HYDERABAD: They don’t just attend classes and work towards finishing their projects in the college, but the students of Institute of Management Technology, Hyderabad have carved a niche by having their own theatre group named Navrang. Like the name of the theatre group, its members bring different aura on the stage.
In order to give cultural exposure to the students, the theatre group was started in 2011. Though initially Navrang performed only in the college fests, gradually it began audience outside the college as well. Last year they performed at Lamakaan.
“We performed at events held in our college. But in December 2013, we thought that we should also perform in the city too. We staged ‘Waiting For Godot’”, says Esma Siddiqui, a second year student at IMT and one of the directors of the play.
In their recent stint, the team enacted ‘9 Ways To Screw College Interview’ which defined words like mayhem, political intrigue, lucrative business, secret assignations, and of course a surprise end very well. This play is a shorter version of a play called ‘14 More Ways To Screw College Interview’ written by Ian McWethy. It is a short comedy play where the dean orders two college recruiters to find another student to fill the next year’s class.
Like the original play, the one performed by IMT students was also packed with wacky characters. The play is a humorous ride through the college admission process as the two recruiters sort through the crazies in the hope of finding one sane candidate. The students portrayed how a college interview can be ruined and they sure did a thorough job of it.
The actors managed to grab audience’s attention in the beginning of the play itself. People laughed, enjoyed and savoured every act by the group. They set the stage ablaze by the timing of the individual acts and their expressions which exemplified their emotions to the fullest.
The audience will have the memory of play intact in their minds months after the curtains fell down.
Apart from that, they also performed ‘Spreading the News’ a short one-act comic play to be able to do something they haven’t done before. Considering that the play was filled with comedy element in it, the team seemed to have more fun behind the stage. “Our intension was to make people sit back and have fun instead of watching the play seriously. While practicing the play, we had a lot of fun back stage,” says Sabyasachi Bhanja, another director of the play.
While Esma’s experience in theatre, since her childhood, helped her in direct ion, Sabyasachi ventured into theatre during his graduation days. He says that directing is a learning experience.