Nepathya Rang Sammaan: Stalwarts feted for their ‘behind-the-stage’ contribution to Lucknow theatre - Hindustan Times
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Nepathya Rang Sammaan: Stalwarts feted for their ‘behind-the-stage’ contribution to Lucknow theatre

Jun 03, 2023 09:35 PM IST

The organisers of the event, which is usually held in Delhi, decided to shift the location to Lucknow this year. The decision was taken as both the awardees belong to Lucknow and have spent the majority of their theatre careers here.

LUCKNOW Stalwarts of Lucknow theatre -- Shashank Bahuguna and Atamjeet Singh -- were felicitated during the second iteration of the Nepathya Rang Sammaan Awards at the Bharatendu Natya Akademi on Saturday evening.

Raj Bisaria presenting Shashank Bahuguna with the Nepathya Rang Sammaan award at Bharatendu Natya Akademi. (HT Photo)
Raj Bisaria presenting Shashank Bahuguna with the Nepathya Rang Sammaan award at Bharatendu Natya Akademi. (HT Photo)

The organisers of the event, which is usually held in Delhi, decided to shift the location to Lucknow this year. The decision was taken as both the awardees belong to Lucknow and have spent the majority of their theatre careers here.

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Shashank Bahuguna, who has worked behind the scenes for decades, is one of the leading practitioners of psycho-physical theatre. He admitted that he is not one to ordinarily take the stage, and prefers to “stay out of the limelight”.

Bahuguna added that when it comes to psycho-physical theatre, it is about exploring the gaps in what is said and what is received. “Words keep evolving with time, and do not hold the same meaning in perpetuity -- we hide more than we reveal with our words,” said Bahuguna.

The other awardee, Atamjeet Singh, has over 50 folk theatre productions under his belt and has also earned a reputation as a playwright. Sharing anecdotes of his experiences with other directors and mentors, he said, “I have tried to be as continuous as possible in theatre, not allowing long gaps between each production that I am a part of,” he said.

“Even the compliments which I knew were empty and said just out of politeness would excite me... I was able to enthral the audience with the rendition of a song I sang in one of my very first acting roles,” said Singh. Leaving the auditorium ringing with his loud and throaty tone, the applause he got on his last note echoed across the auditorium.

Eminent theatre personality, Raj Bisaria, was the chief guest at the programme. He presented Bahuguna and Singh with the memento and a shawl in acknowledgment of their years of contribution to the field of theatre. He said that these recognitions were long overdue and that he wished he would have made the effort to do so sooner.

Dinesh Khanna, director of BNA, was also a special guest at the event. He rounded off the function by noting “Lucknow as one of the cities which have retained the soul of theatre rather than giving in to the extravagance and showmanship that has seeped into the productions of today.” The vote of thanks on the occasion was delivered by notable theatre director Surya Mohan Kulshreshtha.

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