10 plays selected for Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards

Ten plays from India's diverse cultural and linguistic belt have been shortlisted for the prestigious Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META). They would be staged in the capital from March 21, the organisers said on Tuesday.

The selection committee comprising theatre stalwarts like Anup Hazarika, Deepa Punjani Krishnan, Sajitha Madathil, Sudhir Tandon and Vinod Nagpal chose these plays from a close to 300 entries and each one of them celebrates the rich diversity of Indian theatre.

Two Hindi plays- "A Striagnt Proposal" by Happy Ranajit, Abhishek Majumdar's "Kaumudi" and a bilingual(Hindi and English) "Still and Still Moving" by Neel Chaudhuri have made it to the shortlist.

Six plays in Indian languages have also made it to the list.

They include Marathi play "Aaydaan", Kannada play "Chitrapata", Assamese play "Dhou...The Wave", Manipuri play "Dreams From My Room", another Assamese play" Fall of a King- Burha Manuhor Babe Desh Nai", Malayalam play "Matthi" and an English play" Rage and Beyond: Irawati's Gandhari".

"Our vision in 2006 was to celebrate Indian theatre by creating a national platform for performance and recognition. As we complete a decade, we are proud that this award has become an institution of prestige for theatre groups across the country," said Jay Shah, head, cultural outreach, Mahindra and Mahindra,.

The theatre festival ends on March 26.