Characters from Tagore’s works and even real-life women of the Tagore household were brought to life at BL Block on Saptami. Residents had staged a fashion show titled Bou Thakuranir Haat, which itself is the name of a Tagore novel.
The first round featured characters from dance dramas like Chitrangada, Chandalika and Shyama, the second round was from short stories and novels like Kabuliwala, Nastanirh and Shesher Kobita.
The audience burst into laughter when “Kabuliwala” gave a — not walnut but — chocolate bar to Mini. And Mini got so engrossed with the treat that she forgot she was on stage. Kabuliwala nearly had to drag her off as the child tried to eat it there and then.
“The role of Mini was enacted by a three-year-old boy, Agnayan Mukherjee, who had no idea what he was doing,” laughed Jonaki Bhowmick, cultural convenor of the puja who had also written and directed the show.
“Since no girl could be found for the role, the child’s mother Madhumita Mukherjee volunteered. Agnayan was reluctant to get into a frock and we had to lure him with chocolate even during rehearsal,” smiled Bhowmick. Madhumita was part of the show too, having appeared as Sakhi from Bhanusingher Padabali.
There was Charulata with her binoculars, Shesher Kabita’s Labonya holding an open book and Kiti with a fancy fan. The song Sonar horin chai played when the gold-obsessed Moni from Monihara walked the ramp.
“I received much appreciation for my performance. People said my performance reminded them of the (Satyajit Ray-directed) movie,” said Manjulika Deb, who played Moni.
There was a round on characters from Hindi films like Yaarana, Yugpurush and Abhimaan, that borrowed melodies from Rabindrasangeet. Finally, progressive Tagore women like Jnanadanandini Devi were shown. The lady who was married to Rabindranath’s elder brother, Satyendranath Tagore, walked in a Parsi gara sari and pink jacket.
“This sari had been gifted by my aunt and it took me three hours to pin it up so I could change into it quickly,” said Bhowmick, a fashion designer who had made the jacket herself. “A total of 24 women and a young boy took part in this event and it was a challenge for us to change outfits in between rounds but we enjoyed ourselves.”