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Celebrating myriad hues of childhood
Aptly titled, Jashn-e-Bachpan, the National Theatre Festival for children, turned out to be a feast for the elders too.
Aptly titled, Jashn-e-Bachpan, the National Theatre Festival for children, turned out to be a feast for the elders too.
The festival saw children aged from five to 14 put up enthusiastic performances on Friday. While young boys performed the Dhol Kunita dance of Maharashtra, replete with the peculiar acrobatics, children from Shadipur (who were part of NSD’s summer camp) presented an African tribal dance called Sidhhi Goma.
Noted actress Sulbha De-shpande was the chief guest while Ministry of Culture Joint Secretary K. Jayakumar was the guest of honour. Actress Sushma Seth was also present on the occasion.
All the guests appreciated the zest with which the children performed, and mentioned how theatre plays a great role in bringing out the individuality and hidden talent among little ones.
Jayakumar spoke of decentralising NSD activities because he felt an institution of this stature should belong to the whole of the country and not just Delhi. “Children are an inexhaustible source of energy. I realised as much when I worked with them for 25 days for a Malayalam film. Children are a storehouse of creativity but we stuff them with knowledge and make morons out of them. That’s when they become like us — they laugh, cry and even love with great difficulty. I feel sorry when I see the education system we have. We should encourage such creative activities,” he said.
Deshpande recalled the days when she used to teach theatre to children. “There is so much that they can discover through theatre. Creative support will only help tap their talent. I wish I was a kid, I would have enjoyed this festival,” she said.
The inaugural play Hello To Myself was performed by the Theatre In Education Company, where adults acted as children. The play talked of various problems one faces in childhood. The theatre festival for children is on till November 9.