Calcutta:
More than 200 Calcuttans strung together their impression of the city through keepsakes and stories at a crowdsourced event in GD Birla Sabhagar on Friday.
A month-long campaign on Facebook and Instagram prompted artistes, professionals and students to join Kolkata 100/100. Centre Stage Creations presented the art installation project as part of the Sabhagar Theatre Festival.
Various shades of city life were brought alive through stories of love, struggle and fight for justice. “I was the outsider who would come here to visit grandparents during vacations,” Rajashree Bose, a professional, said.
Her story traced her metamorphosis from an outsider watching Chuti chuti and loving mithai during vacations to a true blue Calcuttan who complains about the lack of job opportunities yet enjoys its comfortable lifestyle.
Many stories focused on optimism. Rupkotha Mukherjee spoke about her fight with depression and her love for writing poetry. “I look at depression in a positive light. It has helped me write better,” the student said.
Some traced the city’s dark side. Activist Ekaboli Ghosh spoke of the abuse that she and her mother faced at home and the daily crime against women in the city. “I am very disillusioned with the city,” she said.
The storytelling session – I Am #NOTA FACEINTHECROWD – was peppered with nostalgia, confessions, political views and humour.
Shahidul Islam’s account of how he fought against taking dowry and managed to convert his village won plenty of applause.
Stories also came out through objects. Every object came with a note about its importance in the owner’s life.
A red letter box, a prop used in a play Priyo Bandhu by Mad About Drama, was one of the first objects to grab eyeballs. Perched on top of it was an Old Monk bottle, a remnant of Alokananda Mandal’s college days. Student Priyadarshini Mukherjee had contributed a No Entry signboard, a 21st birthday gift from a bestie who had stolen it on his 21st birthday.
source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph, Calcutta,India / Home> Calcutt / by Chandreyee Ghose / December 03rd, 2017