‘Kali Bali’ shines at 14th drama fest

Nagpur: The weeklong celebration of culture at 14th Multilingual Drama Festival concluded on Saturday at Mor Hindi Bhavan with dazzling performances and a bunch of felicitations.

The event conceptualized by social worker Umesh Choubey was aimed to provide exposure to the upcoming theatre artistes and help them grow in their creative field.

Dr Neelkant Kulsange from Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, his wife Chanda and senior artiste Hemlata Mishra were the judges for the programme.

A troupe of female actors from Adhyayan Bharti, Wardha, bagged the first prize for their heart wrenching storyline in a Marathi drama 'Kali bali' themed on the issue of female foeticide.

Marathi skit 'Digdarshak' (director) staged by Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Natya Parishad was adjudged second best where the age-old 'Guru-shishya' bond with regard to theatre was highlighted. The third position was grabbed by Sandhya Surabhi group for their Bengali drama 'Rakhel Chandra Matal'.

Neelkant said, "The groups came up with interesting subjects and female participation was unexpectedly high, which is laudable. Budding artistes here have great potential but they need proper expert guidance."

Orchestra by Vinod Gillurkar created an atmosphere of frenzy. Rajasthani Kalbeliya dance form was performed by Vandana Vyas and a group of 20 children from Sadhar Parivar danced on 'Taare Zameen Par'.

Kathak dancers Priti Valashkar, Smita More from Thane and Paulami Mukherjee from Mumbai presented a group dance on the occasion. Sushil Tiwari whose poetry 'Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat' garnered a token of appreciation.

Secretary Padam Nair played an integral role in conducting the fest. Treasurer Suresh Sangolkar, working president Sunil Aatish, members Deepak Kashyap and Ramesh Baraskar were also present on the occasion.