Daddy’, ‘Purnavtar’ keep audiences hooked at BNA golden jubilee event

Lucknow: The second day of the week-long golden jubilee celebrations at Bhartendu Natya Akademi (BNA) saw a lively mix of theatre, nostalgia and youthful enthusiasm, with two plays drawing strong audience response on Monday.

‘Daddy’, written by Shivangi Nigam and Suryamohan Kulshreshtha and directed by Kulshreshtha, and ‘Purnavtar’, staged by Kshitij Theatre Group from New Delhi, kept viewers engaged with intense performances and layered storytelling.

‘Daddy, inspired by French playwright Florian Zeller’s ‘Le Pere’, centred on an elderly man living with dementia and explored how memory loss reshapes his understanding of the world and his relationships. The play also highlighted the emotional conflict of a daughter trying to balance her personal aspirations with the responsibility of caring for her ailing father.

The second play, ‘Purnavtar’, was based on a Bengali novel by Pramathanath Bishi and was adapted and directed by Bharti Sharma. The experimental play followed the journey of hunter Jara, who unwillingly becomes the cause of Lord Krishna’s death. Haunted by guilt, Jara encounters several characters who reflect different facets of Krishna. As the narrative unfolds, he realises that escape is an illusion and gradually comes to terms with his inner self.