Fiction or not, documenting life or time is a reality that cinema cannot ignore, and what can be better when the two media, theatre and cinema, come together – one performing, another documenting. The ‘Theatre-nama’ project is a blend of theatre and cinema – a docu-feature that captures the personal conflicts of the individuals of a theatre group and how and whether they manage to come to terms wi
th them. An experimental filmmaker from Kolkata comes in contact with a young and promising theatre group from the city and tries to document their journey as they gear up to put on stage one of their most challenging productions ever – a short story by renowned author Manik Bandopadhyay – Pragoitihasik (The Prehistoric). Supratim, Dhriti, Asmita - we are a group of people from varied fields of art – theatre, cinema, fine arts – who are keen on experimenting with the forms. Supratim leads a theatre group of actors who are keen to step out of their comfort zones and push the borders that define their daily lives. The group is an interesting composition – an autorisckshaw driver, a part time teacher and servicemen engaged in various field of work. For them, theatre is more than just stage, lights and action – it is a way of life. Together they have made their mark in the theatre circuit of Kolkata, proving themselves no less than any professional group. Dhriti is an independent filmmaker who is conducting a project under Jadavpur University in documenting the history of the cinema halls in Bengal. Asmita is into literature, creative writing and illustration and mainly comes into the picture at the scripting level, apart from acting as the team manager now and then. The primary objective behind this project is documenting a theatrical process to its completion, through an exploration of the individuals as well as the characters that they play. However, apart from that, this film will bring to you their stories, their struggles, fears, uncertainties, choices in life. The group’s haven is a very old theatre stage, Muktangan, which they use to block scenes, rehearse etc. Our film crew will be following them and documenting every process, capturing the camaraderie as well as the dedication the members show. But however small it is filmmaking is an expensive process. This page tells you about us, our project and also our appeal to all of you to help us financially in whatever capacity you can. By contributing you are not only becoming a part of a large team of funders who are pooling in their money to see this project take off, but also helping a struggling independent filmmaker to get his first break for a full-length docu-feature film. A part of the money will also be given to the theatre group, which will be our (society, you and us) contribution to group theatre. Help us make this project a success story...
