why to have a blog of my own ? I am struggling to figure out the answer.Till I have one, here are some of my direction less thoughts .....

Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Halla Bol !



He was killed while staging one of his well known plays. He was killed by some people who did not like his political theatres. He is Safdar Hasmi.
For a living, Safdar taught English literature in the University of Delhi but from his heart he was a political activist with communist ideology. Street play was the medium extensively used by Hashmi to reach the mass and during his life time he scripted and acted in a number of street plays staged in slums of Delhi as well as other part of country. Safdar was murdered by some political party workers while he was staging a play in a village near Ghaziabad. The plays staged by Safdar were a reflection of contemporary political scenario and were very well written to be able to leave an impression on the mind of audience. Attack on his troupe demonstrates the strength of street play as a medium to mobilize people and to be able to influence the power structuration in society. Hashmi was associated with IPTA and also worked with Habib Tanvir – a renowned theatre artist.( For starters, Habib Tanveer played the role of Madhuri Dixit’s father-in-law in the movie “Prahar”). It is inspiring to think of the courage and commitment that people like Hashmi had.
Safdar was killed while he was performing a play, “Halla Bol !”

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