Present Repertoire
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2024
Nabanna
Direction : Sohini Sengupta & Arghya Dey Sarkar
Synopsis :
Nabanna (New Harvest) – a Bengali cult drama was written by Bijon Bhattacharya and first staged by Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA). The classic play is set against the backdrop of the man-made artificial Bengal famine in 1943 that took away millions of lives due to starvation, malnutrition and the resultant diseases. The play represents the horrific reality of hunger, dehumanization and death.
The drama revolves around the Samaddar family, headed by the old Pradhan Samaddar, a peasant in Bengal, who has been driven to near madness due to the prolonged famine and the gnawing hunger that had killed two of his sons of starvation. In addition to the highhandedness of land sharks, a tidal wave destroys the family’s crops, homes, hopes and everything. In a desperate bid to survive, they walk all the way from the fictional Aminpur village to Kolkata, however, the apathetic Kolkata middle-class renders them disillusioned very soon. Pradhan returns home, enraged and humiliated to join his starving fellow villagers and vows to restart a quest for dignified survival by countering their fate with a new strategy.
Other Information :
Organiser : Nandikar & Kolkata Partition Museum Trust
Duration : 2:15 hrs with interval
Credit
Playwright: Bijon Bhattacharya
Set : Debabrata Maity
Light : Sadhan Parui
Music : Subhadeep Guha
Music Projection : Adhir Kr Ganguly
Choreography : Deb Kumar Pal
Make Up : Nripen Chakraborty, Malay Das
Special Courtesy : Dr Devajit Bandyopadhyay
Recitation : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Direction : Sohini Sengupta & Arghya Dey Sarkar
Chief Advisor : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Cast
Repertoire of Nandikar
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2022
SATYAWATI
Direction : Ayon Ghosh
Synopsis :
Satyawati is one of the pivotal characters of the Mahabharata. The play primarily revolves around the life story of Satyawati. It reflects the events of her life and the consequences it led to.
Satyawati is looking back at her life and reminiscing her relationship with Rishi Parashara and the blessing she received as ‘Yojanagandha’. However, the reward she received turned out to be the curse that was cast upon Hastinapur.
Yojanagandha was the reasons why King Shantanu was attracted to Satyawati and wanted to marry her. Moreover, for the commencement of the marriage, DebabrataBhishma had to take an oath. Due to this oath, Hastinapur fell into the wrong hands.
When Satyawati left Hastinapur, she bestowed the power on Dhritarashtra, but it was against the will of the kinsman and advisors of the kingdom. Everyone wanted Pandu to be the king. But in reality, neither Dhritarashtra nor Pandu was supposed to reign on the throne. Their existence would be questionable if DebabrataBhishma would have been the king. But Bhishma could not be the king because King Shantanu wanted to marry Satyawati, which successfully happened with the help of the tactics laid down by her father.
The children that were to born from the womb of Satyawati would be kings, and as foretold, so happened. But they were not capable enough to handle the rule and eventually brought upon their own death.
Under the rule of Dhritarashtra, Hastinapur faced complexities in terms of social and political aspects, which ultimately resulted in the battle of Kurukshetra. At the end of it all, Satyawati looks back and realizes that all these were due to the blessings she received from Rishi Parashar. Because of that blessing, she could no longer remain an ordinary woman. She became the mother of the kings, served her duty as one and faced many complications. As she is spending the last days of her life, she is reflecting on her past. This piece in which she remembers her life depicts her nature, her lamentations, and her regrets.
All amalgamation of her emotions and reflection of her past is depicted through the play, Satyawati.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Trainees & Repertory Members -
2022
Antoron
Direction : Saptarshi Maulik
Synopsis :
Four strangers find themselves forcefully quarantined in what turns out to be an abandoned theater. Seated behind an imaginary two-way mirror, they are observed by another group of people (the audience). The allegedly contaminated strangers consider the situation. What virus are they contaminated with? What will happen to them? How and when will all this end? Little by little, we learn that this huis-clos takes place in a near future where Big Brother reigns supreme, and that the reason for this quarantine may not be entirely medically motivated.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Saptarshi Maulik, Arghya Dey Sarkar, Ayon Ghosh & Anindita ChakrabortyYear of Premiere : 20th April, 2022
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2022
Natya Gaaner Parampara
Direction : Sohini Sengupta
Other Information : Cast: Sohini Sengupta & Ambareesh Bhattacharya
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2022
Ek Theke Baro
Direction : Saptarshi Maulik
Synopsis :
'It takes a great deal of courage to stand alone even if you believe in something very strongly.'
This is a passionate play about twelve jurors who must decide whether a boy who's charged with premeditated homicide of his father, is guilty or not.
Only one member of the jury believes there's a reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the accused, and forces the other jurors to examine the evidence more thoroughly.Against the bitter resistance of the majority, he gradually developed his arguments with logic. The debate grew increasingly violent as various facts emerged before everyone's eyes.The fierce argument that follows is a powerful warning against rash judgment and condemnation based on ignorance, prejudice or casualness and a reminder of how one courageous person can make a difference by confronting other people's opinions.Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour & 20 Minutes
Major Casts : Saptarshi Maulik, Arghya Dey Sarkar, Ayon Ghosh, Anindita Chakraborty
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2019
MANUSH
Direction : Sohini Sengupta
Synopsis :
The central character of this Play is Bharosalal, a Hakowa by profession, assigned to kill mad dogs, bulls and other creatures. Hakowas are untouchable in our society. Once, Bharosa lost one of his eyes while trying to take a ferocious wild jackal. Still then, city's Municipality summoned him to kill a lunatic bull. Ignoring the stormy downpour, Bharosa started for Purniya town to earn his livelihood. He has to surmount a peak named Shermundi to reach to the town. Bharosalal and his four companions were trudging through the precarious path only to find a lone pregnant lady dragging herself amidst the adverse weather towards the town's hospital. They were dumbstruck! Bharosa went down his memory lane; it was also raining like cats and dogs that night and he couldn't get his wife to the hospital. And she died of labour pain. The baby couldn't survive too! Life is putting a loner into the same critical juncture again at this stage when an untouchable Hakowa decided to take care of the expecting lady for the sake of humanity. Would Bharosalal be able to invade the deep forest and overcome the perilous journey to the hospital this time? Or he would be deviated from the path of conscience and paying respect towards the solitary woman! Or else, he would reform the definition of being humane...
Other Information :
Language: Bengali & Hindi
Duration : 2 Hours 20 Minutes
Major Casts : Saptarshi Maulik, Anindita Chakraborty, Arghya Dey Sarkar, Ayon Ghosh, Partha Pratim Deb & Sohini SenguptaYear of Premiere : 29th June, 2019
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2019
Prithibi Rasta Shabdo
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Synopsis :
The story starts with a pregnant lady taking her dying husband to the hospital by pulling a rickshaw on her own. But the hospital refuses to treat him and finally, he dies. The pregnant lady cremates her husband and takes shelter on the footpath. The night guards of the city rape her repeatedly and one night she bites their sex organs! After a few days, Rabi, a rickshaw-puller, hears a baby weeping in a pile of garbage. He adopts the abandoned baby and names her Pari. He has now found a motive to live... in bringing up Pari.
Time passes. Now, Pari is a mother but she surrenders her little son, Bodhisotwo, to Rabi's custody and disappears. Rabi raises Bodhisotwo and leaves behind him a stable along with poor pets - an unfledged parrot, a lame cat, etc. Will Bodhisotwo's life maintain an undisturbed flow with these pets? Will the roads of our city allow him to grow up as its citizen? Will he be able to live alone...?Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory Members -
2018
BAHONER BAYNAKKA
Direction : Arghya Dey Sarkar
Synopsis :
Maa Durga leads her family life with prosperity at Kailash but this Play is all about the other members of her extended family. They are obedient companions of Gods i.e. Lion, Mouse, Owl, Peacock, Swan, etc.
Poor Ganesh can never understand who is stealing his hidden foodstuffs; suddenly the Mouse offers a share of that stolen snacks and Ganesh, in no time, identifies the black hat. Ganesh decided to keep the Mouse as his obedient companion so that united they could taste all delicacies secretly. On the other side, Kartick is amazed to see an Eagle (Garuda) and a Peacock fighting fiercely. It would be of great help if Kartick could get such a warrior like Peacock as his obedient companion. This Peacock would wake Kartick up every morning. But here in arises Lakshmi’s problem. The Mouse is allegedly damaging her boxed up ten-year old clothes. Chaos is looming over Kailash. Now who will save Lakshmi’s belongings from the mischievous Mouse! Again, Saraswati has her concern as well. Every other day her quill breaks off! Where from she will get innumerable quills and hand writing seems illegible if written with a broken quill. Are Lakshmi and Saraswati going to find obedient companions as their helping hands like Ganesh and Kartick found?
At this point, Maa Durga is also facing troubles. Kartick is neglecting studies and Ganesh is becoming an eternal eater. But Maa Durga really cannot manage her daily jobs; Unlike Bengal’s richness of six seasons, Kailash only has unending winter! Mahadev never looks after anything and lives on his uprising whims. In the meantime, Narad gifted a Lion Cub to Mahadev. The minor is very idle and don’t pay any heed to Maa Durga! Now the question is who will stand beside Maa Durga when Buffalo (Mahish) will vandalize agricultural fields? How will Maa Durga transform herself into Mahishmardini (destroyer of Mahishasur, the Buffalo-Demon) without her obedient companion the Lion King!
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory Members including Ayon Ghosh -
2018
MRITYUNJOY
Direction : Saptarshi Maulik
Synopsis :
It is the story of a fallen angel. Mrityunjoy, a young boy, has deep, nuanced feelings and emotions. But he lacks the means to express them. He has cerebral palsy. Words and poems fill his mind and his heart. His wishes and dreams take the form of words and transcend into beautiful, little butterflies, flapping their wings into glory. The Narrator, being a true friend of Mrityunjoy, can see those dreams through the eyes of Mrityunjoy. And the Narrator so wants to share with us all that he can see! The dreams. The love. The screams. The silence. The cruel realities of a society that has eyes but cannot really see.
All of it cultivated and nurtured deep inside a man who is considered insane!
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Major Casts : Saptarshi Maulik & Shubhadeep Guha -
2018
BYATIKRAM
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Synopsis :
‘Byatikram’ is an adaptation of The Exception and the Rule, a short play by German playwright Bertolt Brecht and is one of several Teaching plays he wrote around 1929/30.
It tells the story of a rich merchant (Soudagar), who must cross the fictional Yahi Desert to close an oil deal. During the trip the class differences between him and his working-class porter (Coolie) are shown. As he becomes increasingly afraid of the desert, the Saudagar's brutality increases, and he feels terribly alone without police nearby to protect him. Eventually when the Saudagar fires his Guide, the Coolie and the Saudagar himself get lost and the water supplies are running low. Soudagar mistakenly shoots the Coolie, thinking he was being attacked, when he was in reality being offered some water the Coolie still had left in his bottle.
Later, in a court room scene, the evidence of the murder is presented by the Guide and ultimately the Saudagar is acquitted. The Judge concludes that the Saudagar had every right to fear a potential threat from the Coolie, and that he was justified in shooting the Coolie in self-defense regardless of whether there was an actual threat, or whether the Saudagar simply felt threatened.
Brecht intends to show the coolie as a victim caught in the gears of the merciless logic of class warfare. The play, due to its investigation of class differences between rich and poor, with the poor 'losing out', can be seen as arguing in favor of Brecht's Marxist politics. Brecht wishes to protest against established rule, in which the working class is allegedly exploited, and bias us in a set of future rules.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour 45 Mins
Major Casts : Saptarshi Maulik, Somesh Saha, Ayon Ghosh & Sumanta GangopadhyayYear of Premiere : 11th February, 2018
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2017
JOL
Direction : Arghya Dey Sarkar
Synopsis :
Jol is adapted from a short story written by Moti Nandi that explains the direness of facing water scarcity. It revolves around a story of a young married couple who lives in a rented house in Kolkata. The neighbours in the vicinity are under the same landlord, and they share a common tap and water tank. Apart from the human characters, there is a personification of elements that come out alive through the theatrical presentation. The story takes a turn when the elements stop doing their regular tasks and shows how it affects the lives of this couple. It takes their life through turmoil and puts them through situations they couldn’t have dreaded. Jol expresses a cringe-worthy impact of water scarcity in India, and how each one of us should be aware of this, before we waste a single drop of this scarce resource.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 45 Minutes
Major Casts : Saptarshi Maulik, Anindita Chakraborty, Arghya Dey Sarkar & Ayon Ghosh -
2017
RANI KADAMBINI
Direction : Sohini Sengupta
Synopsis :
Back in the last decade of the nineteenth century, the Queen Mother of Nepal and the teenage daughter-in-law of a Lord in Calcutta are in similar agonies: they both are feeling terribly unwell. And neither of them can be examined by male doctors since it is against the existing social norms. They both would rather embrace, or be left to embrace, death. Enter Kadambini Ganguli, the first female doctor in the entire British Empire to have learnt and practised western medicine. She, of course, cures both women. And we embark on a journey through the life and times of Kadambini Ganguli.
Kadambini's father believes in women's emancipation and is always supportive of Kadambini's academic endeavours. Dwarakanath Ganguli, a very enthusiastic social worker, braves a hostile administration to help Kadambini get her much-deserved seat at the Medical College in Calcutta after Kadambini becomes one of the first two female graduates in India. However, not everyone is as supportive or even as accommodating. In an all-male Medical College, she is the centre of all uncalled-for attention. A particularly jealous professor stands between Kadambini and her graduation degree. But, with some help from Dwarakanath, she overcomes all adversaries and becomes the doctor she always wanted to be. Together, Dwaraka and 'Kadu', become one.
And, as we walk through the streets of an old, colonial Calcutta, hand-in-hand with one of the foremost harbingers of women's liberation of the nineteenth and the twentieth century, many questions arise. Can men and women be truly equal? Is the role of a successful woman limited to being the support system behind the success of a man? Can the roles here be reversed? Does women's liberation essentially mean ignoring the family or one's social responsibilities? Can successful working women also be successful homemakers?
The world, perhaps, would be a better place if we could find the answers and live up to them.Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Sohini Sengupta & Debsankar HalderYear of Premiere : 16th August, 2017
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2016
TOKTOPOSH
Direction : Arghya Dey Sarkar
Synopsis :
NA
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
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2016
ALIPHA
Direction : Sohini Sengupta
Synopsis :
A Girl and a Man : These are the two characters in ‘Alipha’. Their names are not known. The girl seeks her friend Azma throughout the play through letters written to her. Her growing up, getting admitted to school and later entering her professional career is revealed gradually to the audience.
Slowly one realizes how the two characters are indirectly connected by their solo conversation. Their individual stories mingle, revealing the play’s entire plot. Then clearly we can understand their relationship.
The entire play revolves round the man’s present state occasionally the girls’s past returns through her letter to ‘Azma’ her friend. In this play, lies hidden, the two characters’ strange relationship and finale.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour & 30 Minutes
Major Casts : Sohini Sengupta & Sumanta Gangopadhyay -
2016
PANCHAJANYA
Direction : Sohini Sengupta
Synopsis :
The Kurukshetra War has just ended. Gandhari, after losing her hundred sons, is a much-grieved lady. She holds Krishna responsible for her misery. Radha asks Krishna why, despite being the most powerful person in India, Krishna cannot confide in anyone. Krishna tells his side of the story.
As the story unfolds we see how Krishna, the young shepherd boy, is always trusted by people around him to be their savior. How every time it is Krishna who has to take a strong - and sometimes not-pleasing-for-all - stand to ensure justice. How Krishna must sacrifice his personal life to establish the rule of Dharma. How Krishna merely becomes an instrument of justice. How destiny takes over his life.
But can Krishna, who has been the symbol of love, allow destiny to take away all that is tender in him? Can commitment to state be greater than commitment to human values? How does a responsible man choose? Can a responsible man choose? Can war actually bring peace?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 2 Hours 25 Minutes
Major Casts : Sohini Sengupta, Parthapratim Deb & Rudraprasad SenguptaYear of Premiere : 16th June, 2016
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2014
BIPANNATA
Direction : Sohini Sengupta
Synopsis :
'Bipanata' is a story of helplessness.
Sulagna Dutta, a woman in her late 50s, is a widow and a single parent. She represents the common middle class, who wake up to everyday routine work and expect a more or less secured lifestyle. She is not a political bigwig, neither is she a 'celebrity'. She is just like the thousands of Indian widowed working mothers you would not notice when they pass you by. She has singlehandedly raised her son Ujaan to be a good student and responsible son and he is now a computer engineer. The only problem is that he has an OPINION. His own well defined opinions. He is sensitive and reacts like a normal human being is supposed to react to events happening around him. Events of large scale state generated violence. Violence that permeates into our lives and induces a constant state of fear in our psyche.
Sulagna is worried for her son, who goes into bouts of depression and hides at home, refusing to go out and participate in a world where he cannot question. So she has set up an appointment with the renowned psychoanalyst Dr. Ahana Roy.
What follows is a heartrending search into fear psychosis and helplessness that is born out of it. Are we all trying to hide in our cocoons? Are we afraid to speak up, talk back, question? How is an individual supposed to negotiate in these circumstances? These times? Do we need help? Who can help?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 2 Hours & 10 Minutes
Major Casts : Swatilekha Sengupta & Sohini SenguptaYear of Premiere : 16th September, 2014
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2013
NAACHNI
Direction : Parthapratim Deb
Synopsis :
To the Rasik Clan, ‘Manbhoom’ is the land of songs and dance. The novel ‘Rasik’ focuses on the lives of the Naachnis of Purulia. The harsh climate and difficult existence of Purulia blend with its soft melodies and reflect the lives of these musical people who have songs on their lips and pain in their hearts. The dry, stony arid lands wait for the rains; the wretched of the earth, who have almost no means of sustenance, live by the rich tradition of song (Jhumur) and dance (Naachni) that come naturally to their voices and bodies. The themes of ‘Jhumur’ gaan mainly draw upon the love tales of Radha and Krishna and give itself physical expression in ‘Naachni’ dance.
The Naachnis or nautch girls might be excellent performing artists but are amongst the most marginalized sections of the society. They are women; they belong to Scheduled Castes and Tribes; they have no education or economic independence (their earnings being controlled by the male rasiks who earn by exploiting them); and are outcastes who are denied even their last rites.
The play ‘Naachni’ which is structured from the novel ‘Rasik’ looks at the lives of these women. Bijolibala, a young girl is sold by her mother Rasanabala, an old and poverty-stricken Naachni, to a dacoit of Pagrokhatanga, Bharat Sardar. Bijoli is then rescued by her much married lover Pandavkumar and finds shelter in his house with Dhruvakumar, the older Rasik, and Kusmibai, his ageing Naachni and Pandava’s wife Lata. Pandav loves Bijoli but also decides to take her on as his own Naachni and this is when the problem starts. Dhruvakumar is unable to accept this new competition and new generation of Rasiks and Naachnis and this leads them all especially Kusmibai to fatal consequences…
This absorbing musical raises important questions about patriarchy and the position of women performing artists even in the 21st Century!
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 2 Hours 30 Minutes
Major Casts : Swatilekha Sengupta, Rudraprasad Sengupta, Desankar Halder, Sumanta Gangopadhyay & Sohini SenguptaYear of Premiere : 24th May, 2013
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2012
HRIDMAJHARE
Direction : Supriya Chakraborty
Synopsis :
Nandikar’s Play ‘Hridmajhaare’ is inspired by Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like It’.
It is about the heartlessness of urban life pitted against the generosity of nature.
On the one hand it is about the jealousies of human nature, its malice and treachery, while, on the other hand, it is a gamut of everlasting emotions like love, enchantment, tenderness and compassion.
Having deprived Virendra Mohan of their paternal fortunes, the scheming younger brother, Girindra Mohan turns him out of their house. Virendra Mohan Seeks shelter in the forest. The trees, the river, the birds and animals became his kith and kin.
Virendra Mohan’s only daughter Hritusha, grows up in her uncle’s house in extreme negligence. There, her cousin Simanti (Girindra Mohan’s daughter) is her only beloved friend. Hritusha falls in love with Anindya. Anindya’s father the deceased businessman Ramendra Mohan had been an intimate friend of Virendra Mohan.Emerged by this affair, Girindra Mohan turns Hritusha out of his house.
In the meanwhile Anindya’s elder brother conspires to murder him and, getting to know of this intrigue, Anindya flees from the house.
Hritusha and Anindya turn up in the same forest where Hritusha’s father had found shelter several years ago.
All the men and women in the forest find happiness in the intoxication of love. Hilarious situations arise when Anindya cannot recognize Hritusha who is disguised as a man. Then follows a series of misunderstandings.
In the end, comes respite when misunderstandings, blunders, disguises, disillusionments came to an end and they all go back to their homes and live happily ever after.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Major Casts : Anirban Ghosh, Bindia Ghosh, Kamal Chattopadhyay, Shyamal Chakraborty, Tirtha Bhattacharjee, Shubhadeep Guha & Nandikar’s Repertory MembersYear of Premiere : 1st July, 2012at Academy of Fine Arts
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2011
AAMAR PRIYO RABINDRANATH
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
Here is a 90-minute Dramatic-Musical Collage– derived from Poems, Rhymes, Prose Writings, Novels, Stories and, of course, Songs by Tagore in accompaniment with Violin, Keyboard and Percussions; this Collage features womenfolk, mostly rural, who are all heavenly creations, descended from the heavens upon this earth – our earth which is so restrictive, so confusing.
The finale consists of an excerpt from Tagore’s Ghare Baire (Home and the World)accompanied by the musical score from Satyajit Ray’s film version of the same novel.
Amaar Priyo Rabindranath focuses on village lasses who are branded as dark and docile – but folks miss their self-radiant beauty and the love they can dole out so generously. In fact, the Central Character of this Dramatic-Musical Collage is
WOMAN : women of great variety – from daily life as well as from fairy tales, from the villages and meadows, and from castles and palaces – women who are sometimes playful, sometimes tormented, womenwho embody varied stories and awhole gamut of emotions.
This Amaar Priyo Rabindranath is marked by its soothing musicality and its gorgeous simplicity with women at its centre.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Major Casts : Swatilekha Sengupta, Rudraprasad Sengupta, Debsankar Halder, Partha Pratm Deb & Sohini Sengupta -
2011
MULYO FEROT
Direction : Sumanta Gangopadhyay
Synopsis :
Rammohan comes to the school where he studied eighteen years ago – not out of nostalgia, but only to take his tuition fees back. He believes that his school and his teachers cheated him by not giving his money’s worth since he learnt nothing to keep a job for himself. He asks for an examination to prove his point and braces himself with a determination to ‘fail’. But the crafty teachers would not let that be, because they MUST get him ‘passed’ at any cost to prevent an ‘academic’ scandal! (This production has been supported by Sangeet Natak Akademi, Delhi)
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour 30 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory MembersYear of Premiere : 27th March, 2011
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2011
KANU
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
KANU is a play – inspired by a Vietnamese short story “A Manly Boy” (Kiem) by Ma Van Khang.
However, rooting this story in our own milieu and offering Kanu a free imaginative journey, Swatilekha Sengupta evolves an original Play.
KANU, a boy of 12 or 13 summers, has a hen-pecked father, tyrannous step-mother; Kanu’s mother has been turned out who presently is married to a truck driver, leading the life of a maid, wife, nurse, all combined in one, an existence of unending drudgery. Kanu loafs about often battered, oftener half-fed.
A neighbouring family, however, takes care of Kanu as far as possible.
Kanu’s journey continues. Ultimately, the narrative as well as all the characters find their still points, at peace with others and their own selves.
The tale of KANU is simple and couched in the time-old mould of “a boy’s journey through poverty and penury”, tyranny and trauma and of course, with the silver lining of ‘goodness’, ultimately prevailing.
What salvages this play from its time-old melodramatic routine is a kind of ‘ambivalence’ in all the characters (black or white / goodies or baddies!) – from the protagonist Kanu to the faceless vengeful crowd – marked by an overt or covert sense of orphanage. We notice a subtle blending of the hunter and the hunted, the violent and the orphan, black or white, we notice a journey towards humanness. And this transformation happens through the catalyst-role of Kanu in all his relationships, in all his interfaces with the people in his small world.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour 30 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory MembersYear of Premiere : 25th December, 2011 (NTF) & 8th November, 2014 (Jashn-e-Bchpan)
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2011
ANTO-AADI-ANTO
Direction : Debsankar Halder
Synopsis :
ANTO-AADI-ANTO is inspired by a French play La Musica, penned by Marguerite Duras; RudraprasadSengupta adapts this play, body and soul, in an Indian context.
The theme of ANTO-AADI-ANTO is as old as Humanity : Man-Woman Relationship. True to Horace, a man invariably seeks a woman. During long march of Civilization, the Institution of Marriage has evolved. Marriage creates Family, Marriage protects Man-Woman Relationship; but again, this Bond of Marriage itself often degenerates into Bondage; Marriage, not infrequently, becomes a Tantalus’s cup, a tedious repetitive journey of a Sisyphus.
ANTO-AADI-ANTO has a simple storyline that begins during early night and ends in early dawn in the lobby of a plush hotel in Darjeeling. In the forenoon, the Court of Law has granted Anindita and Mrinmoy a formal divorce. In the late evening that very day, now legally separated, Mrinmoy and Anindita chance-meet in the lobby of the hotel where both of them have checked in.
No longer man and wife, they are now free individuals; but their past haunts them; they talk and talk as the grandfather clock strikes hour after hour.
Their departure, each to one’s destiny, is imminent, the moment of reckoning arrives– is it a moment of a new beginning or the beginning of an end!
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour & 15 Minutes
Major Casts : Debsankar Halder & Sohini Sengupta -
2010
MADHABI
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
MADHABI - A play in Hindi by Bhisham Sahni
Adaptation into Bengali - Swatilekha Sengupta
This story from the Mahabharata is about Yayatis daughter Madhabi and her beloved Galab, a disciple of Rishi Vishwamitra. Internship completed, Galab insists on offering Guru Dakshina to Vishwamitra. Vishwamitra, keen to humble proud Galab, demands eight hundred Ashwamedha Horses. Galab is dumb-struck, he contemplates suicide, but divine intervention leads him to Yayatis hermitage. Yayati having abdicated his throne, now lives a humble life of an ascetic. As Galab arrives for help, Yayati has nothing to offer to him except his daughter Madhabi, endowed with boons of eternal virginity and the gift of begetting sons destined to be king of kings. Hence follows a great drama of Madhabi in quest of eight hundred Ashwamedha Horses. Galab is duty-bound to Guru Vishwamitra. Yayati is duty-bound to his dharma of Charity. Kings are keen to use Madhabi as surrogate mother of king of kings. And Madhabi? Madhabi is duty-bound to her father, her lover, but where has her love gone? What is her identity?
Why Madhabi?
A woman from the Mahabharata - is never dated. Epics abound with females cruelly sinned against : Sita, Draupadi, Iphigenia, Antigone and a countless legion. In our own liberated India shining, sati Roop Kanwar, gang-raped Hamida Banu, history-making Shah Bano, down to more recent Ruchika or Jessica Lal or Vaishnavi are endlessly newsworthy! In India - where 55% wives believe(!) that husbands have a right to beat, bruise, burn them - MADHABI represents innumerable women perpetually demeaned, desecrated, debauched, deflowered! But Madhabi is just not a feminist manifesto. Expectant in love, acquiescent in duties, subservient to hierarchy, Madhabi is a loser. World without batters her : but her freedom within - triggered by superhuman inhumanities meted out by all and sundry - transforms Madhabi the Agonistes into Madhabi the Triumphant. AND this ancient Madhabi provides us a lifes chance to discover the world-defying goodness we all have inside each of us!Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 2 Hours & 10 Minutes
Major Casts : Sohini Sengupta, Parthapratim Deb, Sumanta Gangopadhyay & Rudraprasad SenguptaYear of Premiere : 25th February, 2010
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2008
GHNYAGHASUR
Direction : Biswajit Ghosh Majumdar
Synopsis :
NA
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory MembersYear of Premiere : 22nd May, 2008
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2008
TOMAR NAAM
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
Tomar Naam is yet another fresh laurel in Nandikar’s variegated repertoire of short plays. For long Nandikar has pursued – inspite of an in addition to practice of realistic representational theatre - presentational form. From Meghnad badh Kabya and Shanu Roychowdhury to Dulia, there has been efforts to explore the endless possibility of a Narrator’s/ or Storytellers theatre.
In Leela Mazumder’s Dulia, the storyteller was a persona, an old milkmaid. Her style was pure, straight forward narration, mimetic imagination, interspersed with snatches of songs. In Tomar Naam, Sohini is more of a storyteller than character. The presentational style is complex and enriched with variety. She uses mime, dance, songs of infinite variety (from the folk to Christian hymn, from the recitational to the parodic, from the subdued and sad to the boisterous, from the rural to the urban) in the continuous companionship of projected cartoons and a truly reach sound track. She speaks English, Bengali, Hindi even Bhojpuri and gibberish. Truly this play let is multilingual in its idioms, alphabets and languages.
Tomar Naam depicts the story of a shy, young child bringing into light all the experiences a child anywhere undergoes. From moment to moment she grows in depth and dimension, from shy sensitiveness to a vivacious young person in love with everything alive. And suddenly she becomes a universal child.
Sohini Sengupta – a rare young Indian who has achieve National award for Film acting and Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for young stage actors – presence an electrifying performance of 45 minutes – a journey one would love to share.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 45 Minutes
Major Casts : Sohini SenguptaYear of Premiere : 22nd May, 2008
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2008
AAHARE SHAISHAB
Direction : Partha Pratim Deb
Synopsis :
Lal, a little boy of twelve, could not qualify for history in the class test. While his guardians worry about such a mishap, Lal goes to his only friend, his eighty-year old grandfather, to share his woe. His grandfather, a scientist himself, lets him know a little about something the elders never know. Their roles are reversed; through rollicking fun, a new awareness emerges about ourselves.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2008 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2008
AJNATOBAAS
Direction : Sumanta Gangopadhyay
Synopsis :
How do men and women traverse the land called LIFE? Where do they come from and where do they go?
That is the big question!
Enters the scene a lady well past her middle-age, looking for a place to sit.
Enters the scene Payel, a newly married woman, with a glass of water for the old lady and also looking for someone to talk to. Payel is, after all, lonely.
Apprehensions and fears dominate the lives of Payel and husband Soumik, faced with peculiar situations involving the old lady. How does one handle a lady who remembers nothing of her past, yet is so alive, so fascinating. Or does she remember her past after all? Where will she go from here? Will Payel follow in her footsteps when she reaches the lady’s age? Will all the Payels and the Soumiks do so?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 2 Hours & 10 Minutes
Major Casts : Swatilekha Sengupta, Sohini Sengupta, Sumanta Gangopadhyay & Rudraprasad SenguptaYear of Premiere : 11th September, 2008
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2006
RAATER KUTUM
Direction : An Ensemble Production
Synopsis :
Nasu and Gada are petty thieves – nocturnal visitors (Raater Kutum). But these days their business seems to be falling apart. There are better businesses cropping up like car-thieving. Again, the builders and promoters are using better materials to build houses, breaking through walls and gates are almost impossibility. However, the other day they had managed to frighten the local priest and grab his bundle of delicacies which the priest had received while performing ‘puja’ (holy rites towards deities). Now after running away frantically from chowkidar (the village watchmen) Nasu and Gada have landed in Tetultoli village. Sitting on a broken ledge of a dilapidated mansion, tired and hungry, they find a room – with someone inside and locked from outside – as an invitation to try their luck.
They enter the room and befriend the sole inmate of the room – an old decrepit lady badly in need of a massage on her arthritic knees.
The old lady wheezing and coughing tells them that her caretaker had gone to watch a theatrical performance and would be returning soon. Nasu and Gada pounce upon this piece of news as an opportunity to present themselves as the caretaker’s friends, telling her that their friend had sent them to take care of her. What follows is a chaotic experience that the two thieves undergo. Whether the experience is of hell or heaven is for you to decide!
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 45 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory MembersYear of Premiere : 10th September, 2006 at Girish Mancha
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2006
NOTUN CHHELE NATABAR
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
A new boy Natabar Chandra arrives in a class of rowdy village students of the local Pathshala. To the delight of the hooligans, the new boy, a weakling in appearance, wearing a high-neck coat and squeaking new shoes, hair well-oiled, is the centre of the greatest interest and the butt of whoops of ridicule.
During tiffin hours the rowdies watch in horror, the new boy devouring delicacies. And then comes the climax. Or is it an anti-climax? The goody good boy giggles at the rowdies. They ask him why. And to their horror of horrors he says that some of them remaind him of monkeys his uncle kept as pets and fattest of them, of a ‘Multani’ cow! The ‘Multani’ cow roars with anger and thirsts for the boy’s blood but the new boy lays him down with a simple dirty trick!
– with an inevitably enjoyable end.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory Members
Year of Premiere : 10th September, 2006 at Girish Mancha
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2006
PAKHI
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
The simple story of ‘Pakhi’ – a wounded bird and a lamed girl empathizing with each other making them transcend physical barriers towards dance and flight – is a parable of strength through togetherness, a parable in which nature and man are a part of one whole named ‘life’! This great story of Leela Mazumder is couched in utter simplicity of a classic by Swatilekha Sengupta – the acting of Nandikar’s young brigade makes one forget that they are acting, the music and songs come and go like a lullaby or an ocean roll or a symphony again a Provencal; the movement and mime and dance blend effortlessly – which makes the performers fulfilled and the spectators blessed.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory MembersYear of Premiere : 10th September, 2006
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2006
NANA RANGER DIN
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Synopsis :
Anton Chekhov's Swan Song is one of the finest short plays in theatre history. A Theatre House. The Show is long over. It is past midnight. Like a ghost appears athwart the dark stage an ageing actor, candle in hand, fully attired, sleepy, a little groggy. The actor playfully, somewhat sentimentally, retrospects his past and, in the bargain, offers us glimpses into his colourful life and glory of his acting career. This actor's voice sometimes cracks, he pants and puffs, he is afraid of his mortality and loss of talents. Yet, while departing, reciting Othello's famous farewell speech, gifts his Swan Song and proves he is an actor to the hilt.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
CAST & CREDITS
Drama : Anton Chekov/ Ajitesh Bandyopadhyay
Music : Swatilekha Sengupta
Performers : Parthapratim Deb & Rudraprasad Sengupta
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Duration of Play : 35 MinutesYear of Premiere : July, 2006
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2004
ANDHARMONI
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta & Goutam Halder
Synopsis :
The night is out to frighten, the frights of the night are out to frighten, the owls and the bats are overpowering in the night, the jackals and snakes looking menacing.
The scene is an old man’s hut by the woods. He lives there with his daughter (Sambhu’s aunt) and Sambhu, his grandson.
Grandpa, a fearless old man, goes to the woods to dig out plants, cut incense wood and gather honey. He sells these in the market to earn their livelihood. Sambhu’s aunt cooks, sews clothes, and looks after the hut, while Sambhu goes to the local school, plays wit his pets – the parrot and the cat – and lives very snugly within the four walls of their home. Yes, he is terribly afraid of dark nights and their shadows.
One day, grandpa falls from a tree and breaks his leg. The medicine man arrives to prepare a curative for him but grandpa says that no medicine can save his leg. On the peaks of Sushni mountain lies Andharmoni cave. In this cave are thousands of honeycombs filled with rich red honey, which has remained untouched since eternity. If somebody could get that honey and apply it on his leg, only then could he be cured.
Can anyone make it? Do frights only frighten or also get frightened themselves? Is there really anything which is impossible?
A group of youngsters will tell you about it – those who are undertaking a journey.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Repertory membersYear of Premiere : 27th May 2004 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2004
DULIA
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
ABOUT THE PLAY
A play of pure delight, combining literary purity of Leela Mazumdar with a simple but extremely sophisticated narrative style of a Kathak in persona. Sohini Sengupta plays the elderly woman with a live musical chorus on stage.
SYNOPSIS/THE STORY
The story by the celebrated litterateur, Leela Mazumder, is almost a fable. A very elderly milkmaid is travelling from Doiwallah Station to Dulia Station. She is carrying on her head three shining brass-coated pitchers - one large, one small and one of middle size - all filled with fresh milk. She is taking these for her grandfather, her father, her husband and in-laws, her sons and her grandchildren. During the travel, when she meets a group of children, hungry yet endearing, she meets them all! It's a fabulous story about relatedness - an unadorned story about an udaarcharit who finds whole vasudha as her kutumbas!Other Information :
Language: Bengali
CAST
Sohini Sengupta with 4 accompanist musicians
CREDITS
Story : Leela Mazumdar
Set : Koushik Roychowdhury
Light : Susanta Mandal
Music : Swatilekha Sengupta
Directorial Adviser : Rudraprasad Sengupta
DURATION
30 minutes (No intermission) -
1998
SHANU ROY CHOWDHURY
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Synopsis :
SHANU SPEAKS: I bet you won’t recognize me now. Can you, now? Frankly, I can’t recognize my own self – when the first rays of the sun reflect on me from the snowy peaks of Macchhapuchhare. Or when I get friendly with the silvery fish while swimming in the blue waters of Pokhara. Or when my new friend Columbus comes along and asks: ‘You search dream again?’
The walls around me: How long have I talked to you – only you! My husband, son, daughter, even my neighbours – all have been walls. I hate the joke of it! But then, you alone knew how I dreaded the life beyond the four walls. As a child, jumping from the high walls was just a child’s play to me. What has happened since? Slowly, inexorably, Shanu Roychowdhury was buried in the shadows of the 42-year-old Mrs Shanu Mazumder. You asked : ‘How are you?’ Shanu Mazumder responded : ‘I am OK.’ OK, for the vegetables are fresh. OK, for we all keeping well. OK, for the children are physically intact. Thus we merrily carry on. And, then before we can discover ourselves, we cease to exist, crushed by unspent energy and unrealized dreams.
I was a wife. I was a mother. But once again, I’m Shanu Roychowdhury. Can I ask you to sit beside me by this lake, overseeing mountains, and sip with me – though not officially – some Pepsi?
Yours truly,
Shanu Roychowdhury
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 2 Hours 5 Minutes
Major Casts : Swatilekha SenguptaYear of Premiere : 16th April, 1998 at Los Angeles in the USA & (Restaged) on 16th December, 2013
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1993
JODIO SANDHYA
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Synopsis :
NA
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Major Casts : Rudraprasad Sengupta -
1993
PATA JHORE JAYE
Direction : Rudraprasad Sengupta
Synopsis :
ABOUT THE PLAY
This is a very touching play performed in the UK, USA and in major cities of our country. The theatrical simplicity and the literary quality of Buddhadeva Basu combine to create an arresting performance for both the elite and the commoner.
THE STORY/SYNOPSIS
Pata Jhore Jaye is a play by Buddhadeva Basu. The play is full of small chatter between a couple who have reached the fading years of life when one has to make peace with oneself. Their daughter and son are married. The daughter lives in America with her husband and a little son. The son lives in Delhi with his wife and daughter. The aged couple is living constantly in the hope that their children will visit them someday. They remember their bygone days, little happenings which have occurred in their lives - their sojourns on holidays, their care for each other, their disapproval for each other on so many occasions, their misunderstandings, memories happy and painful. The couple is on the verge of their journey to that land whence no traveller returns. And they are waiting for their children, love and death.An important aspect of this play is that while the two are reminiscing together, they are also talking almost to themselves, as though each is lost in his or her own world and time.
The play is almost like a song - with the same images and dialogues recurring over and over again like musical refrains!
It is the story of all individuals in their hope and aloneness.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
CAST & CREDITS
Play : Buddhadeva Bose
Music and Costume : Swatilekha Sengupta
Light : Manoj Prasad
Performers: Swatilekha Sengupta & Rudraprasad Sengupta
DURATION
About 45 minutes. (No intermission)
PREMIERED IN : July 3, 1993 at Los Angeles in the USA
Past Repertoire
Information will be updated soon.
Children's Ensemble Productions
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2017
JORAY JORAY
Direction : Debabrata Maity
Synopsis :
NA
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2017 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2017
ALIBABA
Direction : Samrat Bose
Synopsis :
Once upon a time there lived two brothers in Arabia. While Quasim, the elder brother, was very cruel and dishonest, younger brother Ali Baba was simple and honest. One day in the woods Ali Babaobserved a group of dacoits enter a secret den. He too followed to pleasantly find a huge amount of treasure which he took home. While Quasim found out about the incident, Marjina, Ali Baba’s faithful servant girl, foiled an attempt at the life of Ali Baba by the leader of the dacoits. Sulamoon, the leader, is killed by Marjina.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2017 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2017
BHONDOR BAHADUR
Direction : Arghya Dey Sarkar
Synopsis :
NA
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 24th December 2017 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2017
KHIRER PUTUL
Direction : Anindita Chakraborty
Synopsis :
Once upon a time there was a King living with his two Queens – Suyo and Duyo! The king sailed for trade and returned with expensive ornaments and dresses as per Queen Suyo’s wish. Queen Duyo requested for and got a baby monkey. But this baby monkey is not at all an ordinary one. It was magic monkey from the land of a wizard who not only can talk like human beings but also impressed the King by its sharp intelligence. Gradually, the King started loving his Queen Duyo and they were blessed with a little Prince.Abanindranath Thakur – a magician of children’s literature – tells this story whose magic touch spreads colours in to the world of imagination.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 24th December 2017 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2016
LANKA DAHAN PALA
Direction : Debabrata Maity
Synopsis :
Lanka was discovered by the Hanuman himself. Tensed, he is running here and there in excitement in search of his ‘Maa Seeta’. An ardent follower of Shri Ram Chandra, Hanuman found Seeta in Ashokban to his astonishment. For this shabby looking Seeta, Ram-Lakshman are toiling so much! Hanuman gets demotivated. At this moment, King Ravan’s adherent dragged Hanuman to the palace. Ravan ordered his men to set Hanuman’s tail on fire. Now Hanuman feels helpless!
A combined effort of 35-40 little angels bloomed in Lanka Dahan Pala. A Production staged by Nandikar’s youngest group.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2016 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2016
JOY KE CHAI
Direction : Debabrata Maity
Synopsis :
Everyone wants ‘Joy’ (Victory) but no one wants the central character of this Play ‘Joy’ because he is too fat in comparison to his friends. Everybody mock at him and at school bus, classrooms, Joy never finds a fellow to share his feeling. Lonely Joy tries to discover him at home only according to elders’ wishes. Sometimes he dreams of to be a singer in a Band like his younger maternal uncle whereas the elder one wants him to become an army man and so continued his rigorous physical training. Amongst all these Joy undergoes conflict. All his desires and dreams get scattered and lose freedom. At this critical juncture, a friend comes to churn out the real ‘Joy’ from present Joy’s lost soul. Gradually emerge a Singer Joy, an Army Joy, a Tailor Joy, a Selfish Joy…only the real Joy remained unfound. Will that friend gets back his Joy with his dreams?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2016 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2016
BOBBY
Direction : Samrat Bose
Synopsis :
Bobby is a simple yet eloquent story highlighting the various lights faced by today’s children. Bobby is a young imaginative girl and the play stresses on the various ways she employs to amuse herself during the long hours she is at home alone.
She recreates various historical figures and fictional characters like Shivaji, Akbar, Birbal, Mickey Mouse and fairies. She interacts with them and does not hesitate to live in her fantasy. She has a beautiful relation with all of the various people she meets in her imaginary world.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2016 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2016
BATASBARI
Direction : Anindita Chakraborty
Synopsis :
The innocent children of ‘Lakhna’ village are in deep trouble for the emerging draught situation. With tears in eyes, they went to their adorable ‘Bodo Lama Dadu’ for a solution and insisted for food and clothes. Being helpless, Bodo Lama started his journey with his ‘Dhingipad’ in search of ‘Batasbari’ who actually lit light, cook food all by capturing sunlight only. Once Batasbari is found, there wouldn’t be any need of oil and coal. Nabu, Bahadur, Padmar clang to Bodo Lama’s company with their eyes remained wide open with astonishment. Filling appetite suppressants in pocket, Bodo Lama headed for adventure with Dhingipad to find Batasbari. The story gradually unfolds and answer questions like will Dhingipad succeed in this search? Who is this Dhingipad? What relation Bodo Lama holds with Dhingipad?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 24th December 2016 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2015
ASTRONAUTER THIKANA
Direction : Debabrata Maity
Synopsis :
Little Jhimli’s father is no more. Jhimli stays in a small room with her mother Ramala who works as a domestic help. One day Ramala tells Jhimli the story of the Old Lady on the Moon. Lonely Jhimli becomes friends with the Lady. The Lady tells Jhimli that one has to be an astronaut to set foot on the moon. But how does one become an astronaut? Jhimli knows not. Meanwhile Jhimli and Ramala get shelter in the well-to-do household of the Boses. Jhimli’s scholarly merits are noticed. Will Jhimli’s reasoning aptitude get the better of the stories of the Old Lady? Or will her merits get surpassed by her childhood imagination?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2015 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2014
AMOL AND THE LITTLE PRINCE
Direction : Susanta Mandal
Synopsis :
Amol of Rabindranath Tagore's "Daakghar" chance meets Little Prince of Antoine de Saint Exupery's "The Little Prince" at an imaginary place in a space, far away from the Earth. The souls of these two kids come close to each other and in a very short while they become quite intimate friend and embark on a journey back to earth. And when they finally reach there, they try to re-visit the places and the people they had met on earth, which now look all very different from what there used to be. Can we find dreams where we want them to be?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2014 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2014
BHALOBASA BHALOBHASHA
Direction : Samrat Bose
Synopsis :
Madhu was a poor boy with a golden heart. He was always eager to help others out, with a smile on his face. One day he saves a kitten and the kitten’s mother, who has special powers, asks Madhu to make a wish which she would then grant. Madhu prayed for an abode for the Kitten’s mom, nothing for himself. But later, Madhu’s greedy parents and his friends start influencing him and on subsequent occasions, he starts making wishes for himself. His smile vanishes. So does his benevolence. Will we lose the kind, compassionate Madhu we all used to love so much?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2014 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2014
JHALAPALA
Direction : Debabrata Maity
Synopsis :
The Teacher with questionable knowledge and only a makeshift classroom is eyeing the house of the village landlord, so that he can have a permanent school in there. The landlord’s associates want to keep the landlord busy in music which, at best, can be labelled cacophony. In the midst of this chaos, arrives a maternal uncle of the landlord and salvages the situation with the help of a domestic help.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2014 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2013
PANTABURHI
Direction : Arghya Dey Sarkar & Debabrata Maity
Synopsis :
Rice cooked overnight by Pantaburhi gets stolen each night. She sets out to meet the King to make a complaint. On the way she comes across a frog, banana peels, a razor, a fish and a wood apple.
All of whom try to dissuade her from visiting the king.
She, nonetheless, goes to the King only to find him sound asleep. The King’s guards cane her for complaining. She returns home. The acquaintances she met earlier hide in her home, waiting for the thief to come. What happens next?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2013 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2013
SUDDHA MATIR SANDHANE
Direction : Samrat Bose
Synopsis :
Dolon finds a magic carpet in the attic of her home. Who so ever stands on the carpet cannot suppress his or her true feelings. By using the carpet at her birthday party, Dolon gets to know the secret thoughts of her friends and teachers. Meanwhile, the headmistress comes and informs them about the attempts of some promoters to grab the playground adjacent to the school, and urges everybody to resist. The magic carpet reveals that none is ready to support her cause. What will happen now?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2013 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2013
SWAPNAMUHURTE
Direction : Samrat Bose
Synopsis :
A group of students and teachers are busy rehearsing at night for a school by a gang of wagon-breakers, seek their protection. Opinions are divided among these present. How do the subsequent events unfold?
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2013 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2011
TUSHARMALAAR DESHE
Direction : Swatilekha Sengupta
Synopsis :
Adapted from the well-known fairy tale, Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs, by the Brothers Grimm, the play is a presentation in verse form by children, with music, song, dance, et. al.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2011 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2011
DJINN-JABDA
Direction : Susanta Mandal
Synopsis :
A group of woodcutters chance upon two bottles in a forest, where from two Djinns emerge. They urge on the woodcutters to give them work all the time. The woodcutters get all the favours they seek. They are made Kings, and they are blessed with queens, princes, princesses, etal. At long last, they free themselves from the Djinn’s tyranny with the help of a five-headed Djinn.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2011 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2010
RABINDRA PRANAM
Direction : Jhulan Mukhopadhyay
Synopsis :
A tribute to Tagore on his 150th birth anniversary, with a collage of songs and poems of the bard. It is a forty-minute journey. This performance was presented by around twenty Young persons in the age group of 12 to 17. The directorial and technical assistance was provided by senior professionals of Nandikar.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December, 2010 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2009
HARIYE JETE NEI MANAA (Beyond the Walls)
Direction : Susanta Mandal
Synopsis :
A short play by about 45 children from our Children’s Ensemble and a number of adults from Nandikar’s Professional Ensemble. Here the performers belonged to the age group of five to nine. This Production was couched in a style which used all the components – dance, recitals, music, songs, puppets, scenographic extravaganza and what not – which children like to participate in and witness. The directorial and technical assistance was provided by senior professionals of Nandikar.
Tia has her own glittering world of gadgets, sky-scrapers, her school, her busy parents and friends, her studies – yet what does she miss? How would she find the blue seas and ice-cream-cliffs and green deluges she dreams of? Who’d help her find her way? Who are her friends in this fairy-tale world? If you wanna know, take a trip with Tia to her wonderland…..
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 10th October, 2009 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2009
JAI EKTI BAAR (Let me go even once)
Direction : Jhulan Mukhopadhyay
Synopsis :
A child – with a wonderful urge to run away to some far away lonely land – along the gurgling streams – the rustle of leaves – the call of the unknown drives him around….
This collage of Tagore’s poems, songs, excerpts from the famous play Dakghar and some prose texts depicts the Child who is restless, who is adventurous, and who can hear the call of the ‘Unknown’. It is this longing to be with the unknown that makes a journey of the play.
This was a collage of poetry, music, song, dance and movements inspired by children’s literature – mostly poems – of Rabindranath Tagore. beautifully choreographed, vocally orchestrated, musically rich, this performance was presented by around twenty Young persons in the age group of 12 to 17. The directorial and technical assistance was provided by senior professionals of Nandikar.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 1 Hour 30 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Childrens’ EnsembleYear of Premiere : 10th October, 2009
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2008
BATAS MAAMAR GALPO
Direction : Anirban Roy Chowdhury & Sumana Mukhopadhyay
Synopsis :
This is the story of a little girl Jonaki. Unfortunately, her step mother tortures her. Lo! Zephyr Uncle (Batas Mama) comes to her rescue and creates a space where life blends with the world of dream!
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2008 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2008
INDIAN IDOL
Direction : Debsankar Halder
Synopsis :
“A statue or picture of a god worshipped or a person greatly admired” – that's how Mouli’s grandpa defines an ‘idol’. The play shows how Mouli becomes the ‘Indian Idol’ – after, of course, a lot of exciting adventures.
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2008 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
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2007
PIL-PIL-PIL
Direction : Partha Pratim Deb
Synopsis :
NA
Other Information :
Language: Bengali
Duration : 50 Minutes
Major Casts : Nandikar’s Children’s EnsembleYear of Premiere : 25th December 2007 at Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
