Sankhadeep, Ujjaini and Shiladitya

The first day of Kallol Durga Puja 2012 concluded just couple of hours ago. This is a unique feature of Kallol, to celebrate Durga Puja for three days – Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Not too many Bengali clubs of North America can boast of this feature. It is more homely and informal in nature and the crowd is manageable. People walked in leisurely, picked up their passes and parking tickets and strolled into the hall while greeting friends on their way.  Pretty ladies dressed in designer saris busy complementing each other and posing in front of eager camera men,  men in colorful kurtas hanging around with tea and cigarrettes,  and children in cute dresses running around the hall made the festive mood just perfect.   Continue reading →

Ron Postcard

After a gap of more than six years, my play Ron is being staged again in New Jersey. Although this time it is produced by a mainstream American community theater company, Edison Valley Playhouse, a question may naturally arise – why now? The Iraq war, which forms the background of the play, is officially over.  America  still does have a presence in Afganistan, but its size is nowhere comparable to that in Iraq during the peak of the war, and withdrawal from Afganistan is almost imminent. America’s primary enemy, Al-Queda has been all but destroyed. Bin Laden is dead.  Although the possibility of another war is not out of question, the American people are not going through the  same levels of stress as they were during the Iraq war. Under these circumstances, is Ron still relevant?

Continue reading →

Ron: The Play

After a long gap of more than six years,  the internationally acclaimed play “Ron” is coming to NJ Stage once again. This time in English. The play, produced by Edison Valley Playhouse, will make its Tri-State premiere on Nov 9, 2012 and will have limited run till Nov 24th for 7 shows only. Show times are at 8:00pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and at 2:00pm on Sunday Nov 18th. Tickets are $15.00 each ($12 for seniors and students).

The play is written and directed by Sudipta Bhawmik, and produced by Bill Seesselberg.

The cast includes, Amitabh Chowdhury, Sankar Ghoshal, Nupur Lahiri, Apurva Bhalerao, Roni Mazumdar, Subhodev Das and Vidula Mungekar. Continue reading →