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Jail inmates stage a coup of sorts, form touring theatre group

Route to reformation
Last Updated 07 February 2015, 21:12 IST

While it is common to see music bands touring the State or country, very rarely does one hear about tours by a theatre troupe. Rarer still is a tour by a theatre troupe comprising of jail inmates. But there is a first for everything.

In a joint effort by the Department of Prisons and Sankalpa, an amateur theatre group working with prison inmates, ‘Jailininda jailige Rangayatre’ (theatrical journey from prison to prison) has been formed.

The troupe, comprising prison inmates, will tour the State and perform plays for two months. Such a tour is being organised for the first time in the State.

The Rangayatre will kick off with the performance of ‘Jathegiruvavanu Chandira,’ a play by Jayanth Kaikini and directed by Hulagappa Kattimani, at Rangayana in Mysuru on Sunday.

The troupe will perform for three more days in the city, before heading to perform in Bengaluru between February 22 and 25. After this, the troupe will head to Udupi and Dharwad. The other centres are yet to be finalised.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, Kattimani, director of Sankalpa, said that the State government had sanctioned Rs 30 lakh to cover the expenses during the tour that will last two months.

“A play will cost at least Rs one lakh for basic preparations. Food, accommodation, travel and royalty for other artistes and technicians will be covered,” he said.

Apart from ‘Jathegiruvavanu Chandira’, ‘Shandilya Prahasana’, authored by K V Subbanna and directed by Jeevankumar Heggade, ‘Huliya Neralu’, authored by Chandrashekhara Kambara and directed by Ganapathi Gowda and ‘Maaranayaka’, a Shakespearean adaptation directed by Kattimani, will be performed.

The troupe has inmates from Bengaluru, Mysuru and Dharwad prisons. “While the plays will be performed at theatres in the cities, there are also plans to perform them for jail inmates.

Rehearsals for all plays will be done at the nearby prisons,” he said. All required permissions for the tour have been taken from the department concerned, he said.

He said that Sankalpa had been working with prisoners for the past 19 years and had performed over 150 times. During the period, 17 plays were staged by prison inmates. However, an opportunity to perform across the State, at a stretch, was unprecedented, he said.

Sankalpa, he said, was trying to ease the mechanised life of inmates inside the four walls and introduce music and theatre to them. It would also help in bringing the inmates to the mainstream and help them make amends for the wrongs of their past.

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(Published 07 February 2015, 21:12 IST)

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