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Bengali Theatre
Bengali theatre primarily refers to theatre performed in the Bengali language. Bengali theatre is produced mainly in West Bengal, and in Bangladesh. The term may also refer to some Hindi theatres which are accepted by the Bengali people. Bengali theatre has its origins in British rule. It began as private entertainment in the early 19th century. In the pre-independence period, Bengali theatres played a pivotal role in manifesting dislike of the British Raj. After the independence of India in 1947, leftist movements in West Bengal used theatre as a tool for social awareness. This added some unique characteristics to the art form that still have strong effects. These groups differentiate themselves ideologically from commercial Bengali theatre. Types The many theatres in West Bengal can be broadly divided into Kolkata-based theatres and rural theatres. Outside Bengali-speaking areas, the term "Bengali theatre" primarily refers to Kolkata-based groups, as the rural theatres ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nabanna Bengali Theatre Scene
''Nobanno'' (, Nobānno; lit: New Feast) is a Bengali people, Bengali harvest celebration usually celebrated with food and dance and music in Bangladesh and in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam's Barak Valley. It is a festival of food; many local preparations of Bengali cuisine like pitha are cooked. Celebration The festival is celebrated with mela which are called Nabanna Mela. The villagers and locals from both the major religious groups join the festival with equal participation. The festival gets a lot of support from the Creativity, creative army of Culture of Bengal, Bengali culture. Several poets, musicians, baul and painters flock to such mass gatherings. There is a famous play written on nabanna by Bijon Bhattacharya which depicts the sad incident of the great Bengal famine of 1943, Bengal Famine of 1943. Nowadays the Festival "Nabanna" is celebrated every Bengali year (1st day of Agrahayan) in Dhaka, organised by Jatiya Nabanna Utshab Udjapan Parsh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. (subscription required) Although the terms "Indian subcontinent" and "South Asia" are often also used interchangeably to denote a wider region which includes, in addition, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, the "Indian subcontinent" is more of a geophysical term, whereas "South Asia" is more geopolitical. "South Asia" frequently also includes Afghanistan, which is not considered part of the subcontinent even in extended usage.Jim Norwine & Alfonso González, ''The Third World: states of mind and being'', pages 209, Taylor & Francis, 1988, Quote: ""The term "South Asia" also signifies the Indian Subcontinent""Raj S. Bhopal, ''Ethnicity, race, and health in multicultural societies'', pages 33, Oxford University Press, 2007, ; Q ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sisir Bhaduri
Shishir Kumar Bhaduri or Sisir Kumar Bhaduri (2 October 1889 – 30 June 1959) was an Indian stage actor and theatre founder, commonly referred to as the pioneer of modern Bengali theatre. He was an actor, director, playwright and scenic designer. After Girish Chandra Ghosh, he introduced realism and naturalism in Indian theatre. Life Born in Midnapore, West Bengal, he studied at Scottish Church College Kolkata, where he began participating in theatre. He was also a professor of Metropolitan College (today's Vidyasagar College). In 1921, he left his job to become a full-time stage actor. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honour by the Government of India in 1959. He refused the award, saying that if he accepted it would send a wrong signal that the Government has helped to promote theatre culture in the country. The 2013 play ''Nihsanga Samrat,'' directed by Debesh Chattopadhyay, is based on the 2005 Bengali novel of the same name, writt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asit Bandopadhyay
Asit Bandopadhyay (or Banerjee) (1936 – 17 September 2020) was a Bengali playwright, screenwriter, actor and director. He was associated with the Nandikar theater group. He lived and worked in Kolkata, India. Early life and theatre He developed an interest in drama as a student in Kolkata's Manindra Chandra College, an affiliated undergraduate college of the University of Calcutta, in 1955. He joined the drama group Bohurupee as a trainee in 1959 and completed a year's course under the tutelage of Sambhu Mitra. At maternal uncle's house of Asit Banerjee at B K Pal Avenue, in presence of Ajitesh Banerjee and some friends Dipen Sen Gupta, Satyen Mitra, Mahesh Singha, Asit Banerjee co-founded 'Nandikar' on June 29, 1960. Members of the party's first executive committee were elected: President Ajitesh Banerjee & Secretary Asit Banerjee. Nandikar and Mitra Sammilani From 1960 to 1972, he was involved with Nandikar in all of his early productions, including six characters in sear ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ajitesh Bandopadhyay
Ajitesh Bandopadhyay (; born: 30 September 1933 ― 13 October 1983) was an Indian actor, playwright, activist and director. He along with Shambhu Mitra and Utpal Dutt are considered to be the doyens of Bengali theatre of the post - Independence era. Early life He was born as Ajit, at Ropogram in Purulia District, West Bengal at his maternal uncle's house. His native village was Kenda situated in the Raniganj region of Paschim Bardhaman district, West Bengal. He was the eldest son of coal miner Bhubhanmohan and Lakshmirani. Having graduated from Maharaja Manindra Chandra College, Kolkata, he taught for a few years in the same college and in South Point School before plunging himself into the world of theatre by joining the '' Nandikar'' group in 1960. Theatre Before joining '' Nandikar'', he had been in close touch with the IPTA (''Indian Peoples' Theatre Association'') and was both directing and performing a number of its stage productions. While with '' Nandikar'', A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nidhu Babu
Ramnidhi Gupta () (1741– 6 April 1839), commonly known as Nidhu Babu, was one of the reformers of Bengali '' tappā'' music. Nidhu Babu was born in Chapta, Hooghly District at his maternal uncle's house.Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan by Anjali Bose, 1960, p. 259 His ancestral house was at Kumartuli in North Kolkata,Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan by Anjali Bose, 1960, p. 259 where he grew up learning Persian and some English. Little is known about his upbringing, but by 1776 he had become a clerk in the office of the Chhapra Collectorate.Chakrabarty, Ramakanta. ''Nidhu Babu and his Tappā.'' Published in Banerjee, Jayasri (ed.), ''The Music of Bengal''. Baroda: Indian Musicological Society, 1987. In Chhapra, Nidhu Babu found a Muslim ''ustad'' to train him in the techniques of a formal ''gharana'', or school of musical thought. However, he soon became fed up with his method of teaching, and decided to independently translate Hindi music into Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Ben ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tappā
Tappa is a form of Indian semi-classical vocal music. Its specialty is a rolling pace based on fast, subtle and knotty construction. Its tunes are melodious and sweet, and depict the emotional outbursts of a lover. Tappe (plural) were sung mostly by songstresses, known as baigees, in royal courts. History Tappa originated from the folk songs of the camel riders in Punjab. The tappa style of music was refined and introduced to the imperial court of the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah, and later by Mian Ghulam Nabi Shori or Shori Mian, a court singer of Asaf-Ud-Dowlah, Nawab of Awadh. In Bengal, Ramnidhi Gupta, Shibangshu De ( known as real powerhouse of "Tappa") & Kalidas Chattopadhyay composed Bengali tappa and they are called Nidhu Babu's Tappa. Tappa ''gayaki'' took new shape and over decades became ''puratani'', a semi-classical form of Bengali songs. Tappa, as a significant genre in Bengali musical styles, reached levels of excellence in lyrics and rendition (gayaki), argua ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Girish Chandra Ghosh
Girish Chandra Ghosh (28 February 1844 – 8 February 1912) was a Bengali actor, director, and writer. He was largely responsible for the golden age of Bengali theatre.Kundu, Pranay K. ''Development of Stage and Theatre Music in Bengal.'' Published in Banerjee, Jayasri (ed.), ''The Music of Bengal''. Baroda: Indian Musicological Society, 1987. He cofounded the Great National Theatre, the first Bengali professional theatre company in 1872, wrote nearly 40 plays and acted and directed many more, and later in life became a noted householder disciple of Sri Ramakrishna. Biography Early days Born in Bagbazar, Kolkata, on 28 February 1844, the eighth child to his parents Nilkamal and Raimani, he received his early education at Oriental Seminary, and later studied at Hare School in the city but did not complete his education. His father Nilkamal Ghosh was a generous and kind-hearted person, and Girish retained some of his father's large heartedness. Girish said of his parents, "My ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bengali Music
Bengali music () comprises a long tradition of religious and secular song-writing over a period of almost a millennium. Composed with lyrics in the Bengali language, Bengali music spans a wide variety of styles. History The earliest music in Bengal was influenced by Sanskrit chants, and evolved under the influence of Vaishnav poetry such as the 13th-century '' Gitagovindam'' by Jayadeva, whose work continues to be sung in many eastern Hindu temples. The Middle Ages saw a mixture of Hindu and Islamic trends when the musical tradition was formalized under the patronage of Sultan and Nawabs and the powerful landlords '' baro bhuiyans''. The earliest record of Sufism in Bengal goes back to 11th century AD in connection with the continuation of Sufism in northern India. Shah Sultan Rumi was the first Sufi to come to Bengal, when he came to Mymensingh in 1053 AD.Sufism not only helped in the spread of Islam in Bengal, but also contributed to the eventual creation of a Musli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nemesis (Momen Play)
''Nemesis'' () is a play written by Natyaguru Nurul Momen, considered one of the most successful experimental plays in Bengali theatre. It is a play with only one character, written in 1944 and published in the acclaimed literary journal "Shonibarer Chithi" in 1945 & as a book in 1948. ''Nemesis'', a tragedy, set a milestone in the history of Bengali literature because of its unique feature and modern plot. National professor of Bangladesh Kabir Chowdhury explains, “Nemesis is his (Nurul Momen's) most famous work. It is an experimental drama where through dialogues the main and only character remembers his past. It shows how a promising personality falls prey to greed and loses his morality. Though it is a play based on one actor, the scope of the plot is wide and a number of other characters come in through the main character's reminiscences.” It was also the first experimental Bengali play, as ''Nemesis'' contains only one character. This experiment was done earlier than Nur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
