Students compete at science drama fest in the city

Ten student groups from different states of India performed at the opening day of National Science Drama Festival (NSDF) in the city on Thursday.

‘Science and technology for the benefit of mankind’ is the theme of this year’s festival. They staged plays on the history of vaccines, importance of pandemic-appropriate behaviour, urgency for sustainable development, among other subjects, at Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum on Kasturba Road.

Arundathi Nag, founder of performance venue Ranga Shankara, inaugurated the two-day festival in the presence of Samarendra Kumar, deputy director general of National Council of Science Museums, Kolkata.

Addressing the audience, she said, “We need to break superstitions. We need to question everything. We need to have a curious mind. That’s why science is important. And we need to explain science in a language everyone can understand and that’s when theatre becomes important.”

On Friday, actor-singer-writer Anirudh Jatkar will deliver the valedictory speech and distribute prizes and certificates to winners across categories like the best male actor, best female actor, best director, and best script writer.

*Public can attend Day 2 at the Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum on Kasturba Road at 3.30 pm on January 6.