The three-day Nukkad Natak (roadside play), dubbed as Safdar-2007 by the members of the Safdar Hashmi drama group and sponsored by a private organization 'Prerna' opened at Gandhi Maidan in Patna on Tuesday, with several artists taking part in a play written and directed by Prerna secretary Hassan Imam.
The event was inaugurated by the general secretary of the Bihar State Ungazetted Employee Union Manjul Kumar Das who paid his tribute to Hashmi and grabbed the opportunity to criticize Bihar Art and Culture Minister Janardan Singh Sigriwal for his recent row with an artist at Bhartiya Nritya Kala Mandir.
Das also lashed out at America for the execution of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussain.
Using the play to deliver some social messages, the artists lamented the ever-growing unemployment problem in the country and widespread corruption in the selection process of job-seeking candidates in both private and government sector.
The program concluded with the speech of poet Alok Dhanwa who urged the artists to continue to oppose the onslaught on Indian culture by the modern media.
(Source-Patna Daily,02/01/07)
