"کبیرا کھڑا بازار میں " A Spiritual journey of Bhagat Kabeer

Whenever serious stage plays are named "Ajoka Theatre" comes at top of the list. "Ajoka Theatre" was formed by Madeeha Gauhar and Salman Shahid in 1983. Numerous classical dramas and artistic plays are there on profile of "Ajoka Theatre". Ajoka has proven its excellence not only on national level, but it has been appreciated by the audience and critics of India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Srilanka and many European countries. 

Launching Indo Pak joint ventures is a common practice of "Ajoka Theatre" where directors, writers and artists from the other side of the border join in. In result of such collaboration and knowledge sharing the master pieces like  "کبیرا کھڑا بازار میں " are originated. 

"کبیرا کھڑا بازار میں " is the latest production of "Ajoka Theatre" premiered in Lahore on January 26, 2016. The play was performed for 3 consecutive days. It was highly appreciated by the audience and received standing ovation on all three days. The play is written by  Bhisham Sahni who is a Pakistani born, Indian writer and directed by India's well-known theatre director Kewal Dhaliwal. 

"Kabeera Khara Bazar Mein" is the biography of the mystic/Sufi personality of 15th century "Bhagat Kabeer". Kabir, born in a lower class Muslim family of weavers of Banaras. Naturally, he had thirst of knowledge and this thirst lead him towards a spiritual level where he fearlessly declared abomination regarding caste, class and creed divides. His thoughts were soon acknowledged by the poor and lower class of society, as they were the real victims, suffering due to the cruelty and injustice of the qazis, mullas, pundits and muhants. His fame, respect and status in hearts of people was not tolerable for the religious establishment of both religions Islam and Hinduism. Inspite of numerous hurdles and problems he carried on preaching the people and rectifying their concept about religions through his poetry. 

As far as my experience concerns, I found  "کبیرا کھڑا بازار میں " a master piece. "Excellent" is the word which fairly describes the play. The direction, acting skills, dialogues, lights, music in short, the overall execution was epic. The entire cast had remarkable acting skills especially the main lead Usama Zia (Kabeer). I wondered how he had memorized the poetry of Bhagat Kabeer, even though there was a huge language difference. The most amazing thing was Usama Zia didn't made even a single mistake. I am sure his performance won't be omitted by the audience for years. 

Another thing which amused me immensely, was the background music. The musicians were presented there on stage and were playing music based on poetry of Bhagat Kabeer. The soulful voices of artists, the meaningful lyrics and the melodious tune along with the pin drop silence of the hall, dragged me to the era of Bhagat Kabeer. 

I also loved the engaging dance performances between the scenes. They were exceptionally choreographed. The dance performances not only made the play musical but also gave it a flavor of culture of Bhagat Kabeer's era. I would be unfair if I didn't mention the performance of boys with long hairs (don't know the names). They did stupendous job through out the play as there passion could be seen clearly. 

Overall the play "کبیرا کھڑا بازار میں " was a master piece.  As an attendee I loved each and every thing about the play. Music ,acting skill, dance performances, dialogues, presentation, every thing was incredible. Certainly Ajoka has always brought forward quality entertainment with a message of peace.

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"Usama Zia" The star of the show