a multidimensional artist. Abhiram is adroitly active in feature films, plays and literature. He has been successful in making a mark on the front of writing plays, novels and screen plays; conceiving films as a director; and expressing as an actor. His plays are performed in Hindi, Kannad and Guajarati in addition to Marathi theatre. His collection of stories and novels are published by publishers/ publications of repute. Some of his popular plays / production are Hasat Khelat, Pahuna, Jyacha Tyacha Prashna (Sawal Apna Apna), Ladi Najaria, Dehbhan, and Sukhanshi Bhandto Amhi.

The Group
The team of Sukhanshi Bhandato Amhi are members of the Marathi Association Sydney Incorporation (MASI). MASI is a non-profit community organisation established more than 27 years ago. MASI promotes Marathi language, culture and customs through Marathi Akashwani Sydney, Marathi school, and cultural events and drama activities. Theatre is one of the iconic interests of Marathi community. Members of Sukhanshi Bhandato Amhi are volunteers and come from various professions. Despite being busy with their professional career, they are passionate about Performing Arts and theatre activities. This passion and interest brings them together and keeps them energised and motivated even through the initial settlement challenges. Members of MASI have staged a drama activity almost every year. Few names to mention here are Ghashiram Kotwal, Mala Kahi Sangayachay, Durga Ban Gayi Gauri, etc.

Cast & Credits

Mrs Pradhan Apoorva Athawale
Dr Shridhar Napolian Almeida
Kamalabai and Suman Nilima Berde
Sadashiv Chinmay Abhyankar
Mita Manasi Gore
Akshay Mandar Pathak
Lights Makarand Bildikar
Background Music Nitin Kundap
Stage Ahirwad Athawale, Ganesh Gavde, Charudatta Bhadkamkar
Costumes Sanjyot Samudra, Olivia Almeida
Make-up Sanjyot Dongre
Playwright Abhiram Bhadkamkar
Direction Napolian Almeida

[ratings]
The Play
Macbeth is a play about evil that emanates from the dark power whose agents are the three weird sisters. The present interpretation does not visualize Macbeth externally as a historical record; but rather as a re- creation of the event as mirrored in the minds of the weird sisters. It is seen as a phenomenon transcending time and space: the incantations and rituals of the dark aspect of the Tantric cult used throughout the presentation represent this pervasive evil embodied in Shakespeare’s play. Evil is here invoked by, and its outcome experienced by, the three weird sisters. To concentrate on this emergence of evil, the original text has been edited so as to focus on the two central victims of the historical event who succumb to this evil due to their lust for power.
The text followed is the only Bengali translation which is faithful both to the rich poetry and the metric structure of Shakespeare’s original text, and runs in harmony with the Sanskrit incantations used in the production.

Director’s Note
In Hinduism, goddess Kali has two different powers; one positive and the other negative. Generally we worship the positive power. But some people worship the negative power to practice hypnotism, basikaran, maron etc. They start wearing all sorts of things in their hands, waist, neck etc. In our production three women worship the negative power of Goddess Kali. They start worshiping the negative power. As a result they turn into witches. We believe that witches exist only in the mind. Therefore in our production all the characters like Macbeth, Banquo, Lady Macbeth etc. continuously switch between witches and the original character. In this production three actresses perform all the characters.

Director
Santanu Das took the Diploma in Dramatics from National School of Drama, New Delhi. Presently he is working at Rabindra Bharati University as Assistant Professor in the Department of Drama. He started his career as director & designer in 1990 with the play Atha Dar Pal Katha. He has directed Power of Darkness, Ebom Indrajit, Romeo Jeannette, Raisin in the Sun, Manushi, Oedipus Turranus, Ghare Baire, and many more. In 2015 he jointly directed a production named ‘Crossing’ with Aude Marehsal, at Mondvil, France. He has presented papers at Rhodes University, South Africa & Elsinore Conference 2016, at Helsingor, Denmark. Recently his production Macbeth Mirror was invited to the Summer Shakespeare Festival, Ostrava, Czech Republic, and 21 st Gdansk International Shakespeare Festival, Gdansk, Poland.

Translator
Prof. Dutt was awarded D.Lit. in Drama for his pioneering multi-disciplinary work on the extra-rational roots of the Tragic Experience. He has written and directed children’s plays, translated and produced Shakespeare in Bengali, and also directed Tagore plays as well as improvised play-texts. In the international arena, he has collaborated with Gunter Grass, Hansgunther Heyme and Peter von Becker. He has also been invited to Italy and Poland, to deliver lectures.

The Group

Kalyani Kalamandalam was established in 1995 and in the last twenty-two years the group has produced fourteen major productions. Some of its previous productions are Ebong Indrajit, Romeo Jeannette, Manushi, Oedipus Turranus, Ghare Baire, Gollachut and Shakespeare’s Macbeth as ‘Macbeth Mirror’ directed by Sri Santanu Das. It has performed in countries like France, Poland, Czech Republic, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Cast & Credits
Actors Monalisa Chatterjee, Ananya Das, Jayeeta Das
Drums Chakra Pani Dev, Shovan Chakraborty, Prasenjit Halder
Set & Costume Santanu Das
Asst. Set Dipankar Halder
Asst. Costume Shipra Dey
Lettering Neelavo Chottpadhyay
Choreographer Deb Kumar Paul
Music Subhadeep Guha
Lights Arnab Kumar Ray
Properties Prasenjit Halder & Jayeeta Das
Subtitle Controller Anirban De
Production Manager Mahabub Biswas / Haradhan Ankureh
Playwright William Shakespeare
Translator Dattatreya Dutt
Design & Direction Santanu Das

The Play
Shri Debabrata Biswas was a popular Rabindra Sangeet singer of Bengal. The artist’s involvement with, and severance from, Gananatya Sangha, his renunciation of the communist party, his differences with the music board of Biswabharati University and his inexorable rise to fame, his opposition against socially renowned institutions, all echoed through the many associations he shared, are some of the notable areas of focus within the many levels of this play. Apart from Debabrata Biswas, the other celebrated characters in the play are Hemanga Biswas, Salil
Chowdhury, Ritwik Ghatak, Shambhu Mitra, Bijon Bhattacharya, Tripti Mitra, Jyoti Basu, Pramod Dasgupta, Suchitra Mitra, Manjushree Chaki Sarkar, Santosh Kumar Ghosh. Ruddhasangeet bears a historic testimony to the lives of Bengalis in East India, to their social, economical and political ups and downs through almost half a century.

Director’s Note
Ruddhasangeet is a chronical, a saga, the flavour of mass music, the fashion – Ruddhasangeet, the spread of popular music, and the liaison with both, the singer and the person Debabrata Biswas, are all represented in this play. A journey of thirty years through the thick and thin of the artist’s life and limelight, are given the freedom of voice, the liberty of stage and a course of light. Providing and extra edge to the play is an original and rare treat involving both verbal and physical expertise.

The Director & Playwright
Bratya Basu, is an accomplished theatre artist, a playwright and director. Basu launched his career as a dramatist and director with the play Ashaleen (1996), described by theatre critics as the first post- modernist Bengali play. His noted plays (playwright, acting, direction) thereafter include Aranyadeb, Shahar Yaar, Virus-M, Winkle-Twinkle, 17th July, Chatushkon and many more. Basu has baggedmany awards and recognitions both in Theatre and Film. Some of them include Hyderabad Bengali Film Festival Award, Ritwik Ghatak Honorary Award, Kalakar Award, Shyamal Sen Memorial Award, Dishari Award, Satyen Mitra Award, Shilpayan Samman, Srestho Natya Nirman etc. Bratya
Basu, is currently Hon’ble Cabinet Minister and in charge of the Ministry of Information Technology & Electronics for the state of West Bengal. He has created his own space in contemporary theatre by moving beyond its existing boundaries. He formed his own theatre group Bratyajon in 2008.

The Group
Bratyajon was established by Bratya Basu in 2008. Apart from theatrical productions, the group is active in many associated fields. An important activity of the group is to organize an annual theatre festival. Bratyajon confers Bishnu Basu Smriti Puroskar in the loving memory of late Bishnu Basu and also organizes Bishnu Basu Memorial Lectures & Nitika Basu Memorial Lectures. Other activities include theatre publications comprising of a theatre journal and participation in the book fair. Bratyajon conducts theatre workshops for children that culminate in a stage performance.

Cast & Credits
Debabrata Biswas Debsankar Halder
Arun Debasish Roy
Bijan Bhattacharya Raktim Datta
Jyoti Basu Bishmoy Roy
Promod Dasgupta Prantik Choudhury
Nirmal Gosh Nabarun Barik
Binay Roy Prasenjit Chattopadhyay
Chorus Ranjan Dutta
Chorus Moloy Bera

Hemanga Biswas Samrat Ghatak
Rittwik Ghatak Krishnendu Dewanji
Salil Chowdhury Subrata Pathak
Subhas Mukhopadhyay Tanmay Sur
Police/Purnendu Chandranath Roy
Khokon Surojit Paul
Shambhu Mitra Billwatosh Chattopadhyay
Police/Angshu Abhijit Ghatak
Srikanta Prabir Basu
Gopesh Pradip Roy
Tushar Arindom Ghosh
Tripti Mitra Rumpi Paul
Lalita Ananya Roy
Manjusree Chaki Antara Bandopadhyay
Suchitra Mitra Sushmita Bandopadhyay
Dancer Sayeri Bhattacharya
Dancer Priyanka Chatterjee
Shila Poulami Basu
Santosh Kumar Ghosh Bratya Basu
Light Design Sudip Sanyal
Light Operation Prithiwis Rana
Set Design Soumik-Piyali
Set Making Tinku-Modon
Music Tapan Sinha
Make-up Alok Debnath
Background Score Swapan Bandopadhyay
Costume Amit Roy
Co-ordination Prithiwis Rana
Playwright & Director Shri Bratya Basu

The Play & Director’s Note
The minister of state of Putna has abused a woman. The governor general says, ‘If it is not settled by law, the throne will be seized’. The king is now in trouble… the minister of state is his best friend, so how can he submit him to 14 slams of whip? He advises the minister to find out someone who will come to the court and state that he is the one who has committed the crime, not the minister, so that the punishment will be delivered to him. Jagadamba hands her lazy husband Ghontakarna to the minister, in exchange of four bags of money. Since then, all thieves, robbers, marked criminals gather in line at Ghontakarna’s yard, with bags of money; they do the evil, and punishment goes to ‘punishment receiving officer’ Ghontakarna. Jagadamba is happy that finally her husband has learnt to earn money…The king is happy for the throne is saved….The minister of state is happy, because there is no problem of law and order…Peace is everywhere…..But, it doesn’t continue as easily….The king suddenly gets accused of
murdering a goat. The intelligent governor general submits him to be hanged. The king says, ‘What to worry for? I have Ghontakarna. Go, Ghontakarna, stand up on the dice and get hanged.’ And then…?

The Director
Kazi Toufikul Islam is a creative, highly trained and confident actor with strong stage instincts and extensive formal training. He has the ability to work successfully as part of a team in cooperation with directors, designers, stage managers, fellow actors, camera operators, and a variety of backstage and production workers. He possesses a proven ability to learn lines and stage techniques quickly, as well as being punctual and prepared when attending rehearsals and auditions. He is committed to achieving the highest standard of performance and is always willing to listen and learn from others.

The Playwright
Manoj Mitra is the winner of Sangeet Natak Academy award for playwriting, Calcutta University Gold Medal and Calcutta University Best Bengali Stage Centenary Award, Asiatic Society’s Gold Medal, Munir Chowdhury Award from Bangladesh Theatre Society, Dinabandhu Puraskar, D Litt., Kalyani award, ABP Ananda Shera Bengali award for Theatre, Filmfare Award for Best Actor, Kalakar Award for legendary performance in cinema and many more.
Manoj Mitra, along with late Parthapratim Chaudhuri and some college friends, founded the theatre group Sundaram. He has till date written over a hundred plays. Many of his plays like Sajano Bagaan, Galpo
Hekim Saheb, Parabas, Ja Nei Bharatey etc. are considered classics of Bengali literature and included in school and college texts. His plays are performed in Bangladesh, America, Australia, England and other  places.

The Group
Established in 1997, Prachyanat is one of the leading theatre groups of Bangladesh. The group has many wings including Prachyanat School of Acting and Design, The Theatre in the Open, Prachyanat for Children, Theatre–lab Production, Prachyanat Research Cell, and the Musical Ensemble. In the last eighteen years Prachyanat has given eleven full-length productions.

Cast & Credits
Narrator Jaganmoy Paul
Clown Md Mizanurrahman

Kinukahar/Ghontakarna Mohammad Monirul Islam
Wazir Rontikbipu
Mouni Baba Mohammad Abu Bakar Siddiki
Lord Shahriarrana Jewel
Jagadamba Chetonarahmanvasha
Udashini Sanjida Anwar
King Shahriar Ferdous
Sentry Mohammad Rafiqul Islam
Police Officer Md Saiful Islam Jarnal
Musician 1/ Neighbour 1/Courtier 1/ Robber 1 Mohammad Fuadmian
Neighbour 2 /Courtier 2/Robber 2 Tanjim Imran Mahmood
Neighbour 3/Courtier 3/Robber 3 Been E Amin
Neighbour 4/Courtier 4/Robber 4 Al Amin Khandoker
Neighbour 5/Courtier 5/Robber 5 Mohammad Asad-Uz-Zaman
Musician 2/Neighbour 6 Parvin Akhter
Neighbour 7/Courtier 6/Robber 6 Md Faysalkabirsadi
Musician 3 Syed Rifatahammad Nobel
Musician 4 Kamrul Islam
Lights Mukhlesurrahman
Props Kamrunnahermony
Set Shafaat Khan
Make-up Mohammad Ali Babul
Playwright Manoj Mitra
Director Kazi Toufikul Islam

The Play
After the assassination of Rao Viram, his wife takes shelter in Aalha Charan’s house, in Kalau village, to save her son, Chunda’s life. Aalha brings up her son. He protects and educates him. When Chunda gets the throne of Mandore, he expresses his gratitude to his patroniser, and presents him a manor (state) and calls it ‘Sansan’, which meant such a state from where the king would not collect any tax. The tradition of presenting ‘Sansan’ to the Charan broke at the time of coronation of Maldev’s son. Maldev declared his youngest son, Chandrasen, the king of Jodhpur. After Maldev’s death his two elder sons Ram and Udai Singh began to fight with Rao Chandrasen. Rao Chandrasen defeats them but later they dethrone him with the help of Mughal King Akbar. Rao Chandrasen fights for the freedom of his country against Emperor Akbar. In this struggle he gets full support of Charan poets.
After the death of Rao Chandrasen, his elder brother Udai Singh, after gratifying Akbar with his services, becomes the ruler of Jodhpur. To please the emperor he tries to obliterate Chandrasen’s name from history. The Charan poets oppose this act of his and justify the freedom fight by Chandrasen. Infuriated king Udai Singh confiscates their Sansan. When Charans protest, he issues forth an order to remove them from Marwar. When Charan poets start leaving Marwar, the Aauwa Thakur, Gopaldas Champawat stops them and provides place in his village to demonstrate against the king. When king Udai Singh comes to know this, he gets infuriated, due to which Gopaldas returns the lease of Pali and returns to Aauwa. Eventually 185 Charan Poets sacrifice their lives against the
king’s injustice by beheading themselves with their own Kataar. This occurrence is registered in history in 1643.

Director’s Note
In this era of post-modernism, it has been realised that we should review our past. Satyagrah is based on a historical incident that occurred in 1643. This incident stirred the then political environment. acrifices by the Charan Poets against the throne will remain a source of inspiration for generations to come. In history, such unprecedented occurrence is viewed again in the freedom struggle for India, during Mahatma Gandhi’s ‘Satyagrah’. It is considered that Mahatma Gandhi was inspired by the demonstration of the Charans.

The Director & Playwright
Arjun Deo Charan is an established Rajasthani poet, playwright and critic. He has written nineteen plays and has participated in many seminars at the national level. Arjun Deo Charan has been awarded by Sahitya Academy, New Delhi; Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi; Rajasthani Bhasha Sahitya and Sanskriti Academy; Rajasthan Sangeet Natak Academy; and Bihari Puruskar of K.K.Birla foundation. Presently he is the officiating Chairman of National School of Drama Society, and Convener of Rajasthani Sahitya Academy Delhi.

The Group
Rammat was founded three decades ago. It has been a movement that provides buoyancy toRajasthani Theatre. It has had the privilege to be a part of festivals of repute like National Theatre Festival (1992) by Sangeet Natak Academy, Delhi; Multi-Language Theatre Festival (1992), Bharat Bhawan, Bhopal; National Theatre Festival (2000) by Kerala Sangeet Natak Akademi, and the 6th and 17th Bharat Rang Mahotsav (2004), NSD, New Delhi.

Cast & Credits
Aalha & Udai Singh Deepak Bhatnagar
Rao Chunda Rajesh Vyas
Gopaldas Champawat Ashish Charan

Govind Bogsa Mahesh Mathur
Chaandan Khidhiya & Akha Barath Magh Singh
Rao Chandersen & Charan Poet Bhana Rajesh Vyas
Pardhan Ravindra Singh
Viram’s wife Madhu Kumari
Rao Jodha Ashish Cgaran
Charan Poet Kesa Rahul Bora
Bind Krishna Tak
Charwaha Krishna Tak, Mohit
Sainik/Sewak/Adivasi Magh Singh
Raj Kapil
Krishna Tak
Love Chaudhary
Saurabh Tanwar
Ashish Gautam
Mahendra Rawal
Mohit Baniya
Mahendra Singh
Dheeraj

Vocals Prof. Rajendra Vaishnav
Lights Mohammad Shafi
Set Magh Singh, Saurabh Tanwar
Playwright & Director Dr. Arjun Deo Charan

The Play
Chekhov ki Duniya is a collection of six short stories by Chekhov. Cheenk: The story is filled with irony. It includes “The Sneezer” who cannot apologize enough to a blustering general for splattering a sneeze on his head at the opera. Surgery: The story of a man with a toothache faced with what looks like medieval instruments of
torture and an inexperienced dental assistant. Shikari shows a man-about-town using a husband as the conduit for his attempted seduction ofthe man’s wife, Irena. Besahara Aurat: It features a wild woman with a nervous disorder who tries to extort money from a banker. Dooba Hua Aadmi: It is the story of a man who earns by ‘drowning’.
The Gift: A tale of a very concerned and dedicated father who thrusts his shy, 19-year old son into manhood.

Director’s Note
This collection of stories from Chekhov touches every major human emotion. I wanted this width in emotional panorama for this production. I wanted this play to be an emotional journey for the audience. So while I have used music and lighting to make the emotional experience come alive I ave kept the stage bereft of any major set that may distract. The characterization is so strong that  as a Director my job really was to make the actor understand the character, the circumstances and the emotional state rather than tell them what to do. This gives tremendous freedom to the actor and an immense satisfaction to me to see the play unravel. The actor and I begin to think on the same wavelength as the play progresses. This allows for experimentation, discussion and innovation, making the entire process and the final product truly delightful to the actors, me and hopefully for the audience.

The Director & Adaptor

Ranjit Kapoor joined the National school of Drama, where he specialized in Direction, winning the Best Director Award when he qualified for his diploma in 1976. Ranjit Kapoor is well known also as a translator and adaptor of plays, and an actor and a writer of screenplays. He has directed a number of television serials, written dialogues for popular films such as Jane Bhi Do Yaron, Mohan Joshi Haazir Hon, Woh Saat Din, and Bandit Queen, as well as screenplays for Ek Ruka Hua Faisla, Khamosh, Lajja, The Legend of Bhagat Singh, Mangal Pandey, Halla Bol and other films. He has written songs and composed music for several films and directed feature films viz.
Chintu ji starring Rishi Kapoor, and Jai Ho Democracy. He is a recipient of the Sahitya Kala Parishad Samman of Delhi, Shikhar Samman, the Sansui Award, and Sangeet Natak Akademi Award.

The Group
The first production of The Entertainers, New Delhi was Lomar Vesh directed by Shailendra Goel. Ek Ghoda Chhey Sawaar, Court Martial, Kaua Chala Hans Ki Chaal, Mera Dost Bhootnath, Ek Sansadiya Samiti Ki Utthak Baithak, Afvaah and Chekhov ki Duniya are some of its major productions. The group has performed extensively for the Sangeet Natak Akademi, NSD Annual festivals and World Performing Arts Festival in Lahore. In the year 2007, its play Chekhov Ki Duniya was nominated for five awards at the prestigious Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards.

Cast & Credits
Chheenk
Clerk Ashwin Chadha
Clerk’s Wife Mukta Singh
General Amitabh Srivastava
General’s Wife Tabbasum
Surgery
Padri Shailendra Jain
Dr.’s Assistant Brij Bhushan Shukla
Shikari
Peter Ashwin Chadha
Husband Amitabh Srivastava
Wife Mukta Singh
Besahara Aurat
Bank Manager Amitabh Srivastava
Assistant Wamiq Abbasi
Besahara Aurat Poonam Girdhani
Dooba Hua Aadmi
Writer Sunil Upadhyay
Aadmi Wamiq Abbasi
Sipahi Shailendra Jain
The Gift
Father Amitabh Srivastava
Son Sunil Upadhyay
Prostitute Mukta Singh
Chekhov (in all stories) Sunil Upadhyay
Lights Raghav Prakash
Costume Anila Singh
Music Operator Daniyaal Abbasi
Music Design Ranjit Kapoor
Playwright Neil Simon
Adaption & Direction Ranjit Kapoor

The Play
Journey to the Mountain Beyond is based on a Japanese folklore, dramatized by Gabriel Cousin and opened in Paris in 1965. The play talks about the idiosyncrasies of the living conditions, as they still exist, in the so called under-developed countries, and the theme of hunger is introduced as a disparity to the a la mode scenario confronting mankind. This play was reckoned rather as a kind of a dramatic narrative. The self-destruction of O Rin in the play is shown as an exemplary idealism; refusing to accept degradation, but retaining control of her fate, and dying by a deliberate act of will.

Director’s Note
Like always, the whole process started with four-month long classes with the first year students. In the beginning it never seemed feasible to come up to this point. The faith and the mutual co-operation is always the uniting cause for us. I found the shades of sensibility that my students have, and how deply they are connected with the cause and in a singularity. The play deals with a grave issue and is a universal appeal making the whole understanding process very challenging and way too imaginative. Pallav Singh, 2 nd year acting student, translated the English text as the rehearsals went on. Rather than a director’s creation it is a collaborative output of the students. It is very overwhelming for me to think about their emotional attachment and efforts towards the play. I would like to express
my gratitude to Prof. Waman Kendre, Director NSD, for always prioritizing the effort of the students, and including this production in the 8 th Theatre Olympics.

The Director
Dinesh Khanna graduated from the National School of Drama in 1986 and is currently an Associate Professor of Acting in NSD, Delhi. He is more of an artist than a director. He lives for his art and considers actors as a prominent tool of his creation. His passion for acting and its deeper understanding helps him to get the best out of them. The habit of voracious reading helps him to find untouched and divine topics to deal with. Staying far away from limelight, Dinesh has mastered various methodologies of acting, which eventually help his actors to flourish aesthetically. His
production on Jim Morrison was highly acclaimed. Most of his creations have travelled across the continents.

The Playwright
Gabriel Cousin, born onJuly7,1918atDroué in theLoir-et-Cher, and died on February 19th,2010inGrenoble, was a Frenchpoet andplaywright.He is the author of some 35 books including about fifteenplays and twenty books of poetry.

The Group
National School of Drama is one of the foremost theatre training institutions in the world, and the only one of its kind in India. Training in the School is highly intensive and is based on a thorough, comprehensive, carefully planned syllabus which covers every aspect of theatre, and in which theory is related to practice. As a part of their training, students are required to produce plays which are then performed before the public.

Cast & Credits
Sutradhar Puneet, Anirban, Utsav
O Rin Devika, Smriti, Ketaki, Rita, Sugandh Madhu
Tappei Saquib, Saurabh, Aamir, Vikash, Navdeep, Bobo

Shino Nikita
Kisakichi Meenu, Masood, Paalin
Fumiko Shilpa, Bhakti
Tamyan Silpi, Ipsita
Children Payal, Silpi
Ikomo Tribhuvan
Ikomos’ Son Meenu
Gramin Bhuneshwar, Tribhuvan, Payal, Silpi, Meenu, Bhakti
Set & Costume Design Rajesh Bahl
Light Guidance Govind Yadav
Light Design Anirban & Nikita
Sound Design Masood & Paalin
Make-up Smriti & Sugandh
Brochure/Poster Tribhuvan, Nikita, Menu, Anirban & Bhakti
Costumes Assistance Saurabh, Ketaki & Sugandh
Set Assistance Navdeep, Bhuneshwar, Bobo, Ipsita, Madhu Meenu, Payal, Utsav
Floor Manager Vikash, Nikita
Stage Manager Saquib
Song Puneet, Rita, Devika, Utsav & Silpi
Playwright Gabriel Cousin
English Translation Gretchen R. Besser
Hindi Translation Pallav Singh
Direction Dinesh Khanna

The Play
A man and a woman meet in a waiting room of a deserted railway station. Is it real?

Director’s note
The relationships between human beings always push me to explore them. They excite me to go beyond what we see at the surface level. Human minds are fascinating and at the same time complicated too. The way we act sometimes, probably not just by a single command of mind but a rather nascent desire of our mind. What we see and what we perceive are different. What we carry and hat we want are different too. In reality, our minds are bounded by a web of socio-cultural norms which sometimes create incompleteness inside us. How to come out from it? Fantasising is a very common phenomenon to fulfil our incompleteness.
How does it feel to fantasise someone with whom we live 24 X 7, in a different way?

The Director
Born in Kolkata, Souti Chakraborty started theatre in 1984. He was associated with the Grips theatre in Kolkata for 6 years. He graduated from National School of Drama in the year 2001 with specialization in Design and Direction. He has worked in National School of Drama Repertory Company for 7 years as a Designer, Director and Actor. He has worked with almost all the renowned theatre directors of India. As a director, he has done Chanakya Vishnugupta for
NSD’s Repertory Company, and Look Back in Anger. As an actor, he has done almost 1000 performances across India. As a light designer he has designed more than 70 productions. He represented India in Young Theatre-Workers’ Workshop in Berlin, Germany. For the last 5 years, along with other theatre activities, he is also teaching at NSD, various universities and theatre institutes across India.

Cast & Credits
On Stage : Teekam Joshi, Sonia Mahajan
Music : Rajesh Singh
Video Creation : Sourav Poddar
Concept, Design & Direction : Souti Chakraborty

The Play
Three men wake up in the morning and slowly head in one direction – towards the kettle – the magic key for the new day. They press the button and wait, cups in their hands. But the world is unpredictable, and nothing can be taken for granted. Just when the tea is about to be poured, all phones and gadgets start to ring at once. Then a huge cockroach jumps out of the kettle. Then it turns out that there was no water in the kettle to start with, and a trip from the bathroom can be quite complicated if one follows the GPS… Once the water’s in the kettle, men start to boil instead of the kettle; pipes burst, flat fills up with smoke, mosquitos attack… And the kettle seems to be dead. But these gentlemen want to have tea, and they will have it! In the pursuit of their modest desire, the heroes of the play gradually destroy their apartment, and finally discover that the kettle was unplugged!
Happy end follows and everybody is welcome to the tea party.

DAVAI’s Note
The show was written and directed through the collective work of DAVAI group. Our genre is physical theatre, or non-verbal comedy. In our shows, it is important for us to tell a simple story -like this one.Three lonely men, each one with his bizarre character, wake up in the morning and want to have a cup of tea, and they have to go through an entire odyssey to get it. Using such a minimal plot helps our concentration during the show’s creation, and provides a steady base for the flight of our imagination. The atmosphere of the show is reminiscence of our Soviet childhood.Three of us were born in the former USSR and moved to Israel when we were teenagers. Throughout these years, we have preserved a sense  of belonging to another culture, and we still feel "aliens" in our country of residence. In this show we invite the audience to join our "alien" capsule, get carried away in our daydreams and laugh together with us at the absurdity of our life.

DAVAI
As a group, we have written and directed Under Construction, That Round Thing (a show for the entire family), and Mama (an outdoor show). As individuals, we have directed shows for adults: The Benefit For Don Vitorio, Baby Faust, One Thing Show; shows for children: Red Riding Hood, Apchee, Smartphone Bros., Old Hag With A Bag; street shows: The Lost Wheels Of Time, Everything Show; as well as 4 family shows with live orchestral music.

The Group
DAVAI was formed in Tel-Aviv (Israel) in 2013 by Fyodor Makarov, Alexey (Losha) Gavrielov and VitalyAzarin. Our common interest is physical theatre. Background training includes drama, clown, voice, photography, philosophy, cinematography, circus and music. The company is based in Tel-Aviv, Israel. DAVAI is an independent theatre group, supported by the Israeli Ministry of Culture (in regard to new productions) and by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign affairs (in regard to international travels).

Cast & Credits
Set Design : Losha Gavrielov
Costumes : Yasmin Wollek
Sound Design : Losha Gavrielov
Original music : Daniel Sinaisky
Technical Director : Iliya Gerchikov

Producer : Alina Feldman
Written, Directed and Performed by DAVAI i.e. Vitaly Azarin, Losha Gavrielov, Fyodor Makarov