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ENAD presents Ballabhpurer Rupkatha, a play by Badal Sircar. Once upon a time, there lived a king, named Bhupati Ray. No, he didn't have a queen! He should actually be called a prince, but sadly he didn't have his parents either. Have you ever seen a king had died before his son tied the knot? That's the first loophole of the story...
"Ballabhpurer Rupkatha" or "The Tale of Ballabhpur" starts with the story of the pauper prince Bhupati Ray, who is a dentist by profession and dreams of owning his own chamber. Sanjib, his longtime friend and classmate, comes up with a proposal for one. Bhupati has no money but a good heart that has helped him survive for the past years without a job with loans taken from the shopkeepers of Ballabhpur, who indulge him as a token of their respect and honor for the sole heir of their ancestors' master. To fulfill his dream and repay his debts, Bhupati is trying hard, though unsuccessfully, to sell his 400-year old ancestral palace, which is in ruins today. When Haldar, a prospective buyer, and his family arrive from Calcutta, Monohar, the old servant of the house and the last witness of Ray family's faded glory and traditions, sets up a mock representation of the old majestic ambiance to impress the potential buyers. The three lenders(Paban, Sreenath and Saha) help Bhupati and Monohar play out this game. Is Haldar going to buy these old ruins? Mr. Haldar's young daughter Chhanda is spellbound to witness the ambiance and is amazed to see the people around - Sanjib - the funny one with a huge moustache, Bhupati, with his majestic demeanour, and the royal servants in their out-of-ordinary outfits and gestures. In such a night, will he heart be stolen? How will her conservative mother Swapna react when she finds out about her daughter's romantic inclinations?
Raghuda, the other central and apparently invisible member of the household adds to the suspense and tension of the story. Who is Raghuda? Why do the beautiful Sanskrit chants echo in the corners of this haunted house every night? The fun and suspense grow together. The past and the present blend excellently. A romantic love story is told in a very interesting manner. A set of characters come alive with unique dimensions, traits and a great sense of humour. This is what Badal Sircar's play "Ballabhpurer Rupkatha" is about. A hilarious comedy unique in storyline, dialogues, form and style with a very challenging set of sets, light, sound and representation of time. Please click here for the flyer.
The first show was held in Cupertino, CA on 23rd June, 2001. See the pictures from the show.
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“Direction - design and execution of the complete play was overall good! Administrative (hall / stage / production management, tickets, schedule, parking, souvenir, etc.) was good! I would like to see a drama based on some more contemporaneous issues, e.g. say, a storyline based on the young IT pros who arrive in this Valley on the H-1 visas to seek their fortunes.”
- Arnab Chatterjee, a drama enthusiast
“Everything was perfect. No moment of boredom. Everybody’s acting was strong.”
- Soma Sarkar, a drama enthusiast
“We enjoyed the drama a lot on Saturday. You all did a fantastic job, very well prepared and delivered. Great job.”
- Souvik Banerjee, a drama enthusiast
“We should mention that the play in a whole was just excellent. Keep it up and hope to see more in near future.”
- Swati and Rajsekhar Bhattacharjee,
drama enthusiasts
Listen to the title song.
“Hilarious Play by Badal Sircar”
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Badal Sircar (1925-): An engineer by profession, he is a leading theater personality from Bengal who rose into prominence with the'70s wave of street theater. Badal Sircar revolutionised Bengali theater with his angst-ridden, anti-establishment plays during the Naxalite movement in a city ridden by traumatic upheavals. Even today, his plays attract large audiences in Kolkata and Bengal. Not only does his work revolve around larger social issues, involving the masses, but he also travels in and around Bengal and takes up issues specific to a particular community or locality and creates plays on the spot. He is also known for picking up ordinary people from ordinary life, who he feels, suit a particular role and gets them to act for his skits and plays. He has written about 50 plays of which Ebong Indrajit and Basi Khabar (Stale News) are famous. Both these plays belong to the Theater of the Absurd manner. Apart from this, he has also authored famous plays like Baki Itihas, Paagla Ghoda, Spartacus, Prastava and Juloos, which became trend-setters in the contemporary Bengali Theater.
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