With play 'Kanyadan', a four-day drama festival kickstarts at Bharat Bhavan in Bhopal by the Artist Welfare Association

A four-day drama festival by the Artist Welfare Association began at Bharat Bhavan on Tuesday.

The first day of the festival staged a play titled Kanyadan. The play was written by Vijay Tendulkar and directed by Rajesh Bhadoriya, the chairman of the association. It was a tribute to the city-based theatre-artiste and actor Chandrahas Tiwari, who passed away recently. So, a two-minute silence was also maintained to pray for his soul to rest in peace. For the theatre lovers: Based on the challenges in the path of social change, the play depicted the conflict between human behaviour and social norms. Shweta Rastogi, a homemaker, said, “The subject of the play is very strong.

I often go to watch plays as I can connect easily with them. The stories are a part of a common man’s life. Even my son is very fond of theatre and many times, he insists that we go watch a play.” Steve Sherwood, a foreign visitor present at the do, remarked, “I am pretty impressed with the city. This is so beautiful and close to nature. Today we went to Upper Lake and while we were returning from there, one of our friends suggested us to watch the play here.” To which, Nina Sherwood, Steve’s wife, added, “We are very fond of Hindi films and we often watch them. Theatre is just like cinema where acting is live in front of the audience. The performances were really amazing and I am touched by them.” The artistes on the stage included Rajesh Bhadoria, Reena Sinha, Pyodhi Bhatnagar, Anand malviya and Varun.