World Theatre Day: Government Auditoriums Out Of Reach, Bhopal Artistes Create Their Own Cozy Spaces To Keep Theatre Alive
· Free Press Journal
Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Theatre artistes in the city are working in their own ways to overcome the lack of proper and affordable auditoriums for staging plays.
Bharat Bhavan has been closed for private performances for years. Shaheed Bhavan, too, is shut. The Old and New Ravindra Bhavans are unaffordable for most theatre groups as their daily rent is upwards of Rs 1 lakh.
Visit h-doctor.club for more information.
The artiste fraternity has been demanding that the government open Bharat Bhavan for all performances and bring down rentals at the Ravindra Bhavans. However, there has been no response so far. Against this backdrop, some artistes have set up their own small theatres called black box theatres in different parts of the city.
They are not very well equipped and cannot accommodate large audiences, but they are helping keep theatre alive.
On the eve of World Theatre Day, Free Press spoke to some such artistes.
Fan regulators as dimmers
Yogesh Parihar's Rangrez Blackbox Studio Theatre is located in E-8 Extension of Arera Colony. It is spread over 1,200 sq ft and can accommodate 70 to 80 people.
Parihar said, "It is the oldest studio theatre in the city, set up in 2015. When I was staging shows in Bengaluru and Kolkata, I saw many studio theatres had been set up there because they gave theatre persons the flexibility and freedom that government auditoriums did not allow. I decided to do the same in Bhopal. That was how Rangrez came about."
"The total set-up cost was around Rs 2 lakh. Most of our equipment is jugaad. For instance, we have used fan and cooler regulators as dimmers." he added.
Cozy and intimate space
Theatre artiste Naini Kawansh has been running Khayal Black Box Theatre since September 2023. It is located in Vidya Nagar on Hoshangabad Road. She converted a godown on the top floor of her father's office into a black box theatre.
She said,"Big auditoriums are either not available or are too costly. Moreover, their seating capacity runs into several hundreds or even more than a thousand. New artistes can never hope to draw such large crowds. What we needed was a cosy and intimate space."
Khayal is equipped with basic light and sound systems and is air-conditioned. Besides plays, stand-up shows as well as music and dance events are held there. The seating capacity is around 100.
New audience
Shadow Space, a black box theatre, was set up by theatre director Manoj Nair in the Rohit Nagar area about four years ago. It is spread over 800 sq ft and includes a washroom, a pantry, a sound studio and a guest room for visiting directors.
Nair said, "If you are passionate about something, you always find a way to keep it alive. Adding that they had staged around 20 shows so far. Excluding the cost of land, he has spent around Rs 5 lakh on setting up the space. He said small theatres help create new audiences and allow closer interaction between theatre persons and theatre lovers.
Nitish Bharadwaj’s Chakravyuh enthrals audience
The play Chakravyuh, starring Nitish Bharadwaj, enthralled the audience at Ravindra Bhavan on Thursday. It was part of the inaugural day of the four-day Indimoons Arts Festival 2026, organised by the Ranga Theatre Group.
Directed by Atul Satya Kaushik, the play unfolds the narrative of the 13th day of the Mahabharata war. The central theme, that no one can escape the chakravyuh created by their own karma (actions), provided a philosophical foundation for the production.
Bhopal News: Dhurandhar's Rakesh Bedi To Perform At 4-Day Art Festival Starting March 26--Check Power-Packed Line-UpIn the role of Abhimanyu, Sahil Chhabra delivered a balanced portrayal of youthful energy, courage and compassion.
The most striking feature of the play was its technical execution. Powerful lighting design, precise musical arrangement and vibrant stage décor made the battle sequences particularly impactful.