One of Gujarat's oldest theatres fades into oblivion

VADODARA: Some of the legendary artists including Dilip Kumar had once performed on this stage. And, one of the greatest comedians Charlie Chaplin was also slated to act at the Deepak Open Air Theatre in Vadodara, but couldn't. One of the oldest theatres in Gujarat which was built over 150 years ago is now in oblivion.
A portion of this historical theatre houses a clinic while the other area is to be turned into a community hall! This was after the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) spent over Rs 5.5 crore in renovating the theatre.

"It's sad that one of the landmarks of the city is set to disappear. Vadodara was always popular as a cultural city. Is this how a city of art and culture treats its heritage property and that too a theatre?" said Chandrashekhar Patil, an art conservationist.
"If the VMC had made the road to the theatre accessible and added more facilities to attract the organizers, this theatre could have been saved," Patil explained.
In 2009, the civic body began the work on refurbishing the theatre located in Madanjhampa Road area. The idea was to revive the theatre and organize cultural programmes there.
After a brief halt, the work resumed and the theatre was inaugurated in 2015 amid much fanfare. But Deepak Open Air Theatre got just four bookings of cultural events in the next three years. "Maybe the access to the theatre and the locality affected the bookings. Not many were keen to organize events in this theatre. Also, a few thefts were reported there and hence it was decided to close the theatre," said a BJP councillor.
"We have already issued a tender to convert the theatre space into a community hall. A portion of the premises has a government clinic," said Dr Hitendra Patel, chairman, VMC standing committee. Spread over 85,000 square feet, the theatre premises can accommodate hundreds of spectators.