CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: Bhopal: The world-famous play The Caucasian Chalk Circle was staged at Ravindra Bhavan in Bhopal. First-year M.A. Dramatics students of the Tagore National School of Drama at Rabindranath Tagore University brought the play alive on stage. Director Avijit Solanki retained the original theatrical vision of German playwright Bertolt Brecht’s work. The audience remained engrossed till the very end, watching this staging on war, power, justice and human sensitivity with rapt attention.
The story begins with the outbreak of rebellion in Caucasia. Amid public anger, the Grand Duke’s rule collapses and the Governor is killed. In the chaos of trying to save her wealth and property, the Governor’s wife leaves her son behind. At such a difficult moment, an ordinary servant named Grusha decides to save the child and sets out on a long journey, risking her own life. Against the backdrop of war, hunger, displacement and constant hardship, Grusha’s struggle emerges as the soul of the play. Student and theatre artist Purnima Kumari portrayed Grusha with such sensitivity and force that the character’s pain, courage and motherhood came vividly alive.
Years later, when political circumstances change and the old order returns, a dispute arises over the child’s claim. The matter reaches the court of Azdak, a judge who values the spirit of justice more than the letter of the law. He delivers a decision that conveys the message that the right over any object or person belongs to the one who takes the best care of it. Through an unusual test, it is decided who should rightfully receive the child.
Set against war, power, justice and humanity, the play raises deep questions of ownership and responsibility. Vijay Sardar drew the audience’s attention with a powerful performance as Azdak. His character underlined the difference between law and justice. Lavkush Kumar Pandit played the Governor, while Ashutosh Agnihotri convincingly portrayed the Governor’s wife. Sumit Kumar Sagar gave an effective performance as Simon Shashva, and Daksh Kaushik impressed in the roles of the Messenger and Lavrenti Vasnadze.
The collective singing presented by Dharmveer Choudhary, Durgesh Kumar, Mihir Kasera and Rishabh Malviya added further life to the production. One of the major strengths of the presentation was its collaborative creation. Students actively participated in the translation, adaptation and editing of the play. Several songs were also written and composed by the students, lending the production freshness and warmth. Brecht’s plays establish a dialogue with their time and society, and with that spirit in mind, this presentation was shaped in its own language and theatrical sensibility.
The technical side was equally impressive. The set design by Karan Kashyap, Rishabh Malviya and Prakash Gangwar was widely appreciated. Kiran Sahu’s costumes, Nikhil Bansal’s projection design, Chaitanya Bhatt’s sound design, Jeetu Rabha’s lighting design, and music by Tejasvi and Aniruddh successfully strengthened the atmosphere of the play. Co-director Jeetu Rabha and the entire production team gave the presentation a well-organised form.
The Tagore National School of Drama is a residential theatre training institute of Rabindranath Tagore University, established in July 2021. Founded with the objective of creating a dialogue between Indian theatre traditions and contemporary theatrical practices, the institute provides intensive and practice-based theatre education. Its academic direction has developed under the guidance of senior academician Santosh Choubey, while former National School of Drama, New Delhi director and senior theatre personality Devendra Raj Ankur is associated with it as an adviser.
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