Ramesh Dhiman।
The second evening of the ongoing three-day Comedy Theatre Festival-26 turned Kalagram into a lively hub of theatre, music and laughter, as a large audience from across the Chandigarh tricity gathered to enjoy an evening of Punjabi humour and theatrical entertainment.
Organised by the North Zone Cultural Centre (NZCC), Patiala, under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, the festival showcased the versatility of Indian theatre through a mix of traditional cultural expression and contemporary stage presentation.
The evening began on a serene note with a Saraswati Vandana presented by students learning vocal music at Kalagram under the aegis of the NZCC. The devotional performance set the tone for an evening that soon shifted from spiritual music to lively comedy.
The principal attraction of the evening was ‘Babe Ghaseete Di Natak Mandali’, presented by theatre artistes associated with the Central University of Punjab (CUP), Bathinda. Directed by Dr Aadish Kumar Verma, Assistant Professor in the Department of Performing and Fine Arts at the university, the production drew sustained applause from the audience.
The play is a Punjabi adaptation of William Shakespeare’s celebrated romantic comedy ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. The adaptation was written by renowned Punjabi playwright Ishwar Chand Nanda, popularly known as I. C. Nanda, who transformed Shakespeare’s world of romance, fantasy and confusion into a distinctly Punjabi theatrical setting.
While retaining the essential elements of the original story, including love, illusion, magic, mistaken identities and misunderstandings, the Punjabi version brought these themes closer to the audience through familiar social situations, local humour and culturally rooted characters.
The result was a production that combined the timeless appeal of Shakespeare with the spontaneity and earthy humour of Punjabi theatre.
The performers received an enthusiastic response for their energetic stage presence, expressive acting and sharply timed comic exchanges. Their dialogue delivery and physical performances helped sustain the pace of the production, while the interplay of music and humour added another dimension to the presentation.
The production also demonstrated how a classic work of world literature can acquire a new identity when interpreted through a regional cultural lens. Instead of simply translating Shakespeare’s comedy, the adaptation placed its central themes within a recognisably Punjabi environment, allowing the audience to connect with the story through humour, language and everyday cultural references.
The packed open-air theatre at Kalagram frequently erupted in laughter and applause as the artistes moved through the play’s comic situations. The strong audience response underlined the continuing popularity of live theatre in Chandigarh and the wider tricity region.
The festival will conclude on Sunday with another comic production, ‘Arre Sharif Log’, promising audiences an evening centred on humour and entertainment. Directed by Dr Mukesh Upadhyay and Sunil Chauhan, the play will be presented by theatre artistes from Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
With Sunday being a holiday, organisers are expecting another strong turnout for the concluding performance.
NZCC Director Dr Ashwin M. Dalvi thanked the audience for its enthusiastic participation and appealed to theatre lovers to attend the final evening of the festival. He also urged audiences to support the artistes, describing them as important ambassadors of India’s diverse cultural and theatrical traditions.
The three-day festival has once again highlighted the role of theatre in bringing audiences together while demonstrating the rich possibilities of adapting classical stories to regional languages and cultural settings.
