An inspiring tale

Gonayan's acclaimed play “Comrades Haat Namaan” drew a full house at the auditorium of District Shilpakala Academy, Chittagong on Saturday evening.
Penned by Prabir Dutta, “Comrades Haat Namaan” narrates how the members of an opera troupe seek to catalyse social change by reviving the art form. In the process they overcome many obstacles and barriers, while zooming on in labour exploitation.
The country's present political crisis and rise of communal politics were also highlighted successfully in the play, directed by Asim Das, a teacher of Dramatics Department of Chittagong University.
The use of multimedia depicting the gruesome incidents of two World Wars, Vietnam War, French Revolution, anti-British movement and Liberation War of 1971 was praiseworthy.
The use of lights and fabric in the compositions with the tune of the songs “Hai re amar mon matono”, “Amra shobai raja”, “Jodi tor dak shune” was also notable.
Theatre personality M Saiful Alam, chief of Gonyan Natya Samprodhay, told The Daily Star that Pablo Picasso's world famous painting
“Guernica” was incorporated on the sets to create an ambiance of civil war.
“We, the peace loving people of the country, do not want civil war. We want to maintain communal harmony in the country”, said Alam.
All the group members worked hard to make the play a success, said director Asim Das adding that the presence of a large audience also inspired them.
Touhid Hasan Iqbal, Bappi Haider, Anirban Bhattacharya, Mamunul Haque, Mahmudul Haque Jihad, Imran Hossain, Abir Mandal, Shawkat Ali, Nazmul Huda and Shahidul Islam enacted important roles in the play.
Famed dramatist Asim Das also planned and designed the music, sets, lights and costumes in the play.