Amar Gaon - A Theatre Village for Dwarfs

Apart from the technical aspects like Acting, Directing, Set Design, Light Design etc, theatre knowledge and training has always looked beyond exploring the amazing qualities of a human being in a holistic developmental approach.   Pabitra Rabha an alumni of NSD (National School of Drama), New Delhi (2003) established a theatre group called Dapon, The Mirror in 2003 at his hometown Tangla (Udalguri District, Assam), with a firm objective for promoting and preserving the cultural heritage of the country at large and enhancing the theatre movement in particular.   Under the aegis of Dapon, The Mirror, Pabitra Rabha created a permanent DWARF Theatre village called "Amar Gaon" in 2012, which is open for all creative Dwarves. The striking part of this theatre village is an ongoing project in progress where theatrical and vocational training is being provided for the Dwarves and scholars from all over India guides them.   As one of the faculties, Bendang Walling, Hill Theatre Nagaland participated at the recently concluded one month residential theatre workshop. The workshop was sponsored by NSD (National School of Drama), New Delhi at Amar Gaon, where participants from various districts of Assam participated along with the artists from this village. “It was indeed an enlightening experience for me and has strengthened my resolve to work harder for humanity and to look beyond the normally accepted notions of life,” Bendang stated.   The workshop ended with a play called "Drama – It’s All About It" which was conceptualized and directed by Pabitra Rabha, while I assisted him. The play is about friendship and conflicts between different body parts & body organs of a human being. Through the medium of our body parts & organs, the socio-eco & political issue are highlighted & discussed. It is an open-ended play on what you choose to believe.