Govindamanikya, Tripura’s monarch, on realizing the futility of blood sacrifices, issues a ban on slaughters at the altar of the Goddess. Even village girl Aparna’s kid was not exempted from this sacrifice. This causes a general discontent in the state that is encouraged by high priest Raghupati, who decides to incite everyone against the King. He starts by playing on the emotions of the childless queen Gunavati and then moves on to the King’s brother Nakshatraray. However, all his efforts fail until he finally finds Jaisingha, a Rajput by birth, who has unquestionable faith in the deity and becomes his mentor. Caught between blind faith and a mixed sense of morality and witnessing the clash between Raghupati and Govindamanikya, Jaisingha finally decides to sacrifice himself as the only solution to the stalemate. Raghupati realizes his fake pride, and set himself free from religious orthodoxy. Finally, he discovers his true Goddess in village girl Aparna. Bisarjan explores the meaning of true devotion and exposes the heinous, barbaric, and brutal acts perpetrated by fundamental religious orthodoxy.
Director
Born in Agartala, Prabhitangsu Das inherited puppetry from his father, Late Haripada Das, the pioneer of puppetry in Tripura. He has participated in a UNICEF and Academic Central Puppet Theatre (U.S.S.R.) workshop in 1988. After his father’s demise in 1999, he took charge of Tripura Puppet Theatre, promoting Tripura’s tribal folklore and culture through contemporary stylization. His major productions include Janmadin, Tetnai, Bandhu – The Alien Friend, Puppet Express, Bisarjan, Green Green, Chandalika, Moments with Mahatma, Rani Lakshmibai – with Bisarjan acclaimed in the segment “Days of India” in Germany festival. A visiting faculty at NSD TIE, Agartala, he is conducting Kala Deeksha training programme by Sangeet Natak Akademi, and regular monthly junior puppet shows to train junior talents. He has been felicitated with Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (2016), Srijon Samman (2008), and Tripura Samman (2015).
Director’s Note
Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore’s Bisarjan is deeply rooted in the heritage of Tripura. One day, while visiting the Bhuvaneshwari Temple in Udaipur, Tripura, I found myself reflecting on the story of this play. It was at that sacred place that a thought arose in my mind – why not bring this profound and humane tale to life through the art of puppetry? Upon returning, I shared the idea with my team. Everyone responded with heartfelt enthusiasm and agreement. Thus began our creative journey – to present Tagore’s timeless message of humanity and compassion in the simplest way possible, without straying from his original vision, and to make it accessible and meaningful to all.
Group
Tripura Puppet Theatre (TPT), a pioneering puppetry organization in North-East India, has been promoting the indigenous folk-art form of puppetry since 1974. TPT presents puppet plays in an experimental style, incorporating contemporary Rod, Glove, Shadow, String, and Bunraku forms of puppetry. The group has been organizing a special series of puppet shows for children and by children every 4th Sunday at the Haripada Das Performance Space of TPT. The group has successfully organized the “Tripura International Puppet Utsav 2024” at Rabindra Shatabarsiki Bhawan, Agartala. The festival showcased performances by internationally acclaimed puppetry teams from the USA, Brazil, Bangladesh, and India, including The Puppeteers of Burdwan (West Bengal) and Ishara Puppet Trust, directed by Padma Shri Dadi Pudumjee.