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'71 in Silence

সুন্দরম প্রযোজনা

Written by: Ashik Sumon
Direction: Samiun Jahan Dola

Sundaram

Sundaram is a creative arts practice center for the disabled which was established in Dhaka in 2019. At present, eight Sundarams have been established in 8 divisions in the country – Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Barisal, Khulna and Mymensingh. People with physical, visual and speech-hearing disabilities are constantly engaged in creative work through various trainings.

‘Sundaram’ was born as part of the continuation of the theater practice for the disabled in 2013, a joint initiative of Dhaka Theater and the British Council. The main objective of Sundaram is to integrate the disabled population of the country into mainstream cultural and social activities. In this way, the common misconceptions and thoughts about the disabled in the society will be removed. The main goal of Sundaram is to facilitate the development of creativity by training disabled artists in various fields according to their intellectual and physical abilities.

State and social structures are still not disability friendly. To make the larger population of the country aware and empathetic about the disabled and to develop disability-friendly facilities across the country. And in the process creating an inclusive society where people thrive as human beings, regardless of their handicaps.

British Council

The British Council is an international organization of the United Kingdom working on cultural relations and educational opportunities around the world. We work to build connections, understanding and trust between the people of the UK and those of other countries through arts, culture, the English language and education. Last year we reached 80 million people directly and 791 million people overall through online, broadcast and various publications. A UK based charity run by the British Council Royal Charter UK public body established in 1934. We get 15 percent grant aid from the UK government.

Director

Ramesh Meyyappan

Ramesh Meiyappan is a Glasgow-based speech and hearing impaired stage playwright. he Exceptional presentation by combining visual and physical theater styles at the same time are doing He has been working for a long time with an experimental staging style.

The Words of The Director

I first came to Bangladesh in December 2021. Then sign language to me The “correct” name of Bangladesh is shown. All names in sign language have meaning, here too He was no exception. The emotion that was working to convey the meaning of the name through gestures The emotion was like a complete lesson in history I am from ’71 AT | But those who work with I was doing, their interest in telling the story of the liberation war and their interest in knowing more about it I was not surprised This group’s presentation is about the history of 1971, liberation war, suffering, genocide Expression of their understanding They want to highlight Bengali victims of double discrimination Women’s stories Again after being raped by the Pakistani occupation forces Deprived by the people of his own society. These women are the most vulnerable in times of war Passion was visible throughout the process of innovation and development amid the dramatization. of this group There was a story to tell and the theatrical form we were able to explore, through that We found the message of their heart that we tried to tell the physical story Power is visible here. This team is very brave They can take risks. one at the same time Strong genre masters worked hard to present the stories in their entirety. I thank British Council and Dhaka Theatre Here, in Bangladesh (world (as elsewhere) many of the speech-impaired and other disabled people I don’t think the opportunities to say anything are there yet But I I understand from this troupe that they are perceived as disabled people Where is WT BT in society. It is with this observation that I British Council and Dhaka Kudos to the theater for taking such a ‘risk’ Standing against the mainstream For such a brave step, and for these people to get their rights To give a chance I hope that many here renew this group Watch with awareness, may their journey continue and their voice be heard reaches (and is visible).

Drama

'71 in Silence

Naishabde ’71 is a kind of silent theater in which the history of the birth of Bangladesh is staged by presenting the story of how Bangladesh was before the war, how the war started and the consequences of the war. The ‘Physical Storytelling’ technique has been used in staging the play. Physical storytelling is largely an abstract genre that differs from conventional staging styles, and such storytelling emphasizes ‘improvisational’ dramaturgy. The Naishabde ’71 drama did not have any specific dialogues. Therefore, in experimental dramas, the story is presented in acting through the gestures of these artists. Speech and hearing impaired and visually impaired artistes staged the play with dedicated acting style. The staging of Naishabde ’71 showcased the talent of artists with special needs through different styles of acting on stage, which is quite unique in the staging context of the country and added a new dimension to our theater scene.

On The Stage

Morshed Mia
Rabbi Mia
Runa Parveen
Md. Delwar Hossain
Noor Mohammad
Lovely Khatun
Palash Kumar
Md. Raju Ahmed
Md. Taunik Chowdhury
Odhikangsho Borsha Khatun
Arif Abdullah
Md. Osman Ullah
Rumana Akhter
Md. Shahadat Saroyar
Md. Jasim Uddin Khan

Behind the scenes

Director: Ramesh Meiyappan
Assistant Director: Esha Yusuf, Rafiqul Islam, Saud Chowdhury
Light Design : Wasim Ahmed
Music and Sound Design : Arif Abdullah, Waheed Ansar Hillol
Dress: Enam Saki Tara
Props : Waheed Ansar Hillol

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