Journeys to democracy

Students rehearse at Arts Council. Photo courtesy: Rukunuddin Aslam

This is a unique theatre production – a combined effort written, directed and produced by students from various institutions in Lahore and Karachi, in collaboration with JAAG TAALIB E ILM a student organization promoting peace.

They promise “A theater performance the like of which Karachi has never seen. A story full of surprises, hilarity and personal tragedy. The story revolves a boy trying to find his identity in the conflicting ideologies facing our generation in this time of national turmoil.” (Tickets Rs. 250 available at Aghas and Shahbaz Subway). RSVP to the FB event.

The institutions involved are: Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), National College of Arts (NCA), National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA), Lyceum, National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture (IVSAA), College of Business Management (CBM), Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST) and Sindh Awami Sangat.

Curtain raiser in The News, Jan 19: ‘Yeh Bhi Ek Kahani Hai’ aims at solidarity

By Rafay Mahmood

Aiming for a show of solidarity for the country as it faces a plethora of problems, students from different universities and schools of Pakistan will stage a play, “Yeh Bhi Ek Kahani Hai” on January 23.

A total of 60 students from Lahore University of management Sciences (LUMS), Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST), Institute of Business Management (IoBM), National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA), National College of Arts (NCA), Indus Valley School of Arts and Architecture (IVSAA), National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Lyceum School and members of Sindh Awami Sangat have joined hands to present this play.

Written and directed by Shehzad Ghayas, an LLB student from LUMS, the play co-directed by NCA’s Ahmed Khan, is an original story based on a college student who loses his identity in search of material benefits in life and realises the gravity of situation when he becomes embroiled in the socio-political turmoil of the country.

“It is the socio-political situation that forced us to collaborate. We as students need to realise that education doesn’t end in class rooms and now it is our duty to educate and entertain the masses at our level,” Shehzad Ghayas told The News.

Although the play has a huge cast, Ghayas said that all the students worked day and night and contributed not only in the technicalities of the play but also in other departments such as PR, management, promotion and related activities.

“We all agreed on the Karachi Arts Council as the venue because the people who have performed on this platform have brought a change and created history. Apart from that, Karachi is the hub of all activities yet it is the one which is most affected by the overall unrest in the country,” Ghayas told the News.

The play is largely financed by the students themselves as there were no sponsors ready to invest in theater at this point of time in Karachi, leaving the organisers with no choice but to hold the play only for a day.

The organisers have chosen to perform the play in the outdoor auditorium as they are expecting an audience of around 1000 people. “We are getting a number of government schools and colleges on board for the project and we will be providing them tickets on subsidised rates so that the purpose of the play is achieved,” Ghayas told The News.

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Filed under: Student politics | Tagged: Arts Council Karachi, CBM, Indus Valley School art architecture, jaag talib, karachi theatre, LUMS, lyceum, NAPA, NCA, NUST, Sindh Awami Sangat, student activism, student play, szabist |