Kalaburagi Rangayana’s repertory to stage Shantarasa’s novel-based play ‘Sannagowdasani’

The play ‘Sannagowdasani’, based on the acclaimed novel of the same name by renowned writer Nadoja Shantarasa, will be staged by the repertory artists of Rangayana, Kalaburagi, on August 10 at 6 p.m. and 11 at the Dr. S.M. Pandit Rangamandir in Kalaburagi.

Announcing this at a press conference at Rangayana here on Saturday, Rangayana director Sujatha Jangamshetty said the production was being organised jointly by the Department of Kannada and Culture and Rangayana, Kalaburagi.

As per the information provided by Ms. Jangamshetty, Karnataka Information Commission Chairman B. Venkata Singh will inaugurate the performances.

Joint Director of the Department of Kannada and Culture Basavaraj Hugar, Rangayana Administrative Officer Sidram Sindhe, Bagalkot Rangasamaja member Mahantesh M. Gajendragad and Kannada Prabha reporter Sheshmurthy Avadhani will be the chief guests. Playwright-adaptor Mahantesh Navalkal and director Praveen Reddy Gunjannahalli will also be present.

Writer Mahantesh Navalkal has adapted Shantarasa’s novel for the stage, while Praveen Reddy Gunjannahalli of Raichur has directed the play. Music has been composed by Raghav Kammar of Dharwad. The stage songs of Sannagowdasani and Shantarasa’s ghazals have been rendered by Raghav Kammar and his team. Rajkumar S.K. has handled the stage design and props, while Srinivas Doranahalli is in charge of lighting and has also served as co-director.

Ms. Jangamshetty said Shantarasa’s works offered a deep portrayal of rural life in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region. Sannagowdasani, while apparently narrating the story of Mehboob Jan, presents the social, political, economic and religious dimensions of village life, she said.

“The novel portrays the rivalry among village heads who stake everything for a woman, the cruelty that emerges when one loses the contest and the petty politics that disturb the lives of innocent villagers,” she said.

She said the novel presented a diverse range of characters and offered an authentic portrayal of the virtues and weaknesses of human nature. “Culture is not merely the beautiful face of life. It encompasses good and evil, truth and falsehood, social weaknesses and the complete way of life of people,” she said adding that Shantarasa’s ghazals were also incorporated into the production as a tribute to the writer.

Rangayana Administrative Officer Sidram Sindhe said Rangayana, Kalaburagi, had been established with the objective of sustaining theatre activities in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region and developing a theatre movement rooted in the region’s cultural context.

“Unlike other forms of media, theatre is a distinct and living medium. It is a matter of satisfaction that theatre is flourishing in Kalaburagi,” he said.

Following the press conference on Saturday, veteran playwright Shankarayya Ghanti released the poster of the play. A special performance of Sannagowdasani was subsequently staged for journalists.