Journalists stage play on land reforms act

HUBBALLI: Journalists in Koppal have drawn attention to the region by presenting the play "Sampattige Savaal", which was earlier released as a movie starring legendary thespian Rajkumar.
Play convener Somaraddi Alavandi said some members of the Koppal Media Club are very interested in theatre. "As most of us are from rural backgrounds, we're aware about dramas presented by professional theatre companies of North Karnataka.We saw that professional dramas are losing their audience due to cheap comedy and double-meaning dialogues. That's why we decided to present 'Sampattige Savaal', scripted by late playwright PB Dhuttargi, and is very popular in the region," he said.
Alavandi said the club spent around Rs 80,000 to stage the play. "We got a financial assistance of Rs 25,000 from the Kannada and culture department and mobilized funds from journalists. Interestingly, drama enthusiasts gave us a lot of money as gifts. Now, we have a surplus amount of around Rs 30,000 and we plan to set up a library for journalists. However, this has to be finalized by all members at the next meeting," he said.
Gangadhar Bandihal, president, Koppal Media Club, said the play was planned three months ago.
"Given our work routines, it was very difficult to get actors together for rehearsal. Sometimes, we'd rehearse at 7am and at times, after work, between 10pm and 2am. We also honoured Usharani, a senior theatre artiste, who got the Rajyotsava Award this year, when we staged the play," he said.
Sharanappa Bachalapur, who played the role of Mariyappa, mentioned that the play focuses on the land reforms act and sends a message of eradicating social discrimination in the society. Gavisiddeshwar Mahaswami of Gavimath, Koppal, said journalists have the responsibility of reflecting the shortcomings of the society. "Apart from their work, here they're using theatre, which is another effective medium," he said.
Nanda Hosamani, a professional theatre artiste, who played Sangavva, said journalists were serious about the whole exercise. "Their dedication was no less than any artiste of professional drama companies," she said.