18th National Theatre Festival kickstarts with Rangkarmi Samman 2012

Shri Arun Pandey receiving the award

18th National Theatre Festival 2012 was inaugurated by Shri Satyadev Tripathi and Shri Hrishikesh Sulabh, at the Town Hall Grounds on 11th January 2012. The ceremony was also graced with the presence of Shri Arun Pandey and Shri Mumtaj Bharti - IPTA Raigarh's veteran member. The festival this year would witness plays from Jabalpur, Kolkata, Dongargarh, Begusarai and Raigarh. The five day festival would conclude on the 15th January.

The 'Sharadchandra Vairagkar Rangkarmi Samman 2012' was conferred to Shri Arun Pandey, for the immense contribution to the field of theatre for the last 35 years. He has also been very closely associated with IPTA, Raigarh since 1994, where he began the chain of theatre workshops, which led to a refurbishment of the unit making it one of the most active in the country. IPTA Raigarh also considers him as one of the biggest milestones in their journey to achieve excellence in the field of theatre and art.

The award consists of a Memento, an honorarium of Rs 21,000 along with a shawl and 'shreephal' as token of our deep appreciation. The award was conferred in the memory of veteran theatre activist Late Shri Sharadchandra Vairagkar. This award was presented by Shri Satyadev Tripathi and Shri Hrishikesh Sulabh.

The selection committee for this award consists of Shri Satyadev Tripathi, Shri Hrishikesh Sulab, Shri Rakesh, Shri Ajay Athaley and Shri Vinod Bohidar.

The festival will continue to raise questions and provide food for thought, for the people of Raigarh, as they come and relish these enriching plays in extremely cold and rigid weather. Shri Hrishikesh Sulabh is also our observer guest for the festival, and he will be actively involved in analysing and discussing the importance of all the plays.