Theatre Charonik to stage ‘Kaljatra’ at Shilpakala next week

Theatre Charonik is set to stage its sixth production, “Kaljatra: Ekti Nishiddho Janazar Golpo” at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy’s Studio Theatre Hall on September 16 at 7pm. The second show will be held at the same venue and time on September 17.

Written by Mahfuza Hilali and directed by Shyamin Sagar, the production features a solo performance by Safia Khandaker Rekha.

The play centres on Kumkum, whose mother, Princess Mahima, was a celebrated jatra performer who portrayed Sita, Draupadi and Behula on stage. After Mahima’s death, Kumkum is left with her mother’s final wish — to have a janaza.

As Kumkum tries to fulfil that wish, she encounters barriers shaped by religious rules, social restrictions and invisible structures of power. The play explores how identity, fear and social prohibitions can become barriers as formidable as physical walls.

Mahima’s stage life repeatedly resurfaces through Kumkum’s memories, bringing the characters she once portrayed into the present. Draupadi’s questions, Behula’s long wait and Sita’s trial by fire blur the boundary between theatrical performance and lived reality.

Writer of the play, Hilali said the production examines the neglect, discrimination and oppression faced by artists, particularly women artists, despite there being no reason for gender-based distinctions within the arts.

Director of the play, Sagar said the play does not seek to put any religion on trial, but instead questions the power, narrow-mindedness, fear and cruelty created by people in the name of religion.

The production is the sixth by Theatre Charonik.