Dastaan 2016: A Treat for Theater Aficionados at St. Stephen's College - DU Beat - Delhi University's Independent Student Newspaper

Sabha, the multilingual dramatics society at St. Stephen’s College, organised its annual four-day theater festival, Dastaan, from the 19^th to the 23^rd of February. The riot of energy and colour kick-started on the 19^th with a performance of ‘Dastaan-e-Bhookh,’ an absurdist play performed by the acclaimed theater group, Third Space Collective. The play is an adaptation of Sam Shepard’s ‘Curse of the Starving Class’ which takes us into the hearts and minds of a squabbling family. The performance was followed by an interactive session with the director, Dhwani Vij, and the cast and crew of the play, who gave us valuable insights into the thought process that went into the making of the play and its minute details.

The second day of Dastaan 2016 saw 12 street play teams from across Delhi battle it out ian a street play competition, ‘Anhad.’ The infectious enthusiasm that the teams exuded kept the audience glued to the circle that forms around the performers in a street play. Addressing several pertinent social issues like medical negligence, freedom of expression and homophobia, the street play teams from various colleges kept the lawns at St.Stephen’s pulsating with energy.

Hansraj Dramatics Society at Dastaan| Image by Vegh Daswani — Hansraj Dramatics Society | Image by Vegh Daswani

The competition was judged by Mr. Nishant Aggarwal from Asmita theater group, and Mr. Anish Singh, both experienced theater personalities, who shared their valuable feedback with the teams. The team from Kalindi College walked away with the first position, with Hindu College coming second and Motilal Nehru College taking third place.

Images by Vegh Daswani for DU Beat

Dastaan culminated with ‘Bhaasha,’ a multilingual one-act stage play competition that saw participation from 10 colleges across Delhi, over the two days of the competition. From those that delved into the philosophical aspects of human life and its complexities, to some that were sheer entertainment, the plays were an interesting amalgamation of characters, plots and sets.

Images by Snigdha for DU Beat

Ramjas College secured the prize for the best play for their production ‘Deluxe Hair Cutting Salon,’ with Shivaji College taking second place. Kirorimal College and SGTB Khalsa received special mentions.

Dastaan 2016 concluded with a resounding success, having provided a 4-day feast for theatre aficionados, while simultaneously encouraging theatre at the college level.