Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 23: Organized by Unison Theatre Group, a five-day theater festival opened with Balwant Gargi’s Punjabi play Abhisarika, at the Abhinav Theatre, here today.
Today’s play Abhisarika (Valiant Heroine), presented by Amateur Theatre Group under the direction of Mushtaq Kak, takes up playwright’s favourite theme of the woman passionately desiring the other man to radiate her essence.
The plot revolves around Ranjana, an ambitious woman, who after been deserted by her husband, comes close to a theater director Pradeep, whose wife Malti leaves him along with their daughter. Pradeep feels discarded when Ranjana also befriends a fellow actor Randhir. Ranjana’s desire to love both men at the same time comes as an assertion of her sexuality. Especially when she relates her state with that of Abhisarika, one of the ashta-nayikas (heroine) of Indian poetics, who sets aside her modesty and moves out of her home to seek her lover.
Sapna Soni as Ranjana was able to portray the character of one who unabashedly wants to satisfy her physical as well as psychological needs. Sunaina as Malti, the wife of Pradeep, who in her outburst unveils her aspirations, was impressive in her short but intense performance. Sunil Sharma as Pradeep and Abhay Rajput as Randhir also acted well.
The light design was noteworthy for supporting the emotional import as well as rendering an aesthetic quality to the scenes. The otherwise appropriate background score did at times drown the dialogues by its high pitch.
Set was designed by Mohit Chib, music by Sourav Sharma, costumes by Sapna Soni and lights by Pankaj Sharma.
Tomorrow Vomedh Rangmanch will present Roshan Bhat’s Hindi play Ek Aur Birbal.
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