Pune’s all-night drama marathon

It was a night of splendor; a night of theatre, comedy and Urdu poetry. On the eve of Republic Day last weekend, Pune’s theatre lovers were treated to an all-night marathon of theatre. Over 500-plus people gathered at the portals of Bal Gandharva Rangmandir in the early evening hours of January 25, for the all-night theatre festival Natyasattak Rajani.A select bouquet of the best plays of 2017 were staged one after another through the night. Here are some glimpses from the festival... The evening commenced with a Natraj Pujan, performed by special guest Arun Kakade and Madhuri Sahasrabuddhe, a renowned theatre personality. Here are the highlights of the festival.

202 Elina
A production by Theatron Entertainments, it was performed by Shivraj Waichal, Kaumudi Walokar, Suraj Parasnis and Virajas Kulkarni. The mime-act play is known for the many accolades it has won across Maharashtra.
202 Elina had actors bringing in other elements like sound effects besides the physical act. It’s a dance between the characters and sound. “The play is a slapstick comedy just like Tom and Jerry. We have done a lot of somersaults and jumps,” says Virajas Kulkarni.

Maunraag
Maunraag, the first performance, was a play directed by Chandrakant Kulkarni. The play, based on ‘Lalit Katha’ by Mahesh Elkunchwar, was brought to life by veteran actor Sachin Khedekar. The play is a theatrical presentation of two of playwright Mahesh Elkunchwar’s writings, They are his musings about his own life. He dwells upon topics like birth, death and his relatives, trying to seek the meaning of life.
Sukhan
The final performance for the festival, Sukhan, began at 5 am. Compiled and directed by Om Bhutkar, it was a performance (mehfil) enriched by a plethora of compositions from Urdu literature, Hindustani classical music and Sufi music. It included Urdu story telling (Daastaan-goi), recitation of ghazals, nazms and Urdu prose and musical renditions.

Deta Ka Karandak
The Purushottam Karandak-winning one-act play ‘Deta Ka Karandak’, directed by Milind Shintre was quite a hit. The performances by Devendra Gaikwad and Paresh Devlankar were specially lauded. The one-act play in Marathi revolves around two boys from Buldhana district in Amravati. It is the story of Ganesh and his friends, who are passionate about theatre, but have no formal training or guidance.