Theatre Factory reimagines Jibanananda Das in ‘Komola Rong er Bodh’

Theatre Factory is set to bring legendary poet Jibanananda Das to the stage with their new production "Komola Rong er Bodh", a play based on the poet's life and literary legacy. Written and directed by Alok Basu, the play will have its grand opening at Bangladesh Mohila Samity auditorium in the capital's Bailey Road on Friday at 6:30pm, as part of the ongoing "Jibanananda Natya Utsab".

The play will be performed eight times over two phases. The first phase kicks off this weekend, with four back-to-back shows: Friday evening, Saturday at 7pm, and two shows on Sunday at 5pm and 7:30pm. Theatre Factory has yet to announce the dates for the second phase, which will be held about a week and a half later.

According to Theatre Factory, "Komola Rong er Bodh" brings both the man and the poet — Jibanananda Das — onto the stage, hand in hand. 

The cast includes depictions of key figures from his life, such as Labanyaprabha Das, Shovona Das, Kusumkumari Das, Satyananda Das, Sucharita, Buddhadeva Bose, Achintya Kumar Sengupta, Shamsuddin Abul Kalam, and Manjushree Das.

Performers bringing these characters to life include Dipu Mahmud, Arif Anwar, KM Hasan, Asha Akter, Munmun Khan, Aklima Akter, Subhash Sarkar, Bipasha Said, Saraf Nawar Shayira, Shantanu Ihsan, Mrinmoy Chowdhury, Hasib Haque, Rabiul Islam Rajib, Nowrin Papri, Shishir Bindu, and Surjo Sarkar.

The creative team behind the production features Thandu Raihan on lighting design, Mohsina Akter for costume design, Ramiz Raju for music, Shakil Siddhartha for set design, and Aminul Ashraf overseeing choreography.

The story begins on October 14, 1954, when Jibanananda Das was gravely injured in a tram accident in Kolkata. The play then journeys through the final nine days of his life, as he lay in Sambhunath Pandit Hospital, facing his dreams, visions, philosophies, and realities from the edge of life. He passed away on October 22, 1954, leaving behind a world he so intimately captured in his poetry.

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