Jahnabi Sanskritik Chakra Presents ‘Baki Itihaas’
Shankha Bhattacharyya
The play Baki Itihaas (The Remaining History) was penned by Badal Sircar in 1965. Deeply rooted in the philosophy of the Theatre of the Absurd, it reflects the existential crisis and absurdities of human life—marked by weariness, despair, emptiness, and suicidal tendencies. While the play adheres to the elements of absurdist theatre, it also dives into the depths of abnormal psychology.
Through the protagonist Sitanath, Badal Sircar explores the meaningless passage of time:
“Eleven years? Eleven centuries. Eleven thousand years. A history of meaningless years. A history of meaningless men and meaningless worms.”
This line, steeped in existential angst, encapsulates the thematic core of the play.
Inspired by a suicide report in a newspaper, the narrative unfolds in three acts. In the first half, characters like Basanti are introduced, while the second half focuses on Sharadindu. In the third act, Sitanath returns as a ghost who haunts the playwright Sharadindu. Their dialogue reveals the inner conflict between Sharadindu’s conscious and subconscious minds. It seems Sharadindu, like Sitanath, is on the verge of taking his own life, but an unexpected entry by Basudev averts the tragedy.
On Sunday, June 1, 2025, Baki Itihaas was successfully staged at Tapan Theatre under the direction of Samarjit Das. This was the third production of the play by Jahnabi Sanskritik Chakra.
Historically, Baki Itihaas was first performed on May 7, 1967 at New Empire Theatre under the direction of Shambhu Mitra (22.08.1915 – 19.05.1997) by the theatre group Bohurupee. Notable performances included Kumar Roy as Sharadindu, Amar Gangopadhyay as Bijoy, and Debatosh Ghosh as Sitanath.
Director Samarjit Das has achieved a remarkable feat by shaping this production with a vibrant team of young artists. The play opened with an enchanting choreographed sequence featuring Anwesha Hazra, Abhay Dutta, Pritam Mallik, Priyanka Purkayastha, Granthan Das, Pratyusha Ray, Triparna Pal, Aisharya Pal, Jaydeep Dutta and Aritra.
The role of Sitanath was powerfully portrayed by Bedadyuti Das, capturing the audience’s attention with depth and gravitas. Matching him in performance were Pronoy Patra as Sharadindu and Amit Sultania as Bijoy. Other commendable performances came from Bratati Ganguly (Kona), Mrittika Rai (Basanti), Pritam Mallik (Nikhil), Radosi Sarkar (Parbati), Udayan Chakraborty (The Old Man), Prosenjit Sur (Basudeb), and the director Samarjit Das himself as Bidhubhusan. Ankita Pal, as Gauri, delivered a fine performance in alignment with her character. The others also performed well as per the character demands.
A major highlight of the production was its compelling mime performance. A team of eight—Anwesha Hazra, Granthan Das, Triparna Pal, Anwesha Talukdar, Abhay Dutta, Pritam Mallik, Priyanka Purkayastha, and Pratyusha Ray—delivered a mesmerising sequence that delighted the audience.
The stage design and execution were praiseworthy, thanks to Ajit Roy and Babu Roy. Background score by Anwesha Hazra and Mehli Das complemented the narrative well. The lighting design by Bablu Sarkar crafted several dramatic moments with finesse. Choreography was handled by Madhumita Mukherjee and Mehli Das, while Amit Chakraborty was commendable in his role as makeup artist.
With this production of Baki Itihaas, staged in the centenary year of playwright Badal Sircar (15.07.1925 – 13.05.2011), Jahnabi Sanskritik Chakra has presented a deeply reflective and artistically rich theatrical work. Under Samarjit Das’s thoughtful direction, this play is poised to become a landmark production for the group.