JU celebrates World Theatre Day by staging `Toba Tek Singh’

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 27:  Department of Students Welfare, University of Jammu today celebrated World Theatre Day with the performance of Sadat Hasan Manto’s play ‘Toba Tek Singh’, dramatized by Dr Atamjeet.
Based on Saadat Hasan Manto’s celebrated short story, Toba Tek Singh, which is a poignant saga of partition, the play was performed as a drama with soulful and emotional music, fascinating set, lights and costumes that observed the madness of partition through the eyes of several madmen and laid its bare agony through humour, tragedy and silly antics of the lunatics.
The play was performed by students of Cultural Council, University of Jammu, under the direction of Ifra Kak. The play was brought to life after a thorough training of twenty days. Basant Rath, IGP Traffic J&K, was chief guest on the occasion. Prof Satnam Kour, Dean Students Welfare, presented the welcome address and also informed about the cultural vision of the department.
The story of the play goes like this, few years after the partition of India, the Governments of India and Pakistan come to the realization that, as has happened with the rest of their population, the lunatics in their asylums must also be exchanged. Muslim lunatics in India are to be sent to Pakistan  while Hindu and Sikh lunatics in Pakistan will be sent to India. In an asylum in Lahore, a Sikh lunatic whom everyone calls, “Toba Tek Singh”, refuses to go.
The students who acted in the play,  included Pallvi Kunwer, Avinash Lakhnotra,  Diksha Andotra, Namrata Chib, Ramneet Kour, Manreet Kour, Neha Rana, Rajat Salgotra, Puneet Kaur and Hemant Magotra.  Lights were executed by Ravinder Sharma, set was designed by Sanam Sudan and Music was rendered by Anuroop Pathania.