The play ‘Ghughuti aur Kau’ is a folk tale based on the Ghughutiya festival of Uttarakhand. The story revolves around King Kalyan Chand of the Chand dynasty and his son Nirbhaychand (whom his mother affectionately calls Ghughuti). Ghughuti’s mother’s threat regarding his necklace—’Black crow, black, eat Ghughuti’s necklace’—leads to a unique friendship between the child and the crow.
In the plot, an evil minister attempts to harm Ghughuti and takes him to the forest. When a flock of crows attacks her, one crow picks up his garland and delivers it to the king, saving Ghughuti’s life. Following this incident, the king announces that every year on Uttarayani (Ghughutia), first the crows will be fed sweet dishes (Ghughute).
The play offers a heartfelt glimpse of this cultural tradition, highlighting the values of love, compassion, and community cooperation for nature, animals, and birds. It is an educational and entertaining work for both children and adults.
Writer
K.N. Pandey, affectionately known as “Khimda” in the theatre world, is a highly dedicated, experienced, and sensitive playwright and theatre practitioner. Khimda, hailing from the cultural heartland of Almora district in Uttarakhand, has been actively involved in the field of theatre for over 55 years and has made invaluable contributions. His entire creative life has been a powerful effort to bring to life Uttarakhand’s folk culture, traditions, beliefs, and folk life, through theatre.
He has composed, conceived, and written several important plays centered on Uttarakhand’s folk traditions. In particular, the independent conception and writing of the play ‘Saaton Aathon’ demonstrates his creative skills, while the successful adaptation of ‘Jagar’ testifies to his understanding of folk culture. Additionally, he has been active on stage as a powerful actor in plays such as ‘Amavas Ki Raat,’ ‘Graduate Pagal’, ‘Kagare Aag’, ‘Baramasa’, and ‘Rajula Malushahi’.
Khimda was also the founder of the “Kalash Kalashree” organization, which aims to organize theatre. This organization, along with providing a platform for Uttarakhand’s folk culture and theatrical traditions, also works to spread cultural awareness through theatrical performances. Khimda’s playwriting, primarily in local dialects, plays a vital role in preserving, promoting, and promoting regional cultural heritage. His contributions are a milestone in enriching and enlivening Uttarakhand’s local theatre scene.
Director
Mr. Khilanand Bhatt is a senior, disciplined, and visionary artist in Indian theatre, whose journey has been continuously active and creative for over two decades. Formal education in Sanskrit literature and drama studies has enriched his theatrical vision with Indian classical traditions, folk theatre, and contemporary theatre. He is also a B-grade artist with All India Radio.
Beginning his stage career as a repertory artist at the Parvatiya Kala Kendra in 2002, he played lead roles in plays such as “Indra Sabha,” “Ashtavakra,” “Dharamdas,” and “Katha Shailesh.” Subsequently, joining the Parvatiya Lok Kala Manch, he acted in plays such as “Swaraj aur Rajya: Ek Sapna,” and has also worked for Doordarshan and music albums.
Working as a director with the Kalash-Kalashree organization since 2016, he directed “Jagar,” “Saatu-Aathu,” and other folk-based plays. He directed “Mantra” and “Akashdeep” for the “Bal Utsav” organized by the Hindi Academy, Delhi, and successfully staged plays like “Main Chayal Chhyu” and “Pirmu Master” through the Garhwali-Kumaoni-Jaunsari Academy, Delhi.
He has actively participated in the 8th Theatre Olympics and Bharat Rang Mahotsav organized by the National School of Drama. Along with theatre, he acted in the Uttarakhandi film “Kalyugi Aulad” and worked as a production manager and artist in the film “Ghangtaul,” produced under “Jodha Film Productions.” Additionally, he composed and performed the Uttarakhandi song “Sushma Chhori.”
Currently, as the director of “Ghuguti Aur Kauw,” he is imparting a strong cultural tone to the production with his folk sensibility, theatrical discipline, and extensive experience.
Director’s Note
For me, theatre is not just an artistic medium, but a living medium to communicate with my roots, language, and culture. The folk culture, folk languages, and folk theatre traditions of Uttarakhand have been the foundation of my creative consciousness. Through this play, I strive to preserve the memories, folk beliefs, and cultural heritage of my land and pass them on to future generations.
This journey of theatre began as a simple co-actor. Today, appearing as a director on a prestigious platform like the Bharat Rang Mahotsav is the result of the guidance, blessings, and constant inspiration of my gurus. I am grateful to all my gurus who introduced me to the understanding, discipline, and sensitivity of theatre.
I salute the dedication and hard work of every artist on stage who, through their dedication, brought my vision to life. I also express special respect to all the background artists whose labor is invisible on stage, yet it is they who create the soul of the performance.
I express my heartfelt gratitude to the Garhwali, Kumaoni and Jaunsari Academy, Delhi, for their faith in us by sponsoring this theatrical performance and giving us the opportunity to showcase our culture on a platform like the Bharat Rang Mahotsav.
Group
Kalash Kalashree is a registered interstate social and cultural organization that continuously works to preserve, promote, and revitalize Uttarakhand’s vanishing cultural heritage, folk traditions, and linguistic identity. For over a decade, the organization has been actively contributing to the fields of education, health, and culture through theatrical performances, seminars, discussions, and various other cultural activities.
Through the theatrical performance “Ghuguti aur Kau,” based on Uttarakhand’s famous festival, “Uttarayan,” Kalash Kalashree aims to provide financial assistance to the disabled people of Uttarakhand and to pass on the state’s rich cultural heritage to the new generation.