With participants from leading theatre groups of Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kashmir and West Bengal, as well as troupes from Sweden and Bangladesh, Nandikar’s 24th Theatre Festival included laudable plays in several Indian languages and English, thus upholding the multi-lingual heritage of India. A review by Coordinators.
Pil-Pil-Pil: Pil-Pil-Pil performed by the juniors of the Nandikar theatre group, was perhaps the most entertaining and the best play in the festival. Children between the ages of 3-9 performed in this play written by Satyajit Ray. The kids dressed as cats, ants, parrots and ducks delivered their dialogues with such mastery that one could not help but be impressed by their confident performance. Yet it would be wrong to consider this play childish. This play too like its predecessor harped on the importance of education and also that of unity. This play urged the grown ups not to curb the freedom of the young ones while giving them education. The children should always have the right to do things their own way and parents should always encourage them in doing so, this was Pil-pil-pil’s message to the audience.