SEASON 1
Sankalp, the theatre society of Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad (MICA), celebrated its first edition of Khula Aasmaan, 2011-13 – its open-air theatre performances. The name ‘Khula Aasmaan’ signifies the freedom with which the students explore their creativity and find a platform for expressing the same.
The two nights, September 6 and 7, were full of action as MICAns brought to their fellow comrades, eight action packed plays! Each dialogue, emotion and movement was enjoyed to the fullest. Bouts of laughter, deep sighs and standing ovations marked the performances on the stage of Mani Iyer Auditorium.
The first ‘‘Mandi’’, scripted and Directed by Tanya Marwah was a play about a brothel owner in Lucknow and the way her maternal instincts led her towards protecting a mute girl from the flesh market business, i.e. Mandi and the consequences she faced as a result of this.
This was followed by another sensitive play, ‘‘Mashaal’’, which was the story of Bundelkhand. Bundelkhand had played a vital role in India’s 1st war of independence but now lacks both strength & motivation to fight for itself. Struggling with basic problems of food, water, electricity, the story captures the recent scenario in Bundelkhand where a bunch of youth gathered to support Anna Hazare’s protest for Lokpal Bill are also encouraged to come together to be the voice & face of this un-privileged region. The story, dialogues and direction were by Gaurav Nigam.
An artistically executed musical performance “Tears of Ecstasy”, directed by Pallavi Shetty, Era Bali and Akshay Aggarwal enthralled the audiences with intricate sequences and formations. As a contemporary dance theme production put up by the students of MICA, it captured the story of an ordinary human being transformed into a creative genius. It brought out her journey of being held together by certain elements like truth, determination, faith, sacrifice, passion, vision and determination yet torn apart by distractions. It showed the struggle she (the artist) went through in life to create her final master piece. On creation of that master piece, tears of ecstasy rolled down the eyes of this transformed genius that embraced her creation!
It was dedicated to each and every individual because there does exist, an artistic genius in every one of us!
The last performance for the day was “You Only Live Twice”, directed by Divyanshu Bhadoria and Sania Narulkar. The play ended with an unexpected twist! Divyanshu Bhadoria chooses to express the meaning of the play through the following lines:
To those who are celebrated, and to those who are misunderstood,
To the confines of endurance, and to the infinity of hope,
To a life drenched in sorrow, and a death soaked in peace,
You Only Live Twice…
Cheers
The second night of Khula Aasmaan began with “Wait Until Dark”, directed by Apurva Vashisht. It was a suspense thriller, based on a story by Frederick Knott. It was a story of a blind woman and three conmen and how they try to get past her to get a doll full of heroine that happens to be in her possession. It has also been made into a blockbuster Hollywood movie starring Audrey Hepburn and Alen Arkin.
This was followed by “Apocalypse”, a play written and directed by Avinash Verma. This play was about two guys sharing an apartment in the maximum city, i.e. Mumbai. They were as different as chalk and cheese. One was a young software engineer and the other an aspiring writer who was probably as fascinated with the Apocalypse as Ronald Emmerich. The play captured a slice of their lives while they talked about their insecurities and hopes.
“Pictures”, an adaptation of the play by Horace Holley of the same name, was a unique surprise, in the form of Theatre of the Absurd, a theatrical style born as an existential counter movement to traditional art and theatre. This style of theatre relies heavily on various traditional non-theatrical elements such as mime, counter-emotions and distraction. This play aimed to draw attention to the medium itself and the nature of theatre as a construct, separate from reality or any attempt to depict ” reality”. It was an attempt to debate and discuss the ultimate nature of art and its implications and boundaries. Performed by Siddharth Sethumadhavan, Satya N and Rahul Sharma, it was narrated by Anupam Dhar.
The culmination on the first edition of Khula Aasmaan was marked by “Ahuti”, written and directed by Dileep Tiwari. Set in the backdrop of independence struggle, Ahuti talked of religious harmony. The script travelled from the point of expression of hatred based on personal loss, to the point of revelation on learning about the sacrifice made by the person of the hated community. Panditji is a person who hates Muslims because of his personal loss. He is made to work with a Muslim in a dacoity. The final scene saw heart wrenching performance by Ibrahim, who knows that he is under suspicion. The final moments saw a few members from audience moved to tears. The conclusion of the play, which was a few lines written by Dileep Tiwari combined with lines of poet Iqbal, drove home the point of religious unity. Audience captivation and approval could easily be judged by the standing ovation that the play received.
All in all, Khula Aasmaan was a resounding success, with all the MICAns eager for the next edition.
