ALL ABOUT CHILDREN’S POETRY AND EXPERIMENTAL THEATRE
Dramatised poetry reading for kids and an innovative use of Pandavi folk style in theatre narration were part of day 8 of HTKGAF
The Hindustan Times Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is not for adults alone, kids too have sections that are devoted for their entertainment and present them with a chance to explore new activities. The Children’s Literature Section is one such place where kids, who enjoy a good story, can discover new worlds of imagination and creativity.
At Kitaab Khana, children’s author Katie Bagli released her 16th book called On The Wild Side. Bagli introduced the book by saying, “There are 28 poems in my book and they are based on the animal and natural world. In fact, some of these are from my own life experiences.” While Bagli read her poems, The Trunk Tale and The Hunt, young girls from Funky Pathshala performed a classical Bahratanatyam dance. Later, Kabir and Akansha, also children from Funky Pathshala, did a dramatic representation of Bagli’s poems. Publisher, Anand Limaye of The Inking Innovations distributed gifts vouchers from Kitaab Khana to children, who had performed. Later, several kids queued up to get their copy of On The Wild Side signed by Bagli.
The play Vincent Van Gogh A Flashback presented by Chattisgarhi Clouds was held at Horniman Circle in the evening. Directed by Anand Pande, the play incorporated the Pandavi folk style of narration that is from Chattisgarh. Pande explains, “Usually this Pandavi folk style is used only for narrating the story of the Mahabharata. But, I decided to take a risk and use it for telling the story of Van Gough’s life. I’m quite pleased that my risk has paid off and the play is being well appreciated by audiences.”
Actor Chaitanya Athlay played Van Gough in the play and brought the passion and intensity that the role demanded. The play had glimpses of Van Gough’s life — his failure to find love, his decision to become a priest, his fall into penury, his journey to become a painter and the demons in his mind that led him to take his own life.