Spotlight on theatre music at NSD’s annual fest

Billed as the largest festival of theatre in Asia, 12th edition of the Bharat Rang Mahotsav will present 87 plays in eight locations across the capital and in Bhopal, NSD chairperson Amal Allana told the media Saturday.
The festival will begin with a series on ‘music in theatre’ directed by Bansi Kaul at the Kamani Auditorium.
Some of the important plays to be staged at the festival include “The Caine Mutiny Court Martial” directed by Naseeruddin Shah, “Hamlet, the Clown Prince” by Rajat Kapoor, Rajnaitik Hatya (based on “Crime Passionel”) directed by Saoli Mitra, an adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s play “When the Dead Awaken” by Ratan Thiyam and the first ever play in the Thangkul Naga dialect from northeastern India, “Ashang Eina Aton”.
“The National School of Drama is dedicated to training and this festival is an extension of the training process. This time, the festival will encourage young and experimental theatre and new formats of expression to see where the country’s theatre movement is heading and explore the new boundaries that can be crossed. The idea is to provide a platform for a vibrant future of Indian contemporary theatre,” Allana said.
Thirteen countries - China, Japan, Korea, Switzerland, Germany, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, France, UK and Italy - will take part in the festival, some of them for the first time, the NSD chairperson said.
The highlights of the festival will be two special sessions - a series of nine expositions exploring the impact and legacy of music in Indian theatre titled “Natyanaad” and “Natya Manthan”, a two-day round-table Jan 7-8 to debate on issues like censorship in theatre, theatre portals, archives and the relationship between theatre, medicine and science.
Altogether 450 plays were submitted to the NSD for selection to the festiv