24th Alhamra Theatre Festival

    Since Covid hit the country, theatre aspirants felt wobbled as there was no theatre and cultural activities around. After a long wait, the 24th Alhamra Theatre Festival was announced. It was postponed twice due to administrative hurdles and strict Covid-19 Sops. But somehow, Lahore Arts Council managed to pull it off.

  The 24th Alhamra Theatre Festival featured 10 dramas from renowned theatre groups at the Lahore Arts Council (Jan 31 and Feb 6), providing the people a chance for entertainment and aesthetic pleasure. The festival kicked off with the one-act romantic drama Junoon performed by Aks, a parallel theatre group from Lahore. The play is written and directed by Afzal Nabi about the global pandemic. The story revolved around an old-age couple and how their lives changed due to the pandemic.

Salamat Productions staged Hor Da Hor. The play was an adaptation of Saadat Hassan Manto’s radio play ‘Talawan’ and was translated into Punjabi by Tanveer Syed. Dastaan Hazrat-i-Insan was staged by Ghayyur Theatre and Arif Amin Dramatic(group).

Azaad Theatre's play ‘Deewana Bakar-e-Khwaish Hoshiyar’ was presented. The play was written by Rafi Pirzada and directed by Nadeem Abbas. In the play, the bitter realities of life were presented in a light-hearted manner of comedy.

The Maas Foundation presented Parmeshwar Singh. Its performance is a treat for all those Theatre lovers who strongly believe in interfaith and harmony. It is a story of a Muslim boy who gets separated from his mother during the partition of India and Pakistan. 

Ajoka Theatre presented the play Lappar. The play is about prejudice against girls. It was performed in signature Ajoka style while addressing serious issues in an artistic and entertaining way. Lappar has songs and satire to amuse the audience.

Diwana-Bakaar-e-Khesh-Hoshiar was originally written as a radio play by Rafi Peerzada in Urdu, then translated into Punjabi and made into a stage play by his son Imran Peerzada. First performed in 2011, the play was staged thrice at Alhamra in Lahore. It was based on a radio drama, and the script was instrumental in carrying various interpretations and stage techniques. Apart from that Sanwri play by the Norton Theatre, Meda Ishq v Tu by Creators Productions, Shah Hussain Madho Laal by Dolphin Communications, and Ye Bhi Koi Zindagi Hy by Sangeet Theatre were part of the festival. 

All the plays were written, produced, and performed well. Without any doubt, it was a big achievement on the council's behalf on organizing such a successful entertainment - filled drama festival. Hopefully, it won’t stop here…