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Manish Mitra
Manish Mitra
	Manish Mitra Manish Mitra
Born	8 August 1967 (age 57); Kolkata, India
Years active	1984 – present

Manish Mitra (born in 8 August 1967) is an Indian theater director. He has developed a new theater philosophy and actor's training methodology sourcing inspiration from different traditional and folk theatre and performing arts of India. being tired, of the realistic naturalistic theater practice of this city, Kolkata. He founded his own theater Kasba Arghya in search of a new theater. He had been travelling widely across the length and breath of India interacting with the folk artists and the traditional practitioners. He also traveled a lot in Europe specially in Poland, where he conducted actors' training workshops, directed plays and even showcased the plays directed by him in his own theater Kasba Arghya. He has been strongly influenced by the ideas of Jerzy Grotowski and Eugenio Barba. He visited Odin Teatret in a number of occasions when he chanced to see Eugenio working with his actors and also showcased his own plays. Based on his sustained experiments on the physical being of actors and music cognition on the actors' psycho-somatic body, the Nada Upashana and the process of developing a unique aesthetics in the expression and articulation of the actor through the practice of traditional Sanskrit Theatre Kutiyattam, he developed the new philosophy of Organic Theatre.He founded the Indian avant-garde theatre ensemble KASBA ARGHYA in 1989.

Early Life and Education

Manish Mitra is the son of Monoranjan Mitra and Manju Mitra.

Manish Mitra completed his graduation with Physics from Calcutta University on 1990. He did the summer Shakespeare course from the CSSD, University of London, receiving a scholarship from the British Council. This was when he chanced to visit the Globe Theatre and see many plays in London.

Theatrical Activities

Manish Mitra a playwright director of Indian theatre associated himself with theatre activities since his boyhood. In his college life he initiates lots of theatre oriented projects among the students of his college and felt inspired to take up theatre activities seriously and consequently joined CHARANIK. Later he was tired with the cliché realistic, naturalistic theatre practice of his city and felt that the practice is not rooted in the ethnic tradition of the country. So he founded KASBA ARGHYA, his own theatre group with the objective of creating a platform from where a group of creative youths may exchange their creative and intellectual views and thru continuous theatre activities may address the social evils or the political dogmas and thus look for a saner society.

As a playwright he composed plays like EKLA, SANKAT, PRARABDHA, SAAT KAHAN PALA, BINGSHA SATABDIR EKADASHI, MA NISHAD, KALASROTE, RIOT and HOSTEL. He had also dramatized Abul Basar’s novel Shesh Roopkatha and his short story Simar. He has the distinction of being the director of productions like EKLA, SANKAT, PRARABDHA, SAAT KAHAN PALA, MA NISHAD, SHESH ROOPKATHA, DAKSHIN RAYER PALA, SIMAR, RIOT, KALASROTE, BHARATKATHA, KATHAGAAN, RAKTAKARABI, KARNA, MEGHADUTAM, MEGHNADBADH KAVYA, URUBHANGAM, RAKTABHUMI PREM PARAB KATHA, AMERICAN FOOTBALL, MACBETH BADYA, VIRTUAL DIALOGOUSE, ANDHAYUG-THE AGE OF HOLOCAUST, DR. FAUSTUS, ANTIGONE, RABIDADUR PATHSHALA, PREETHI SAMBHRAMADHA KANASU. Mr. Mitra has a special inclination for working with folk elements and has initiated the group to do extensive research work on the folklores of Sunderbans and the Purulia district of West Bengal. Manish’s research work on the Indigenous art forms like Pandavani and Kutiyattam had significantly influenced his process of making of theatre. Manish had also the experience of working with Therukoothu, a folk art form of Tamil Nadu and Theyyam, the folk art of Kerala. His exposure to Folk art forms of Purulia viz Chhou and Jhumur had strongly influenced the making of his plays. Manish received the Dishari award for directing Shesh Roopkatha. He is a director of national repute and many of his productions had toured all over the country . Two of his productions had been awarded with more than two National Awards.

He has done extensive research work on the Folk Culture of the country and also on the NATYASHASTRA under Vachaspati Dr. K.G.Paulose, Ex Vice Chancellor of KALAMANDALAM UNIVERSITY.

He had done an extensive research work on Grotowski’s theatre at Grotowski Institute, Poland.

He has worked with Eugenio Barba in a number of occasions in Odin Teatret in Denmark.

He travelled with his productions ‘Mahabharata, and ‘Macbeth Badya’ widely across the globe. He directed an international production of Post Office a Rabindranath Tagore play with actors from India, USA, Germany and Poland, which was premiered in Warsaw. His contributions on aesthetics of Sanskrit dramas and dramaturgy are considered significant by academicians and practitioners.

At present Manish has shifted from the Urban Theatre to a practise in the lap of nature, mostly villages and forests. He is pursuing a new concept in the name of Organic Theatre.

Plays

1. EKLA

2. SANKAT

3. PRARABDHA

4. SAAT KAHAN PALA

5. BINGSHA SATABDIR EKADASHI

6. MA NISHAD

7. KALASROTE

8. RIOT

9. HOSTEL'

10. PRARABDHA

11. CHANAKYA

12. NANA GHAR

13. HAMLET JANTRANA

14. VIRTUAL DIALOGOUSE

15. ANDHAYUG-THE AGE OF HOLOCAUST

Directions

1. EKLA

2. SANKAT

3. PRARABDHA

4. SAAT KAHAN PALA

5. MA NISHAD

6. SHESH ROOPKATHA

7. DAKSHIN RAYER PALA

8. SIMAR

9. RIOT

10. KALASROTE

11. BHARATKATHA

12. KATHAGAAN

13. RAKTAKARABI

14. KARNA

15. BEFORE THE GERMINATION

16. MEGHADUTAM

17. MEGHNADBADH KAVYA

18. URUBHANGAM

19. SHAKESPEARE TRAGIC HEROES

20. HAMLET JANTRANA

21. RAKTABHUMI PREM PARAB KATHA

22. AMERICAN FOOTBALL

23. MACBETH BADYA

24. VIRTUAL DIALOGOUSE

25. ANDHAYUG-THE AGE OF HOLOCAUST

26. DR. FAUSTUS

27. ANTIGONE

28. RABIDADUR PATHSHALA

29. PREETHI SAMBHRAMADA KANASU.

References

External Links

Category:Theatre Director Category:Theatre Personality Category:Theatre Category:Drama Category:Indian theatre directors