Swapnadal to stage Selim Al Deen’s Hargoj

Actors of Swapnadal rehearse for the play.

Selim Al Deen's much-acclaimed play "Hargoj" will come to stage once again. This time theatre troupe Swapnadal is doing the production. Swapnadal's production will be premiered on the inaugural day of the upcoming Selim Al Deen birth anniversary celebration programme.
The celebration programme, scheduled to start on August 17, will be organised by Dhaka Theatre. Dhaka Theatre first staged "Hargoj" in the late 1990s. Al Deen penned the play in 1992, based on an experience of a devastating tornado that struck the Hargoj area under Manikganj in 1989.
The tornado shattered the bustling locale of farmers, killing hundreds of people and damaging a large part of the area.
The play follows an aid-team that arrives at the tornado-hit village and continues with a horrific depiction of the deceased hanging from trees or entangled with boats. During the rescue operation, the protagonist of the play, Abid, reaches a surreal world. Beneath the surface of this disaster, there is an indirect portrayal of mass killing, which ultimately indicates a world on the brink of destruction.
Swapnadal member Zahid Ripon is directing the play. The cast is expected to include 20 members of the troupe. The play received a grant from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.