Mohan Rakesh’s ‘Ashadh Ka Ek Din’, considered to be the first modern Hindi play, was staged on the concluding day of ‘Trikuta Natya Utsav’ Festival of Plays. The event was organised by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University at Matrika Auditorium.
The play was presented by ‘The Performers’ under the direction of Vijay Goswami. It revolves around Kalidas and his muse Mallika whom he abandons in his quest for fame and recognition.Dogri writer and Padma Shri awardee Mohan Singh was the chief guest while Shashi Rattan and Lalit Gupta were guests of honour on the occasion. The event was attended by Registrar, Nagendra Singh Jamwal, deans, directors, faculty staff and students.
The performance saw competent performances by amateur actors who were driven by a passion for theatre. Nisha impressed as Mallika while Neha Lahotra exhibited her acting skills as Ambika.Manoj Bhat gave a striking performance as Kalidas with steady dialogue delivery and measured movements. Vijay Goswami as Vilom brought out the feud between the two poets and stole the show in the concluding scene.
Other members of the cast who gave good performances included Tapeshwar Dutta as Matul, Ravinder Manhas as Dantul, Ashish Sharma as Nikshep, Karishma as Rangini, Saugandhi as Sangini, Ridhim as Priyangumanjari, Pradeep Sharma as Anuswar and Gaurav Sharma as Anunasik.
Dr Rakesh and Dr Kamni from Board of Cultural Activities (BCA) appreciated the theme of the play. The Theatre festival was dedicated to Late Kavi Rattan who was a noted theatre personality and first graduate from National School of Drama from Jammu region.