Books of play on the wane
Though sharp dialogues and intensity of characters of a play can leave any audience captivated, how many read this specific mode of fiction that is represented through a theatrical performance?
The number is quite few and that also became apparent in this year's Ekushey book fair.
“Only those involved in theatre buy the prose,” said Sohel Khandaker, publisher of Bhasachitra.
In the 663 book stalls set up this year, it is easy to find most of the genres of literature, except for the plays.
People mostly buy novels, poetry or short stories these days, said many publishers, adding, there was a time writings of playwrights Munier Choudhury or Selim Al Deen were in high demand.
Last year, Bangla Academy announced its Sahitya Puraskar in seven categories but playwriting was not one of them.
Though a stall named “Theatre” keeps collections of plays and literature based on it, most of them are edited versions of old classics.
Playwrights focus on writing scripts for theatre or television, instead of publishing those in a book format, they said, adding, which is one of the reasons behind the decline of this mode of literature.
Only handful of publications brought out plays this year. “Charti Natok” by Usuf Hasan Arka, “Tinti Natok” by Baker Bokul, “Dosti Onubad Natok” by Sahadat Rumon, “Collection of Plays by Masum Reza”, “Duti Natok” by Shadhona Ahmed and “Tinti Natok” by Suvash Sinha were published by Bhasachitra.
Safwan Mahmud, a student of the department of theatre and performance studies at Dhaka University, was going through some of the new ones at the stall. “People just want to see the plays and writers are more interested in other genres of literature.” Plays must be read to appreciate them to the full extent, he added.
“While reading, imagination has no bounds,” said litterateur Anisul Hoque, highlighting the importance of reading. He said if the plays are read, the habit of reading will flourish and it will also help the development of this art form.
Shahman Moishan, assistant professor, department of theatre and performance studies at DU, who published a play titled “Oses Kritto” last year at the fair, said, “Organisations like Shilpakala and Bangla academies should come forward to encourage young playwrights and engage the readers.”
“Bangla Academy should play the leading role regarding this and hold dialogues with playwrights and theatre personalities on a regular basis.”
Inclusion of plays in the textbooks will create an interest for this genre of literature, emphasised Shaman.
“All of us need to come forward for the betterment of this genre,” said Prof Shamsuzzaman Khan, director general of Bangla Academy. “We will extend our help if playwrights and theatre personalities reach out to us.”
On the 12th day, 96 books arrived and 31 were unveiled.
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