By: Nutan Dabholkar Kalamdani
Saturday August 24th, 2024 – Edison, NJ: The 9th Annual Natya Darpan 2024 concluded, keeping its tradition of having a sold-out show yet again this year. Indian Heritage and Cultural Association of New Jersey (IHCA-NJ) hosted its annual short play festival at the Middlesex County College in Edison (NJ), with an exciting array of short plays carefully chosen by a panel.
The event began sharp at 11:00 am. An audio visual was played prior, wherein Honorable Consul General of India (NY) Mr Binaya Pradhan gave his best wishes to the festival via a video message. This was followed by Founder of IHCA-NJ Dr. Ashok Chaudhary welcoming the guests and the dignitaries present. He also took a moment to thank his executive team and all the sponsors. The opening of the festival was followed by the inaugural lamp lighting ceremony which was performed by the dignitaries. Among those present were Chief Guest Honorable Mrs. Shruti Pandey – Consul (Political & PIC), Edison Councilman Mr. Ajay Patil, Ms. Isha Vyas, Division Head of Folklife and Cultural Heritage; and Middlesex County Commissioner Deputy Director Ms. Shanti Narra. They were felicitated by the executive team members, after which each of the dignitaries spoke about the festival and its growth and success over the years.
This year Natya Darpan showcased 8 mesmerizing plays with varied subjects by local actors and diverse groups from various cities in the USA.
The first play featured in English ‘Beyond the Land of Hattamala’ (English) was directed by Makarand Bhave. Written by Badal Sircar, one of India’s prominent playwrights and English translation by Suchanda Sarkar, it was a tale of two thieves who, trying to escape from their pursuers, jump into a river. They drift and finally find themselves in an incredible land where their socioeconomic beliefs are challenged. A lighthearted play, entertained the audiences and made them think at the same time.
The second play ‘Albie and the Dogs’ (Marathi) directed by Amruta, was about a man on a mission to recover his lost hard disk, which contains ten billion dollars’ worth of bitcoins. To accomplish this, he hires the most advanced AI dogs Doge and Shiba from the largest tech company in the world. The company is confident that the dogs will reunite Albie with his lost hard disk. As the dogs dig through millions of tons of California trash, they encounter the things, people, and ideas that the state has seen, used, and discarded over the years, decades, and centuries. An interesting take on of the current cryptocurrency and modern digital trends.
The next play name ‘The Tiger’ (English) originally written by Murray Schisgal, was directed by Sanjay Shetye. The story was about Vik who is a natively intelligent but slightly unstrung young man in revolt against a system which consigns him to being a mail carrier and to living in a tumble-down basement apartment. In a gesture of defiance, he kidnaps a young woman and drags her to his lair, the object being that she will do as and what he orders – fulfilling the urge for domination that life has hitherto denied him.
The 4th play ‘No Man’s Land’ was originally written by Mojaffor Hossain with stage adaptation by Golan Sarwar Harun. Directed by Golam Sarwar Harun and Gargi Mukherjee, it was about the absurdities of bureaucracy, red tapism and how in conforming to such methods, atrocities are committed, and humanity is compromised in an unforgivable way. The play tells the story of a destitute, injured woman lying helplessly on a rock in the no man’s land between the borders of India and Bangladesh and for whom no one comes to the rescue.
‘Chauthi Cigarette’ (Hindi) was the 5th play written by Yogesh Tripathi and directed by Ameeya Mehta. This was a contemporary thought-provoking play which sheds light on a number of social issues like class divide, or the age-old debate between socialism and capitalism or the unfulfilled human aspirations. Vireshwar Sengupta the protagonist, an established writer, having socialistic views, has struggled financially all his life. On the other hand, his college friend Samarendu Sanyal is an established businessman desperate to gain fame. After years, when they suddenly meet, the play takes an interesting turn. In essence, the title of the play, symbolized the never to be quenched infinite human ambitions.
The 6th play ‘American Bhoot’ (English) written and directed by Dan Swern was based on a true story about an Indian immigrant, mother, survivor of domestic violence, former Wall Street associate, and becoming homeless in Middlesex County. The play shared the woman’s heart wrenching story through her own words. The play is taken verbatim, developed from an 18-hour interview conducted by the author.
‘The Blind’ (English) was the 7th play directed by Anand Rao that narrated the story of a stormy night in the home of David, a blind singer, his daughter Anna, and his wife Helen. The night turns turbulent as the sleepless characters unravel, and in the end, find freedom from their shackles, and wisdom in their circumstances. Authored by the second-best-selling English poet of all time, Lebanese-American poet and author Kahlil Gibran, ‘The Blind’ was a lyrical and poetic masterpiece, rich with metaphors and imagery, throwing open a wide array of possible interpretations. Written sometime in the early 20th century, apparently there is no record of the play ever being produced.
The 8th and final play ‘Sarhad’ (Marathi/Hindi) written by Nikita Thube was directed by Satyajit Deshpande. The story was a tale of friendship of two young boys Jamal and Kishan that transcends the borders of the 2 hostile nations India and Pakistan. This emotional story conveyed the faith the two youngsters Jamal and Kishan put in each other and gave us a message that if given a chance, national borders don’t have to divide.
The plays, each with rich and thought-provoking content, left diverse audiences spell bound as always. We also noticed the sheer passion that was inevitable in the outstanding performances by the local artists, who came from as far as California. We salute each one of these artists, writers, directors, back stage artists and the volunteers who put in tremendous hard work towards the success of the festival.
Dr. Chaudhary said that it was the mark of the incredibly cultured, intelligent and loyal audience that helped the festival continuously grow over the years. This program is made possible because of an audience as receptive and artistic as the actors of Natya Darpan.
Dr. Ashok Chaudhary, a research scientist by profession, has been involved in many nonprofit organizations for the last 30 years and lead many nonprofit organizations. In 2013, he started a nonprofit organization Indian Heritage & Cultural Association-NJ (IHCA-NJ) to promote US based local talent in performing arts and to bring the communities together to discuss and address various social issues such as feminism, mental health, human trafficking, diversity, international war, etc. that affect the South Asian community and has an impact on all other communities, too.
Natya Darpan has been growing, expanding and progressing. Their dedicated team of executive directors, advisors, extremely knowledgeable selection committee and innumerable volunteers make this herculean task seem very easy. The festival has been able to sustain due to grants and guidance every year, from the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners and the Consul General of India in New York along with individual sponsors who also contribute to the festival.
We look forward to next year’s festival as it celebrates its 10th anniversary. Many exciting announcements are expected as the team begins its planning very soon. Stay tuned right here as we bring you the latest developments. For more information, visit its website.
