Sir,
It was 22nd December, 2003 when Dogras rejoiced for its language which was included in the 8th Schedule of Indian Constitution on that day. It was a matter of pride for the Jammu region that a language gets recognition in which lot of efforts were made by the stalwarts of Jammu. As many stalwarts have made it a point to take Dogri language to ultimate heights, Dogri Theatre has earned so much for its language. Hats off to some of the organisations who are practicing dogri theatre since last so many years.
Dogri Sanstha was started in the year 1944 with the mission to create Dogri literature and Bawa Jitto was the first original play written by Prof. R.N. Shastri. Bawa Jitto has been staged more than 100 times within Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir and outside and is still into demand of the folks of Jammu region. This play has also earned its place in the book of records for being the longest living contemporary theatre play of India.
Dogri Theatre undoubtedly played an immense role to take Dogri language to the next level but one should never forget the role of every person who contributed in so many ways. Almost 250 plays have been written in Dogri but very few have been showcased.
Many groups of Jammu have done immensely well for the Dogri language in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir but to sum up all, Natrang has not only taken Dogri language to the peak but also made it a point to do serious and qualitative Dogri theatre. Every single effort counts and it is a matter of pride for all of us that we are living in that century where we have seen people who have created a niche for their language.
Our language is our identity and the reflection of our co-existence and it is our prime duty that we must promote our language through different ways. We are not living in that period where we have nothing, rather modernization has gave us many ways to promote ourselves and we should come forward to reach to that place where people say more about our language firstly than Jammu.
Mohd Yaseen
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