Mumbai: World Theatre Day is celebrated on 27th March to underscore the importance of, and to popularise one of the oldest art forms in the human history. Being closer to human emotions, theatre has the potential to influence thoughts and bring in positive changes in the society. Indian theatre, the history of which is traced back to more than 5000 years ago, too has given birth to many eclectic stage art forms and produced renowned artists, immensely enriching the cultural heritage of the country.
Films Division, one of the torch bearers in promoting and popularizing Indian art and culture, has produced a number of well-researched documentary films on various theatrical art forms, both traditional and modern. It has taken the lead in celebrating World Theatre Day-2021 by curating a package of films, focusing on the dramatic art and some of the doyens of modern Indian theatre, which will be streamed on March 27 and 28 on FD website and You Tube Channel.
The two-day film festival, Rangbhoomi : Celebration of Indian Theatre is showcasing Indian Theatre (101 mins/English/1988/Jabbar Patel) – a seminal work that traces India’s theatrical traditions including experiments carried out in various parts of the country by known theatre practitioners, We, The Theatre (54 mins/Marathi/2011/Ajit Bhure) – a film on Marathi theatre touching various aspects of its growth and evolution through changing times, Baba…B V Karanth (93 mins/Kannada & Hindi/2012/Ramchandra PN) – on the life and works of the multifaceted theatre personality, Natvarya Bhalchandra Pendharkar (50 mins/Marathi/2019/Virendra Pradhan) – a biopic on veteran Marathi stage actor, singer and producer, National School of Drama (17 mins /English/1984/ G.R.Thakur) – a short film which tells the story of the prestigious drama school in India and Rangbhoomi (80 mins/Hindi/2013/Kamal Swaroop) – a film that deploys a vibrant palette of sounds, sights and characters in a surrealist juxtaposition while the filmmaker attempts to trace Dada Saheb Phalke’s life in Varanasi after he decided to take up theatre, ending up writing a semi-autobiograpical play, Rangbhoomi.
The films will be streamed on https://filmsdivision.org/Documentary of the Week and on https://www.youtube.com/user/FilmsDivision on 27 and 28 March, 2021, for 48 hours.
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