The bravery of a gang victim was portrayed wonderfully in a play ‘Hum Mukhtar’. The play was staged on the first day of National Theatre Festival at Antrang Hall, Bharat Bhavan here on Thursday.
Directed by a renowned and a distinguished theatre personality Usha Ganguli, the play was wonderfully presented by Rangkarmee Theatre Group, Kolkata.
Notably, the play is adapted from the auto biography by the gang rape victim Mukhtara Mai from Pakistan ‘In the Name of Honour — A Memoir’.
The play follows a real life incident that happened in the life of Mukhtaran of Meerwala village in southern Punjab of Pakistan. She was gang-raped by members of the powerful Mastoi clan, in 2002, on order of a village council following a family dispute.
Social taboo took it for granted and forced her to commit suicide. But Mukhtaran spoke up, filed a case and pursued it and the story was picked up by domestic and the international media.
The play opens up on a striking note with a group of young women wearing black veils (burqas), their faces veiled in black, entering the stage. An older woman with a red dupatta standing out in relief leads the group and works as both anchor and spokesperson using the Greek chorus technique.
The play emphasizes on the fact that social and intimate violence by individual or group perpetrators are not the only oppressors of women.
Ganguli has used her challenging theatrical strategies taking it to a different sphere altogether. She used the chorus as a backdrop, prop or setting to support the central subject and interaction of characters. The chorus becomes a collective voice on the dramatic action or introduced for musical support.
Through her innovations in the play and turning Mukhtara into a unified group voicing their solidarity against patriarchy made the play more appealing. The play, based on her life, captures the growing violence on women and society’s heartless attitude. With the mature acting skills of the artists, background setting and a strong concept, the play received applauses of the audiences.