It's the final curtain call

The closing ceremony of the 20th Bharat Rang Mahotsav (BRM) was brilliant in terms of intellect merging with creativity and versatility.

After a successful run for the past 21 days, 20th Bharat Rang Mahotsav, the International theatre festival of India organized by the National School of Drama (NSD) in the Capital, drew to a colourful culmination with a pledge to come back next year with an even more diverse repertoire. Originally a national festival showcasing the work of the most creative theatre workers in India, BRM has evolved to international scope, hosting theatre groups from around the world, and is now the largest theatre festival of Asia. The National School of Drama is one of the foremost theatre training institutions in the world and the only one of its kind in India. Till date, BRM was celebrated in New Delhi and has travelled to several cities in India, presenting an overwhelming 1787 plays, and riveted thousands of audiences who basked in the glory of heart-winning stories and superior performances.

 The closing ceremony was held at Kamani Auditorium where renowned Kathak maestro, guru, choreographer, and poet Padma Vibhushan Pt. Birju Maharaj was the chief guest and Shri Arun Goel, secretary, Ministry of Culture was the Guest of Honour. Padma Vibhushan Pt. Birju Maharaj said, “It is important that we spread love and happiness. Much like the art, we need people who appreciate art. Art can be of various forms and it is unlimited as is creativity. I am extremely passionate about art and I am very glad to be here today. I have a very close relationship with the National School of Drama. I take this opportunity to extend my invitation to all of you for 23rd February, the day on which we are going to inaugurate the new building of Kalashram in Delhi.”

He even broke into a song with his lovely voice, which had such a throw that the audience was in awe with his magical tone and versatility.

NSD was complimented for the very successful organisation of this festival in Delhi and five other cities. Theatre has a great potential to contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and create employment opportunities, especially for the youth.

“The ministry is ready to provide platforms for discussions on addressing the economic plight of theatre artists and create technology platform to facilitate mapping of audience and electronic booking, among other things,” said Shri Arun Goel, Secretary, Ministry of Culture.

Adding gratitude to the presence of the guests of honour Dr. Arjun Deo Charan, Acting Chairman, NSD Society said,  “I thank Pt. Birju Maharaj and Shri Arun Goel for taking out time from their busy schedule and coming here. As we end this year's festival, I am sure that the audience has enjoyed the plays staged, appreciated them and thought over them afterwards. This festival is a step forward and we are sure that you will keep on patronizing us in future.”

 About 2000 young theatre enthusiasts from colleges in and around Delhi participated in this year’s BRM and presented around 60 short plays.

“This is rather encouraging since young people have the appetite for risk and hence, give us hope to see new creative ventures. Besides, this year's Bharat Rang Mahotsav (BRM) presented a wide variety of plays in diverse language and forms. We had plays in several Indian languages as well as folk plays, and also organised allied activities. I welcome your suggestions and feedback that may help improve the quality of the festival in coming days,” said Shri Suresh Sharma, director in-charge, National School of Drama. The closing ceremony was followed by a bilingual play ‘Dhumrapaan’ directed by Akarsh Khurana and performed by the group ‘D for Drama.’