Barnala: In the heart of Punjab’s Malwa region, a small-town stage that once defied terrorism and monsoon floods is preparing to lift the curtain on nearly half a century of dramatic history.The 48th annual Naat Mela theatre festival returns to Barnala next week, running from Jan 30 to Feb 1. What began in 1977 as a grassroots attempt to bring culture to a region starved of recreation has evolved into one of North India’s most resilient cultural institutions, Punjab’s cultural pillar that refused to go dark during the state’s most turbulent decades. The famous faces who got their start in its spotlights include chief minister Bhagwant Mann.A Legacy Forged in DefianceThe festival’s survival is a testament to the grit of the local community. Emerging just after the lifting of the national Emergency in 1977, the Naat Mela became a fixture of the Malwa hinterland. Even during the peak of Punjab’s terrorism period in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the lights at the Maha Shakti Kala Mandir venue never dimmed.Organisers recall a pivotal moment in 1992 when the local administration, citing the height of civil unrest, admitted it could not provide security and advised against holding the event. “The performers from Punjab and Haryana told us they were willing to take the stage even without security,” organisers said. “That courage emboldened us. When the administration saw that enthusiasm, they relented and allowed the plays to proceed.“From Humble Roots to Political HeightsThe Naat Mela has served as a primary incubator for talent that now leads the state. Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann was once a regular fixture on this stage, performing as a comedian and singer long before his political ascent. Other notable alumni include comedian Rana Ranbir and prominent arts personality Nirmal Jaura.In its early years, the festival was a raw, communal effort, known for improvisation, endurance, and dedication. When the inaugural team cancelled at the last minute in 1977, founders rushed 30 km to Rampura Phul to recruit a replacement troupe just hours before showtime. Before the auditorium was covered a decade ago, artists and audiences braved the bitter Feb cold by bringing their own quilts and sleeping bags. In the early 1990s, after torrential rains flooded the open-air Ramlila stage, performers spent an entire day using buckets to drain the venue manually so the show could go on that night.‘A Mirror to Society’Barnala had writers, but it lacked a voice for stage art, said Anil Dutt Sharma, a senior member of the Maha Shakti Kala Mandir, recalling how local SD College lecturers Jai Parkash Garg and N D Sharma, accountant Kaur Sain Garg, Sham Sundar, Sat Bhushan Goyal, and others got together in 1977 and decided to organise a theatre festival, its repertoire born from the region’s scars. Anil said: “The echoes of the 1947 partition, the rise of Naxalism, and the emergency provided the fodder for our plays. It wasn’t just entertainment; it was a way for people to process what they had lived through.”The Modern FestivalInitially an invitational event, the Naat Mela transitioned into a competitive format in the 1980s. Today, it attracts theatre troupes from as far as Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh. The upcoming three-day edition will feature a mix of formal stage plays and ‘nukkad nataks’ (street plays) performed throughout the town, continuing a journey that has transformed a small-town gathering into a national beacon for the performing arts. MSID:: 127466903 413 |
