Six-day Marathi theatre fest begins today

PUNE: Get set for the annual Marathi experimental theatre bonanza. Starting January 24, the six-day festival Sudarshan Rangamahotsav will be held at the Sudarshan hall in Shaniwar Peth.
Organised by city-based Maharashtra Cultural Centre (MCC), the fest will showcase 10 Marathi plays from Pune, Mumbai, Nagpur, Jalgaon and Thane, promising to entertain theatre aficionados.
Local big daddy, MCC, will present three of its productions: Savlya' (shadows), Never Mind' and White Lily and Night Rider'. The festival will open with Savlya' penned by the late Chetan Datar and directed by Pradeep Vaidya.
Mumbai-based group Aavishkar will present Aatmakatha', which has been written by Mahesh Elkunchwar and directed by Girish Patke. Other Mumbai groups like Stage Players and Lalit Mumbai will present Miss Calls' and Micky Mouse restaurant' respectively, latter being the winner of the MCC Dheergaanka contest, held in December, 2008.
Two state-level winners of one-act plays Taaee' from Nagpur and Na Na Bhole, 12, Shanipeth' from Jalgaon, will also be performed alongside Institute of Pavtalogy' prepared by the city-based BM College of Commerce and Prem Mahnoo Yaalaa Hava Tar' by the Kalyan group, Mitee-4.
Rasika Joshi, who along with Milind Phatak wrote, directed and acted in the 100-minute play White Lily and Night Rider', is excited about their production. "The fact that we were involved in this play right from ideation stage, to script writing, acting and directing, we feel like two cooks who are tasting their own dish," says she.
The play, according to Rasika is a contemporary one, which deals with the lives of a man and woman, who are both in their forties. It is a black comedy which features two individuals who start chatting anonymously over the internet and finally meet each other. It is here that the problems begin as they grapple with their past baggage and try very very hard to start a meaningful relationship.
"We have tried to highlight our modern-day life style where many people are comfortable communicating with each other over the internet and mobile phone, but are at a complete loss in a face-to-face meeting," Rasika says.
Talking about Savlya', director Chetan Datar says that this play is a tribute to the late director. Pradeep calls the play a serious one dealing with the life of three young Maharashtrian women from a lower-middle class family who are coming to terms with their lives after the suicidal death of their mother and the subsequent desertion by their father.
It is a story of how the women try so hard to change their lives, but seem to get sucked deeper into their own miseries with every attempt. "The original play was a two-act play, but I have condensed it into a 90-minute play with fewer characters. It is a typical Chetan Datar play with a strong, realistic script. I have tried to retain all the basic elements," says Pradeep.