Charveda Institute of Arts and Culture celebrated its first annual cultural programme at Rabindra Tirtha. Named Medh, the event showcased the talents of students who learn dance, music, painting, recitation, and instruments at the BE Block centre in New Town.

The show was inaugurated by chief guests MLA Tapash Chatterjee and teacher Urmila Sen, who lit the lamp along with Charveda founders.

“I have been associated with this institute since Day One. I’ve seen it grow and it feels great to be a part of their first annual day celebrations,” said Sen. “The young ones are putting up wonderful acts and I extend my heartfelt wishes to them.” She also recited poet Debesh Thakur’s Bharatbarsha.

The show unfolded with Bharatnatyam by students. Dipankar Dutta, the dance trainer, showcased his skills along with his pupils. They also danced to songs like Pasoori, Bum bum bole and Monta re. Dwaipayan Dutta played the keyboard and sang Main koi aisa geet gaoon, and got the audience grooving.

The highlight of the show was an audio play where three children depicted the various sounds on a railway platform. These students had come from Ramkrishna Shikshamandir in Egra, East Midnapore. “ I was a little nervous initially but my fears melted away as I took stage and went with the flow. Our trainer Chakradhar Das sir encouraged us a lot and we gave our best,” shared Rangan Ojha, a 12-year-old student.

“This being our first annual event, the entire team was excited. And we were elated to see such a big audience turn up,” said Sushree Das Dutta, director of Charveda. “The participants worked hard to make the event a success.”

Srijita Talukdar

Play time

FD Block-based theatre group Dekhashona put up a play Basbhumi at Rabindra Okakura Bhavan. Scripted by Indrashis Lahiri and directed by Jyoti Basu, the social drama kept the audience glued to their seats till the end.

The play opened on Mahalaya with an ominous secret looming over a priest's family. His estranged daughter Hoimo returns after years, revealing how she was abused by a goon and forced to leave home. Her return exposes how the family hid the incident to protect their elder daughter Rebati's marriage. The family finally accepts Hoimo as an embodiment of strength akin to goddess Durga.

Shushanta Gupta, the head of Dekhashona, won hearts with his small role as Brijesh Shukla, a well-wisher of Hoimo. Sutapa Das, in the complex character of the elder daughter Rebati, earned applause in various scenes and Nikhilesh, as Hoimo’s drug-addict friend, drew attention for his versatility.

An image from the play Sourced by The Telegraph

"The play is about the victory of woman power over evil,” said Basu, the director who also played the priest. “We received immense appreciation from the audience after the show. I had used innovations in lighting, staging, and even dialogues in a flashback scene."

Sutapa Das, who played Rebati, said it was a challenge playing the role. “My character is a depressed widow who feels a mix of love and jealousy towards her sister. I tried my best to fit into the role," she said.

"It was tough juggling rehearsals alongside my office work and managing my two-year-old,” said Dhritisha Basu, who played Hoimo. “It took me a while to get into the skin of this character who is quite opposite myself. But I was happy to play a strong and mature woman who is likened to Durga."

Porichay Mukherjee, who played Hoimo’s friend Nikhilesh, said he didn’t need much effort as he has been acting since childhood. "But I had to rehearse so the vision of the director was fulfilled," said the FE Block.

Bharati Kanjilal

Challenge in many hues

The ladies' club of DA Block hosted a sit-and-draw for children and a rangoli-making contest for adults that saw the most creative residents of the block come forth.

Those aged five to eight drew cats, dogs, or birds, and those between nine and 12 years painted festivals of Saraswati Puja, Holi, or Christmas.

Rudrangshi Ganguli, 5, won in Group A with her drawing of a cat in a yard and birds in the sky. She couldn’t wait till she got home to unwrap her prize and was delighted to find a drawing book and a bag inside. “Had there been some colour pencils in the prize, she would have immediately sat down to draw another picture," laughed her mother Nibedita Ganguli.

DA Block residents create rangoli out or Marigolds Sourced by The Telegraph

Trina Badya, who lives in a garage in DA Block, came second for her picture of a dog and Sibaya Khemka earned third place on her contest debut. Aariya Jha, who had arrived a good 10 minutes after the event began, got fourth place for his cat sketch. Soumili Pal, Jibesh Naiya, and Sharanya Mitra emerged as Group B victors. Art teacher Saibal Mukherjee, the judge, praised the creativity and imagination of participants in both groups.

"We often hold drawing contests to provide kids a platform to showcase their talent. Today, children from various backgrounds participated and to encourage them, we distributed prizes to them all,” said Puloma Sen, who was in charge of the event.

The floral rangoli-making contest drew 14 participants. Four roundtables were set up for them, each with a plate and raw materials — eight marigolds (four yellow and four orange) and a sprinkling of rose petals. Contestants were given 15 minutes to complete their designs.

"This is my first time in a rangoli contest," said Arun Banerjee, a retired engineer. "I didn't even know what rangoli was before this! But through this delightful experience, I learnt to create one. And it feels great having come fourth. My design featured the four directions with torn marigold petals and some rose petals scattered in the centre."

Mousumi Chakraborty, the secretary of the block association, won the first prize with her trinayana. Mahua Dutta, a visitor from Lake Town, came second with her alpona-like design and Anobika Roychowdhury stood third for using flowers to shape the feet of goddess Lakshmi. "Such events are not just a source of joy but also help hone creativity and let us connect with others, " said Roychowdhury.

Nandini Sen, who conducted contest, appreciated the participation from men. “One of them even won a prize,” she said. Designer Debjani Mitra Mukherjee, who judged the event, said ranks were given to designs that drew her attention at a glance.

Bharati Kanjilal