Prutha Goa

Goa has talent bursting at its seams, and this is no secret. Unfortunately, in the sphere of drama enough of it has not been tapped. The reason for this is not a dearth of avenues, but rather the unwillingness of parents to permit their children to explore this area as a career option has been a stumbling block. In 1987, Kala Academy decided to start the School of Drama, initially called the Theatre Art Faculty, under the direction of S B Josalkar. The motivation was to secure talent in theatre and mould it according to its capabilities. The Director of the School of Drama, Mrs Padmashree Josalkar tells us, ‘Kala Academy invited my husband and me to come here. Before that we were in Delhi. My husband was in the Repertory Company of the National School of Drama and I was teaching at the Sardar Patel Vidyalaya as a drama teacher.’ S B Josalkar, a Goan by birth, had received a scholarship to the National School of Drama. It is no surprise then that he returned to his home state to give Go

Street plays have their origin in the effort to find a voice for the people by the people. An age old art form that existed eons before the more structured and regimented form of theatre came into existence, street plays made an effortless comeback on the performing arts scene in India, prominently during the era of the freedom struggle. This form of theatre requires the bare minimum of props and targets mostly a non-paying audience. Since electronic amplification is not a choice, voice optimisation is something every actor has to practise. With themes pertaining to the daily lives of people, street plays function as an efficacious wake-up call to the slumbering public amidst the tumult of corruption and social degradation. Konkani street play producers have carved a niche for themselves in developing this medium first and foremost for the promulgation of the language in the state of Goa. This direly needed recognition of the significance of Goa’s mother tongue has been provided by col