LAHORE: A play titled Bayzabaan (tongueless) was staged at Alhamra Art Centre, The Mall, on Tuesday.

The 45-minute long theatrical production was the outcome of a 17-day theatre workshop for children.

Speaking on the occasion, chief guest Punjab Minister for Culture and Information Samsam Bukhari lauded the performance and hoped that the LAC would continue to hold such activities for the youth.

The workshop was organised by Lahore Arts Council for the promotion of quality theatre focusing on children. The one-act play had the recorded music.

Rukhsana Khan, the moving spirit behind Punjab Theatre and director of the play, told Dawn that a lot of effort was done by participants in the workshop to make the theatrical production a big success.

Ms Khan said during the 17-day workshop children learnt different techniques of theatre with a special focus on the play.

Mentioning the theme, the director said the play written by Shahid Rassal was about animal rights and environment.

The story is based on hypocrisy and the indecision of the society regarding the language crisis the country had been facing since its creation. A majority of the population thinks in mother tongue, in schools they are taught Urdu as medium of expression and in universities they have no option but to learn English for their higher studies. The play perfectly mirrors this dilemma.

The writer has tried to convey the message that animals and their species also have as much right to live as the human beings have. One day these animals get a chance to speak as human beings for 24 hours and it’s the most interesting part of the play.

Published in Dawn, July 10th, 2019